Unforgettable couple show wonder of love

OSCAR nominations for Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara must be almost a certainty for this week’s Carol.

All the signs are there â?? solid original material to work with, a strong cast and a narrative that weaves a love story into a background of social conventions and challenges.

With Todd Haynes at the helm, the director of 2002’s Far From Heaven and and 2007’s I’m Not There, the story I’m sure is in safe hands.

And an unconventional love story it is, given that it’s set in the Fifties — a less tolerant era — and focuses on the relationship between two women. In an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s seminal novel The Price of Salt, Carol follows two women from very different backgrounds who find themselves in an unexpected love affair in Fifties New York.

As conventional norms of the time challenge their undeniable attraction, an honest story emerges to reveal the resilience of the heart in the face of change.



A young woman in her 20s, Therese Belivet (Mara), is a clerk working in a Manhattan department store and dreaming of a more fulfilling life when she meets Carol (Blanchett), an alluring woman trapped in a loveless marriage. An immediate connection sparks between them and the innocence of their first encounter dims as their connection deepens.

While Carol breaks free from the confines of marriage, her husband (Kyle Chandler) begins to question her competence as a mother as her involvement with Therese and close relationship with her best friend Abby (Sarah Paulson) come to light.

The film has reportedly been in development for more than 10 years so let’s hope it was worth the wait. That said it has received rave reviews, including a standing ovation at its Cannes Film Festival international press screening and premiere.

Expectations should be high. After all Haynes already has solid experience portraying the Fifties in Far From Heaven so, under his guidance, the cinematography will be spot on.

Carol is showing from today (Friday) at Henley’s Regal Picturehouse.