By Megan Bianco
Behind Emma Stone’s embarrassing stint as a half-Asian, half-Hawaiian air force captain in “Aloha” earlier this year, Rooney Mara now shares the same cringe-worthy disappointment of being a white actress cast as a character of color when “Pan“ was released last month. But unlike Stone, Mara has the fortunate luck of starring in a critically praised period piece this Oscar season to distract audiences from her performance as ‘13-year-old’ Tiger Lily. Todd Haynes’ first film in almost a decade comes in the form of the lesbian romance “Carol“ and is star-studded, but appropriately low key with Mara and Cate Blanchett.
During the 1952 holiday season, 25-year-old Therese Belivet (Mara) gets a clerk job at a New York City department store when she really wants to pursue her passion for photography, but is too modest to go through with her instinct. At the same time, 40-year-old Carol Aird (Blanchett) is in the middle of divorcing her husband Harge (Kyle Chandler) and battling for custody of their 4-year-old child Rindy (Sadie Heim) after she’s had an affair with Rindy’s godmother, Abby (Sarah Paulson). One day while Christmas shopping, Carol is assisted by Therese and they instantly hit it off. The only problems are Therese’s fiance Richard (Jake Lacy), and Harge can legally refuse Carol rights to be with Rindy if she carries on her risque love life.
“Carol“ is based on Patricia Highsmith’s controversial 1950 novel The Price of Salt, originally published under the alias Claire Morgan, and is fittingly adapted by her own friend Phyllis Nagy. Highsmith is probably most famous for her novels The Talented Mr. Ripley and Strangers on a Train (both receiving well-liked film versions), but Salt is allegedly her most personal. And both Nagy and Haynes are the best choices to bring it to the big screen.
Haynes isn’t new to taboo relationships set in 1950s America with his acclaimed “Far from Heaven“ in 2002 featuring an interracial couple. Here he has the perfect level of subtlety and exposure with his leading ladies. Particularly fascinating is the little use of physicality between Therese and Carol throughout their courtship. There’s only one short love scene and we only ever see them kiss twice in the whole film. This is a refreshing intimacy compared to the pornographic sex scenes in the otherwise stellar “Blue is the Warmest Color“ two years ago. Both actresses say so much with their looks and reactions that you forget they’re both actually in a secret relationship. Rather than the usual insecurity and confusion you would expect lesbians to be portrayed in this decade, you can see Carol, Therese and Abby aren’t ashamed of who they are in a world where they are ‘in the closet.’
Blanchett is her usual greatness as the high-end socialite, but Mara stands out the most of the cast as the young woman who doesn’t know where to go with her career and love life. Though the producers have been marketing the film as co-lead by Blanchett and Mara, the film revolves around Therese mostly, and it’s a shame that early award hype is pushing for Blanchett as a Lead Actress contender. “Carol“ has been the most talked about and anticipated feature of awards season, and it deserves all of it.
Megan Bianco is a Southern California-based movie reviewer and content writer with a degree from California State University Northridge.
