Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: A Single Man

This is topic A Single Man in forum Film Handlers' Movie Reviews at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 02-27-2010, 10:08 AM:

Literally put me to sleep.

Nice performance by Colin Firth, what I saw of it.

Not recommended.

Posted by Gerard S. Cohen (Member # 994) on 03-08-2010, 11:41 AM:

This film by Tom Ford, formerly top designer of a big fashion house, depicts the bereavement of a (closeted) gay English Lit. professor at a quiet campus in the 1960s.

The slow-moving film betrays the director's enthusiasm for fashion design in its opulent sets, costumes and imagery. Camerawork includes fullscreen eyeball closeups when George meets prospective pickups or someone who reminds him of his lost lover. While this technique seems to indicate George's attemts to determine the sexual orientation of the person he encounters and the risk or safety of initiating or responding to an overture, it becomes a tiresome mannerism and seems to substitute for real acting. The film also contains many shots of nude male torsos writhing in space to convey the repressed desires of the main character.

George is fastideously neat, handsome and cautious. In the classroom he promotes acceptance of minorities, but of those he lists, gays are noticeably absent. The viewer wonders whether he will overcome the pain of bereavement, and find a new lover. We see that George relates well to women and children, is well-off and respected by all, but there is not much suspense or plot to make this film work for me.

Unlike the docu-drama MILK in which the real character Harvey Milk led protests seeking civil rights for gays and lesbians, George, who visually resembles Van Doren, is completely non-political. Despite some scenes I found comical and the ironic surprise ending, this film was for me not very memorable