A Single Man
Two Londoners, transplanted to Los Angeles, have known each other forever: George (Colin Firth), who's handsome, gracious and gay, and Charley (Moore), one of those worldly women who feel most at ease with homosexual men. "She loves her friend," says Moore. "There's a great deal of history there, and you can see it." Indeed, one miracle of this film is the sense of intimacy, of shared friends and wounds, conjured by two actors who'd never worked together and shot their scenes with little rehearsal. Such was the spell cast in his directorial debut by fashion guru Tom Ford, who wrote the part of Charley with Moore in mind. In 1998, when she got her first Oscar nomination (for Boogie Nights), Ford designed an Oscar-night dress for her. This year Moore's very award-worthy performance was snubbed by Academy voters, so any Ford frock will be only for show.