3.5 stars out of 5
You ever read about something being the “best movie of the year” so you go and see it, and then you think, ‘well that was good but by no means the best movie of the year’? That’s me and Carol.
I must admit to not being that up on the Todd Haynes ouevre. The only film of his I’ve seen is Far From Heaven, which I’m pretty sure I liked; I don’t know, it was a while ago. But, when it comes to art-house Todds, I’m more a Solondz guy.
Now, Carol is based on a novel by Patricia Highsmith. She also wrote the books Strangers on a Train (hey! good Hitchcock flick!) and The Talented Mr. Ripley (a movie that started out good but became a convoluted mess). And in 1952, Carol (originally titled The Price of Salt) would’ve been a very edgy tale: two women in love coping with a world that doesn’t accept them.
The always-solid Cate Blanchett plays the title role. She’s an upper-class wife and mother who just can’t fake it anymore, damnit. (Why so blue, Jasmine?) Rooney Mara — and you can hardly see her dragon tattoo — is Therese the young shopgirl who dreams of something bigger, and also she just can’t fake it anymore, damnit. Though coming from different directions, they’re both ready to shake up their lives. Carol and Therese are drawn together, the heart wanting what it wants.
Ah, but Carol has a bit more baggage, with a young daughter and a sham of a marriage to Coach Taylor. (Always good to see Kyle Chandler, who here is all frustration boiling over into rage.) Plus there’s Sarah Paulson, just happy there are no circus freaks, witches, serial killers, or asylum dwellers about, as Carol’s confidante and former-but-maybe-not-former-enough flame.
So Carol can never quite be as free as she’d like. And it seemed to me — due to classism? ageism? becoming the thing you despise? — that Carol unconsciously tries to control Therese in much the same way that her husband tries to control her.
The film is gorgeously shot, evoking the early 1950s through a muted lens. There’s a pleasing dream-like quality to much of it, almost as if we’re in a dollhouse. There are also an awful lot of — windows. Haynes shooting through car windows, train windows…. So I’m thinking, ah ha, symbolism! Transportation representing reinvention? But no, Haynes just keeps shooting though glass: shop windows, characters gazing out windows, reflections of characters. And Therese is a wannabe photographer, so she’s not looking directly at people either. What does it all mean? I don’t know, man, I just don’t know.
The recurring musical theme, “Crossing” by Carter Burwell, is effectively haunting, if a bit familiar sounding.
Oh, one bit of casting b.s.: Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney and Portlandia is listed in the opening credits. Then she’s in the movie for about 4 seconds. What the hell?!?
Things happen, tension builds, more things happen (there’s a legal scene where I felt like a few pages had been skipped), and the movie ends. And I have to say, I wasn’t particularly moved. I respect the craft of the filmmaking and the lead performances (though neither Blanchett nor Mara is as strong as Brie Larson in Room). It’s a really well-made film, with a compelling relationship at its center, at a challenging moment in history. But, as a whole, Carol left me feeling kind of empty. Distant. Staring out a window, into the void.
Very cutting edge of you to see it so soon! And nice references (to Emily Dickinson, or is that Selena Gomez…). It’s good to see an honest review that doesn’t puff it up but points out the highs and lows. Definitely interesting subject matter. (I’m a little peeved over this movie because I have a similar subplot in something I’ve been working on for years, but that’s how things go). Excellent review, two thumbs up.
Classic Jack: “When it comes to art-house Todds, I’m more a Solondz guy.”
Jack: I agree with much of what you wrote. I read The Price of Salt in the 70s and really liked it. It was the only lesbian novel of the 1950s with a happy ending, and the writing was terrific. I remember the scene of them driving through the Lincoln Tunnel, which they tried to capture in the film. I probably read it as I was commuting through the Lincoln Tunnel. At any rate, that scene has come back to me many times over the years. Interesting that you reference Blue Jasmine. I passionately disliked that movie and I think Cate Blanchett was seriously miscast here. Yes, she can do haughty and upper crust, but there was so little warmth or even passion here, despite the sex scene. I was trying to think of who would be better. For some reason, I thought of Viola Davis. Wouldn’t it be great to recast this with her and maybe Kerry Washington? I did think Rooney Mara was good, but she would have been better with a different partner. And I’m with you–what happened to Carrie B.? Ended up on the cutting room floor, no doubt. I’m surprised her character actually had a name in the credits.
Intriguing casting idea! But then they might have to shift the time period too. (Speaking of — and maybe it’s splitting hairs — seems very unlikely that those two characters in that year would’ve flipped on the car radio and hear the song “One Mint Julep.”)