Thursday, November 10, 2016

a single man (2009). directed by tom ford.


i watched this awhile back, since i just watched nocturnal animals, thought i give a few points on this film first. fashion designer turn film maker tom ford was criticised for putting too much emphasis on perfection, that a film is a lot more dynamic than pretty objects staged nicely. i sense his need for meticulousness, it's a beautiful film. 

which heightens the sense of grief, the beauty and perfection that persists in the film acts as a facade, or closet, to the tremendous loss and pain felt by the gay english professor played by the excellent colin firth upon the death of his partner. he carries his pain alone, unable to share his love and loss with others in an age where homosexuality is taboo. even his best friend can not understand the depth of the relationship he had with his partner, mirroring contemporary attitudes that homosexual relationships are inferior to heterosexual ones, something that is not real and can be replaced with something more substantial. 

there is a word that describe this inability to empathise - it's called being rude. or violent. colin firth's character of constant perfection, whether or not a closet, as coiffed as he comes, is a prison he can not escape.  

No comments:

Post a Comment