Tom Ford's debut is A Singular Sensation

Having heard nothing but rave reviews for Tom Ford's debut effort A Single Man (a project he co-helmed with David Scearce, based upon the Christopher Isherwood novel) I was eager to spend a Sunday morning observing his take on filmmaking, figuring that at the very least I would get to spend some time with the absolutely exquisite Colin Firth. How I do love being pleasantly surprised...

While the film's aesthetic often suggest that you are in fact watching a two hour commercial for the Tom Ford Collection or a very elaborate perfume advert, the visuals manage to weave seamlessly with the story and compliment the minimalist writing in a beautiful way. The vast majority of the truly important moments in the film are absolutely silent, excepting of course Julianne Moore's desperate best girlfriend Charley who's constant chatter lends a perfect counterpoint to Firth's remarkably quiet George (in fact if it weren't for all the talking, I would call her performance effortless in its perfection). I must say, for his first time around the block Ford's visual style and assuredness is quite remarkable and manages to be light years ahead of a many of the veterans I have been watching lately (though it could simply be a case of laziness on their part).

One thing I should point out though is that Ford does not accomplish this feat entirely free of obstacles. There is one shot that bothered me quite a bit and while I know why it was there, I think that perhaps it did not accomplish what he set out to do. Near the start of the film there is a long scene in which we observe George existing alone in his home and near the end of the scene there is a push back to reveal how alone George truly is with the large wooden home standing empty around him. Unfortunately what this also manages to suggest (as it occurs within the first ten minutes of the film) is that this is the last glimpse we will have inside of George's mind. For a film that is paced almost entirely by George's thoughts and recollections is perhaps not what the filmmaker had intended. While it is a beautiful shot, it would perhaps have been better serviced as an insert rather than a moving shot. But that's me being picky...

Altogether a truly fantastic film, I was very pleasantly surprised by how Wonderfully complex the relationships were revealed to be in such a short time. While the film takes place over one day in November, a good part of the back story is supplied by George's recollections. This, of course, accounts for the entirely one sided view of his relationship with lover Jim. The intriguing thing about this pairing though is that while all the memories of Jim are positive, there is a suggestion of deeper emotional connection and the sense that there are old disagreements floating in the periphery. It ads a layer to the relationship that makes George's desire to remember only the good entirely palatable (and what's more, believable).

A crowning achievement, both in acting and directing (as well as set dressing, cinematography...the list could go on) I will be very surprised if we're not hearing about this one when Oscar comes a calling...

-Siobhan

P.s. When I was searching out the image above I came across this Elton John cover...I though I'd include it as an interesting layer...