Rating: B-
After viewing this film, one is left with bruises from being bashed over the head with the themes.
Carol is an adaptation of the novel The Price of Salt, which follows two women falling in love in 1950s USA. The social norms of that time and place, of course, do not permit homosexuality, and so the two leads Carol (Cate Blanchett) and Therese (Rooney Mara) suffer stigmatism from their peers when they go against the grain. The novel may have been groundbreaking when it first appeared in 1952, however it’s now 2016 and times have changed. If you have seen the films Thelma and Louise, The Imitation Game, Blue is the Warmest Color, or A Single Man, you will probably not be too surprised or entranced by anything in Carol. Suffice it to say, their forbidden love makes things tough and tearful, and what they suffer from society, particularly men, is very unfair, gross, and controlling. But I wouldn’t really have thought the performances of Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara were worthy of Oscar nominations; more like par for the course.
Director Todd Haynes skillfully brings your attention to the artifice of the medium, as his Wikipedia bio suggests he is wont to do, but this definitely enhaces the film’s impact. A lot of the exposition comes in the form of lyrics from 1950s doo-wop love songs in the soundtrack, helping us remember that we are only watching a film with a perspective about these people and not the people themselves. It was clever and endearing film making, and a welcome alternative to being brow beaten with visual cues; like being trapped in glass prisons, running through the rain when you are crying on the inside, and sadly watching model train sets circle endlessly on their predefined rails.
All in all, Carol is worth seeing. The tension of ‘will they or won’t they?’ is engaging, and keeps you involved in the film in spite of some tiresome unsubtlety. The character of Therese is a particular highlight, displaying a daring and fearless streak that inspires you to speculate on whether you would have had the balls to be more than simply one of the herd, given the film’s particular setting.