Colin Firth plays George Falconer, an English Literature teacher who wakes up ready to commit suicide. For the past eight months, George has been grieving the death of his lover, Jim, for the past 16 years. Unable to live without him anymore, George prepares his last day on Earth, which includes giving one last lesson to his class, on the subject of fear; buying bullets for his revolver; and at night having a final party with his best friend, Charley.

George just wants to get through the day and kill himself with dignity after the party. The movie basically follows him through the day as he makes his preparations, and the big question is, Is he really going to do it? The movie is not easy to watch. For one thing, it paints an unbearable portrait of grief. Colin Firth displays pain in his voice and face throughout most of the movie; even when he's smiling or seemingly content, there's in his eyes a vestige of sadness and weariness. Secondly, George is such an instantly likable character, it's painful to watch him going about his life knowing he wants to put an end to it. It's so easy to fall in love with him, that his pain becomes ours very quickly.

The simplicity of the movie's premise is made up by Firth's outstanding performance, and also by Julianne Moore's. She plays Charley, a woman he once dated, and the only person who knows he's homosexual. I don't know how long she is in the movie, perhaps 10 or 15 minutes, but in that short time she gives an amazing performance as a woman who doesn't have much to look for, like George, who doesn't have anyone else in her life, no dreams, no future, just memories of her good days with George.

Tom Ford also complements the movie by giving it a very distinctive visual style: pretty much every scene is unique in the way it looks and the way it is shot. One of my favorite examples is the way he portrays the cluster of emotions in George, visualizing his pain by showing imaginary scenes of him drowning. Not only is it a lovely metaphor, but also connects with a scene in the movie that is the closest thing to happiness George feels in it.

Although this was Tom Ford's debut movie, and he showed what a good filmmaker he can be, for me the revelation of this movie was Abel Korzeniowski, a Polish film composer who brings a unique sound of melancholy to the movie. How he was ignored by the Oscars is beyond me.

A lot of things in this movie were ignored by the Oscars this year, and yet I think this movie, being the intimate character study that it is, has better chances of outliving all other movies in competition in years to come. I hope so, because movies like this is the direction cinema needs to go in.

I attended the North American Premiere of "A Single Man" at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. This is the first foray into film for esteemed fashion designer Tom Ford, directing from his own script based on the Christopher Isherwood novel. In a word, "A Single Man" is a triumph.

It is easily one of the most Oscar-deserving films of the year. Colin Firth's performance screams "Best Actor" (which he did win at the Venice Film Festival),Julianne Moore is exquisite, and Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy, Skins) is on his way to stardom. I was simply awestruck.

The curtain rises on a despondent George (Firth) having lost his longtime partner. Sapped of energy and will, he struggles to wake each day and function as the brilliant college professor he's expected to be. Few notice the change in him, but one student sees George as a magnet pulling him forward to a place even he doesn't understand. Kenny (Hoult) seems to glow like an angel in George's dark world and, yet, is a puzzle and presents a challenge which he doesn't necessarily want to confront at this stage in his life. As is his custom, he turns to Charlotte (Moore) for a warm shoulder but the temperature drops amidst the chill surrounding George's bleak existence.

Everything about this film -- the look, colors, pacing, shots, composition, cinematography, costumes, soundtrack -- says that an extraordinary amount of love and care went into it. Special mention to director of photography Eduard Grau and editor Joan Sobel for their keen abilities to work lockstep with Ford in projecting his vision onto the screen. Abel Korzeniowski's score is haunting and moving. Despite his design genius, Ford was generous enough to entrust costume designer Arianne Phillips with the freedom to work unencumbered. Production designer Dan Bishop, with art direction by Ian Phillips and set decorator Amy Wells, created two worlds -- a cold, stark one in which George sees only hopelessness, and another warm, colorful one in which he has hope.

What stays with the viewer, though, is the enigmatic friendship between George and Kenny. Nicholas Hoult is absolutely mesmerizing in this. The way Ford shot him made people gasp. He's lit, framed, and shot like an Adonis. Of course, that's the idea here. This will definitely be a break out role for the 19-year-old. The camera loves him, and it's a pretty daring performance.

Most of all, this is a tour de force for Firth and a stunning achievement which is destined to be a highlight of his distinguished career. The range of emotions and the extent to which his character must convey them through his eyes and facial expressions, with the copious use of long takes without dialogue, left me wide-eyed with wonder.

This is the stuff of great movies. They don't get much better than this.

It's 1962. George Falconer (Colin Firth) struggles months after his life partner Jim (Matthew Goode) dies in a car accident. He wasn't allowed to attend the service. He intends to shoot himself. His friend Charley (Julianne Moore) tries to cheer him up. His student Kenny Potter (Nicholas Hoult) becomes attached inappropriately.

The pace is deliberate. There is a lack of drive. The sense of sadness can overwhelm the movie at times. Director Tom Ford has a great eye for visual beauty. It's a magnificent looking movie. Every scene has a meticulous style. Nicholas Hoult has a great creepy vibe. Colin Firth is solid as a reserved man on the brink of breakdown.