After wandering through the ruins of the blockbuster DCEU series and immersing yourself in the epic John Wick saga, you might want to consider a palate cleanser. Please enter “Carol”. Director Todd Haynes’s 2015 film about repressed sexuality in mid-century America is great for a variety of reasons, but perhaps the main reason is that it contains perhaps Cate Blanchett’s best performance. Probably because it is. The actress plays Carol Aird, a 1950s housewife and girlfriend’s mother who harbors desires for other women. When she meets Thérèse Belivet (Rooney Mara), a clerk at her department store, she can’t help but let her inner feelings come to the surface, and falls in love with her and her seemingly comfortable suburban life. It will have dire consequences.
The way Blanchett projects Carol’s inner turmoil and passion onto her new love interest while remaining unable to fully accept the love she feels is truly a masterclass. But Haynes himself is clearly no slouch, crafting this tragic and sometimes creepy love story with a studied eye.
So if you’ve witnessed John Wick crushing an entire enemy army and want something a little more elevated, look no further than “Carol.” However, you’d better hurry, as this production will be leaving his Netflix on March 19, 2024.
