Carol * * * *

"Can I help you?"
"Can you ever!"

In 2003 Todd Haynes gave us Far From Heaven.  Aside from being a moving story it was a beautiful looking production rich with ambient colour and imagery from the 1950s.

Todd loves winter in America and he loves the 1950’s.  

Most of Carol is set over the Christmas/New Year period 1952.The time and place certainly make for gorgeous imagery, from the clothes, to the interiors, to the streetscape. It also makes for circumstances that - thankfully - are not acceptable today, such as a persecution and intolerance of homosexuality.  

In Far From Heaven, a respectable married man had to come to grips with his own sexuality.  In Carol we have a similar situation with women.

Terese (Rooney Mara) is a shop assistant.  One day she serves a beautiful and sophisticated client Carol, (Cate Blanchett). (Let’s face it, when it comes to playing the beautiful sophisticated woman there aren’t many who can do it better than our Cate). Leaving her gloves on the counter, Terese has reason to contact Carol to return them. A friendship soon develops.  Carol is married to a wealthy man. Her marriage is strained as he already has suspicions about Carol’s sexuality.

Terese is quite a bit younger than Carol. She is in her early twenties.  She has a boyfriend but something doesn’t quite feel right.  However, when she meets Carol, something feels very right.  

Carol’s marriage is strained to impossibility. She wants to get away for a while  and invites Terese to come with her.  Staying in hotel rooms together it does not take long before their relationship is taken to the next level. (Incidentally don’t expect Blue is the Warmest Colour when it comes to the sex scenes.  They are very restrained).  Then Carol discovers something that changes everything. (No spoilers).  The relationship is terminated, but they do meet again at a time when Terese is more than ever questioning her sexuality.

The story isn’t that sensational.  In fact it is very slow.  But the telling is beguiling in its intimacy.  Both the main characters are attractive and interesting characters.  There is a particularly moving scene where Carol shows a dignity that exposes her divorce proceedings as the disgraceful sham that they are.

I would be first to acknowledge the other fine films that Todd Haynes has directed, but to me, Carol is like a sister film to his 2003 masterpiece.  Like Far From Heaven this is a very beautiful and enriching film and an absolute  pleasure to watch.