Carol is perhaps the ‘artsiest’ (we know it’s not a word!) of all Oscar nominations this year. It isn’t the most riveting film you’d come across, but one crafted with incredible finesse, showcasing the gaze of two lovers on each other, and an enchanting performance by Cate Blanchett. It’s a slow film, that takes it’s own sweet time to build, but the intensity is what keeps you hooked.
Here’s some basic dope on Carol. The screenplay, written by Phyllis Nagy over 11 years (heck yes!) is an adaptation from a novel called ‘The Price of Salt’ by Patricia Highsmith. If that doesn’t get you a nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, then what does?! Todd Haynes directed Carol beautifully to cinema screens and into the hearts of critics and has had a fabulous award season with many directorial accolades coming his way. Carol was selected to compete for the Palme d’Or at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, where interestingly Rooney Mara shared the Best Actress award.
Well, the Academy didn’t seem as taken with Carol, and it missed out on both Best Picture and Best Director nominations and that’s a shame. We watched The Martian recently and thought, if that’s a Best Picture nominee, there’s no way Carol didn’t make the cut! But we gotta say, this is true to the history of Academy awards, where there is little celebration for women lead films (think The Iron Lady, Erin Brockovich, Julie & Julia) or movies that explore homosexuality (think Philadelphia, Milk). And Carol is both, so guess that ain’t really a winning combination. These films mostly find recognition through the stellar work done by actors, that convinces a largely conservative, male led Academy to acknowledge their work (think Natalie Portman for Black Swan, Sean Penn for Milk, Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady, Tom Hanks in Philadelphia). In similar fashion, Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara have both been nominated for Best Actor in a leading and supporting role, respectively. Most such films are either ignored or at best get a nomination for the coveted – Best Picture and Director awards.
We’ve seen Carol twice and the standout parts both times have been fairly consistent. The film revolves around the two protagonists – Carol Aird (played by Cate Blanchett) and Therese Belivet (played by Rooney Mara). It’s a tale of these two different women, in age, experience, social class, sexual awareness, sense of self and their twin journeys through the course of the film. We’re shown the world primarily from their vantage points and the cinematography creates this illusion of intimacy throughout the film. Carol’s set in the 1950’s and the sense of a period is reinforced in everything from the artwork to the costumes to the muted colors. This dullness of backdrop is wonderfully contrasted by Cate Blanchett’s bright reds and oranges.
Carol is full of moments, accentuated by its beautiful background score given by Carter Burwell, with a sparseness of dialogue that’s refreshing. When we thought of one standout moment in the film, we both instantly went back to Therese’s first meeting with Carol. Carol is the affluent, meticulously dressed woman, who walks into the toy store with an air of mystery around her. She is instantly the object of desire and we see that in Therese’s gaze. Carol is leaving after the transaction, when she turns and points at Therese’s santa hat and says in stage whisper ‘I like the hat’. In that moment, we were just as smitten as Therese and said out loud ‘Cate Blanchett is frickin’ awesome!’.
Where’s the climax in Carol – is a question we’ve thought a whole lot about and it’s hard to say which moment in the last 15 minutes of the film holds it. Is it the scene at the lawyer’s, which is really the only scene where Carol pours her heart out in as many words or is it when she tells Therese she loves her or is it in Therese’s slow dazed walk towards Carol, who truly looks like a dream? We could not agree on one and maybe that’s how hard it will be for you too 🙂
To us, Carol’s a love story. It’s not talking of activism or rebellion for rebellion’s sake or celebrating the desire to be different – it’s really just showing us how two people met and the turn their lives take. In the choices they make, both forced and otherwise, is a commentary on their lives and times and perhaps by extension our lives and times today. It’s like reading a book, that makes you think and ponder and start a conversation, but not something that enrages you and we really appreciated that. We wonder how different Carol would be, if it was set in the present. It’s really the story of two women choosing happiness, which makes Carol, almost unexpectedly, a triumph of love, of the freedom to be true to your grain.
Adi & Sahil
P.S. We had a lot to say about Carol and so we did! If you’d like to read our individual takes, check out our ‘extended cut’. We’d love to hear your thoughts on the movie and what you loved and what you didn’t. Send us your comments or tweet us at @ThePopcornWaltz. Until next time, keep the popcorn tub handy!