A Single Man (2009) ****

Set in 1960, the year of Psycho and Kennedy, A Single Man follows the planned last day on earth for George (Colin Firth), a Londoner who teaches English at a Southern California college. We follow George through his day as he meticulously plans his own death. He has nothing left to live for. His partner Jim (Matthew Goode) was killed in a car accident, leaving a void in his life that not only can't be filled, but can't be fully expressed to anyone besides himself and his best friend Charley (Julianne Moore).

This is a very simple film. We basically follow George as he wakes up, takes, a shit, goes to work, buys bullets, lays his papers out for the poor person who finds him, and figures out where to blow his head off. As the day goes by, however, George has interactions with people. No one special, just people. An odd, almost stalker of a student, a little girl, a guy hanging out at a liquor store, and that voice of reason Charley. Director Tom Ford makes sure you realizes that George's life is bleak, but human companionship lightens up his life like a when a cloud gets past the sun and the lights come back on to scorch the grass and vinyl seats. It's a move that could be a major risk, but it works great.

This is Colin Firth's film, deservedly getting an Oscar nomination that he would have never won because this film is a little too small and there was no way to beat the Jeff Bridges juggernaut. He plays off of the cynicism that George has developed, delivering a character that doesn't believe in man or life anymore.His life has turned to shit right along with the rest of the world.

A Single Man is no tear jerker. It's goal isn't to squeeze tears from your eyes and to wrench your heart until you get that lump in your throat. It's more of a character piece with George as the front and center star, dealing with grief that he has to swallow and choke on every day since he got that phone call.