Carol is no paint-by-numbers story of forbidden love; it is a stunning exploration of desire, fear and oppression in an age of defined social rules. It is, without doubt, one of the best LGBTQ+ films ever made. Carol is available to rent, buy or stream now.
In 1952, author Patricia Highsmith published “The Price of Salt”, a sweeping tale of forbidden lesbian love in 1950s New York. It was the story of Therese Belivet, a stage designer confined to a department store job until she meets Carol Aird, a suburban housewife going through a messy divorce. The subject matter was a world away from the thrilling crime drama of Highsmith’s “Strangers on a Train,” but it was also her most personal work. However, the semi-autobiographical nature of Highsmith’s novel was only revealed many years later, with her famous text finally reprinted under her real name in 1990.
Highsmith’s novel would take another fifteen years to reach the silver screen, but the result would be a defining moment in modern LGBTQ+ cinema. In adapting “The Price of Salt”, director Todd Haynes would create a luscious and stunningly detailed period piece exploring desire, repression and unrequited love within the changing landscape of 1950s America: an exquisite love letter to Highsmith’s groundbreaking novel.
It’s December in New York City, and the Christmas season has begun as the nights draw in and the snow starts to fall on the cold sidewalks. For young Therese (Rooney Mara), the festive season is her busiest time of year behind the toy counter of a major New York department store. But Therese dreams of escape as she longs to build her photography career. As the beautiful and confident Carol (Cate Blanchett) walks up to her toy counter, searching for a Christmas gift for her young daughter, Therese initially has no idea that the escape she is looking for stands before her in a beautiful, elegant dress. But as both women enter a secretive and impossible love affair, their growing love will face the social barriers of expectation, class conflict and forbidden desire.
Haynes’ genius lies in his ability to create an electric undercurrent of desire from Carol and Therese’s first encounter to their final separation in a film that pulsates with passion. By framing this unstoppable and unavoidable love and lust against a backdrop of 50s New York’s conservative norms and ingrained prejudices, Haynes not only heightens the stakes for Carol and Therese but also creates a palpable tension in the audience as their love battles the societal pressures surrounding them.
Carol’s confidence hides the sharp pain of her unhappy marriage with Harge and her need to hold on tight to a daughter she cannot and will not lose. At the same time, Therese is bound by the social restrictions of her class and her nerves about the bubbling desire that engulfs her the minute she lays eyes on the beautiful socialite standing before her.
The cinematography of Edward Lachman is nothing short of stunning. Lachman’s muted colour palette and soft focus lens bathe us in a glorious portrait of 1950s America, capturing the light and dark of a society that was both glamorous and oppressive. Every scene is meticulous in detail as the camera picks up on each subtle gesture, glance and unspoken thought.
Performances are equally as divine as the cinematography and direction, as Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara offer nuanced and emotionally charged portraits of two women from different sides of the tracks brought together by a single look. Blanchett’s Carol embodies poise, charm, and profound vulnerability as her character navigates social expectations and pursues personal happiness while attempting to avoid the roadblocks in her way. At the same time, Rooney Mara has a quiet strength at the heart of her emotional need to escape a life that will never bring her joy and contentment.
Carol is no paint-by-numbers story of forbidden love; it is a stunning exploration of desire, fear and oppression in an age of defined social rules. It is, without doubt, one of the best LGBTQ+ films ever made.
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