t’s incredibly rare for one individual to achieve major success in two different creative or business fields in the one lifetime. Just ask Madonna, who, while being an indisputable icon of pop music has failed dismally in her attempts to move into movies, on both the acting and directing fronts. If Madonna, with all of her resources, contacts and indefatigable energy couldn’t pull it off, then no one could. Her experience was a warning to all super-successful geniuses out there – be content with the success you do have, don’t bother trying to conquer the world outside of your own walls. Which is why we had seriously low expectations for Tom Ford’s debut in the film world, as the director of A Single Man. How could Ford, who had pulled off one of the greatest fashion reinventions in history with Gucci (and consequently shaped the dominant style of a decade), possibly do it again, in a totally new and notoriously difficult medium such as film. Most people regarded Ford’s move into film as a vanity project; one that if actually realized would be all style and no substance, a glorified TV commercial of beautiful people. Well. He proved us all wrong. Ford, it appears, is one of those rare people who can transfer their genius. A Single Man, starring Colin Firth and Julianne Moore, has been lauded by critics. W magazine called it “…poignant, stunningly realized tale of loss and long.” Screen International heaped similar praise, “Tom Ford gets it spectacularly right,” while Variety deemed it “an impressive helming debut.” The film, adapted from the 1964 novel by Christopher Isherwood, tells the story of a college professor played by Firth, who is confronted by the sudden and tragic death of his long time partner. Since the movie’s premiere in September at the Venice Film Festival (where it received a 10-minute standing ovation and the best actor prize for Firth, who is now the subject of major Oscar buzz), it has enjoyed acclaim at most of the world’s major film festivals. It will be interesting to see what it does at the box office, upon its opening in the US in December. We expect to see Madonna, front row, taking notes.
By Laura Demasi
