A Single Man

CineWorld have beenTHROWING films at the SL Movie Club this year.  Seriously.  We've had three free films from them this week.  And just last night, I saw a gang of CineWorld staff rugby tackle some bloke from Healthcare and forcibly carry him off to see Jeff Bridge's Golden Globe worthy performance in "Crazy Heart".  It's madness, I tell you.

So last night I went to see Colin Firth in A Single Man, certificate 12.  "Oh b*gger," said Lisa.  "That means he won't get his kit off."

That aside Colin Firth gives probably his best performance yet as George Falconer, a college professor struggling with grief after his partner Jim dies in car accident.  George is a very particular man who likes routine, and so the order and discipline in his life sustain him until his memories of Jim eventually thin into whispers and despair takes over.  We follow him as he prepares for the end - getting his gun ready, seeing friends one last time and laying out his clothes. 

All this takes place in the shadow of the Cuban missile crisis and finality hangs over the whole film, but while it is a sad tale, it's not depressing.  There are even a few laughs.  A Single Man is more about what the point of a life is, and how any of us carry on with the knowledge that we're finite.

Lisa tells me that Tom Ford was creative director of Gucci or something, but gave it all up to get into directing.  I have to say, this does not look like a first film.  Every scene is very composed and framed just perfectly, and he clearly got the best out of his actors - especially Colin Firth whose veneer of restraint only occasionally gives way to incomprehension and grief.

So not exactly a jolly evening, but I enjoyed the film and it left me thinking.  And just for Lisa, Colin did get his kit off.  8/10

"Living in the past is my future."