A Single Man

Grade: A

An exquisite portrait of grief, Tom Ford has written and directed a breathless work of genuine beauty and emotional clarity.

As a gay man in the 1960s overcome with despair over the sudden loss of his partner of 16 years, Colin Firth is the very thing itself. His overwhelming loss is quietly devastating, a pain so utterly debilitating and so culturally unacknowledged that he emanates swallowed grief. The simple honesty of his portrayal feels very much like breathing under water, the palpable anguish every human who has experienced loss knows all too well while trying to maintain a dignified air of normality in the presence of others. Graceful memories come and go in fleeting moments, and Ford stunningly juxtaposes the dull colorlessness of grief with momentary bursts of vibrant life. The film’s cinematography captures the pulsating emotions of such loss as no other film that has come before.

Effectively a three person “day-in-the-life” novella, Julianne Moore is solid as the brash best friend internalizing dashed hopes of her own, a survivor of a seemingly loveless marriage and the heartbreak of an unrequited and never possible love. But it is Nicholas Hoult (known to many as Tony in BBC’s “Skins,” impressive here without even a hint of his Brit accent) who also astounds, overtly sensual yet also filled with aching tenderness toward his professor, and a longing that is at once brimming with sexuality and his own sense of wonderment and sadness – it is both Firth’s memories of his great love (Matthew Goode, in too few scenes together that with all speed beautifully telegraph the depth of their love for one another) and his scenes with Hoult that are especially surprising and effecting, two isolated men of different generations trying to find connection within each other.

Adapted from Christopher Isherwood’s novel, Ford has flooded his piece with poignant imagery – waking up in the morning and shrinking back into the recognition of who you are and the life you’re living, the smell of a beloved pet that trigger feelings of such unconditional love and affection, the devastating sexuality of a brief yet unfulfilled encounter. Living every day as though it may be your last, absorbing every moment, just how fleeting is love and life. Like a truly fine glass of port sipped in front of a roaring fireplace, this is a romantic work to be savored.

More Movie Info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1315981/