A Single Man

R

Released Dec 11, 2009

1 hr. 39 min.

Drama

LGBTQ+

List

86%

198 Reviews

Tomatometer

81%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

George (Colin Firth) is a college professor who recently lost his lover, Jim, in a car accident. Terribly grief-stricken, George plans to commit suicide. As he goes about his daily routine and puts his affairs in order, his encounters with colleagues, students and an old friend (Julianne Moore) lead him to make a final decision as to whether life is worth living without Jim.

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Critics Consensus

Though the costumes are beautiful and the art direction impeccable, what stands out most from this debut by fashion designer Tom Ford is the leading performance by Colin Firth.

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Capt N

Moving, excellent performances by Firth and Moore. One of the top 10 movies of this generation. Brilliant and beautiful.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/28/24

Full Review

Barefoot C

One of the finest films I have ever seen. I watch it again every once in a while to remind myself what is important in life. Kudos to Tom Ford, Colin Firth and Julianne Moore for making such a great film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/20/24

Full Review

Jack T

Colin Firth is his usual understated perfection in this elegy for a man hollowed out by the death of his partner. Tom Ford's art direction makes the sad story visually stunning at every moment, with a haunting score. The sense of time and place, California in the early 60s, vividly contrasts with the emotional turmoil of George's solitary world. A gorgeous film, one I watch over and over.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/14/24

Full Review

Gareth v

A fantastic movie, that shows Ford has style but also some substance. Firth shines in this poignant movie about grief.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

06/19/23

Full Review

isla s

I thought this was a really poignant film. Its about loss and I felt a bit about the English 'stiff upper lip', with the main character being an English ex-pat. Its set in the 1960s, at a time when there were fears about a potential cold war and the like and indeed there are aspects of the main character, George, of his life that he feels unable to share with others. Its fair to say that secrets is one of the main themes of the film. Its also about enforced isolation. It is quite a colourful film, in a literal sense, with a yellow-ish tinge present for some of the running time - at another point its more of a rosy pink/red shade. There is a bit of an arty feel to this film but its not like others with a riddle type feel to the dialogue. This film has less in the way of dialogue but leaves the viewer to decide what they think may be to come, what George is thinking and when, or if, others may intervene. Before I watched it, I knew the basic plot and so I was aware it would be a sobering watch, which of course it was but I'd say it was more of a general, almost philosophical type of a watch, rather than a fast paced, direct face to face emotional sob-fest of a watch (if that makes any sense?). Its more thoughtful and sobering than it is a case of being a direct tearjerker, or an violent action type film. Having said that, if you have had direct experience of suicide or suicidal thoughts then its probably best to avoid this film (I don't view this as a spoiler as such as its part of the main plot which is mentioned in most websites synopsis of the film). I'm not sure I could describe it any clearer than that. While it is undoubtedly an arty type film, it didn't come across to me as especially pretentious, which is a plus point in my books. Although, having said that, there is some classical music played at one point which perhaps felt a bit forced but it didn't overly bother me as such. One thing I found particularly moving was the children in the area, young kids - how George observed and interacted with them. It made me think about how society was at the time it was set, how people felt unable to talk about certain things and the uncertainty of the future in different ways - I suppose as far as uncertainty goes, politically speaking we're no better nowadays (at the time of typing this review) but thats a whole other subject!. I would recommend this film, not least for Colin Firths performance as George.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Exceptional to me. First the soundtrack is impeccable and one of the most important part of the movie. Genius. The direction is spectacular, what a vision. You can see how detailed oriented and perfectionist is Tom Ford. I do not know anything specific about the man or his work and it was a great way to discover his life/work/character. Of course Colin Firth, Juliane Moore and Nicolas Hoult are just perfect.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/12/23

Full Review

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Tom Ford

Director

Colin Firth

George

Julianne Moore

Charley

Nicholas Hoult

Kenny

Matthew Goode

Jim

Jon Kortajarena

Carlos

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Deborah Ross

The Spectator

This is an impressive debut from which I am still reeling a little, and Firth's performance is astounding.

Aug 30, 2018

Full Review

Anna Smith

metro.co.uk

Fashion designer Tom Ford proves he's no one-trick pony with this astonishing directorial debut.

Rated: 5/5

Aug 23, 2018

Full Review

Ed Koch

The Atlantic

This is an important homosexual film based on a first-rate novel with a first-rate cast and probably a harbinger of similar movies to come. Many viewers will be disappointed that the movie only hints at intimacy rather than showcasing it.

Jan 16, 2018

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

The film was not so much directed as it was designed.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 18, 2023

Full Review

James Croot

Stuff.co.nz

Visually arresting and incredibly moving, the now 14-year-old Single is still quite simply one of the best movies of the 21st century so far.

Rated: 5/5

May 24, 2023

Full Review

Michael Cuby

them.

In addition to being one of the greatest American designers of the last century, Tom Ford is also, it turns out, an incredible film director.

Oct 12, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

George (Colin Firth) is a college professor who recently lost his lover, Jim, in a car accident. Terribly grief-stricken, George plans to commit suicide. As he goes about his daily routine and puts his affairs in order, his encounters with colleagues, students and an old friend (Julianne Moore) lead him to make a final decision as to whether life is worth living without Jim.

Director: Tom Ford
Screenwriter: Tom Ford, David Scearce
Distributor: Weinstein Co.
Production Co: Fade to Black Productions, Artina Films, Depth of Field
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Nudity|Some Disturbing Images)
Genre: Drama, LGBTQ+
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 11, 2009, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 10, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $9.2M
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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