Rent Carol (2015)

Measured 1950s-set brilliantly-acted lesbian drama - Carol review by Mr Aquarium

Slow in a perceptive way; don't expect ragingly-unrealistic drama. Instead, you get a wonderful recreation of 1950s east-coast USA, superb performances and an even-handed dealing. Thus, for example, the wounded husband is not a cardboard villain, but more clumsy and baffled than nasty. The film is pleasingly true to the novel's refusal to be [ultimately] gloomy about same-sex love. But be warned! This will be too slow for many contemporary tastes...

One of the most beautifully shot films I have ever seen, with incredible performances & direction - Carol review by Timmy B

This film, showing the heartbreak of forbidden love, is incredible.

But for me, as much as the performances are masterful, the locations & costumes perfect & the script excellent, the thing that blew me away with this film was how it was shot. It is all done on Super 16MM with 30MM film lenses. The result is the closest I've ever seen to a film looking exactly like a dream. I was totally engrossed, hooked and smitten. I love being in that world, with the formal suits, smokey drawing rooms and small intimate bedrooms.

Todd Haynes has created one of the most profound love stories ever. As much as it received huge attention at the time for its portrayal of a lesbian relationship, it is timeless and trancends all boundaries. Everyone brings their A-Game and I was very sad when it finished. I wanted to just be in that world, at that time with those characters. Watch it and have your heart broken.

A masterpiece.

Old-school melodrama - Carol review by Alphaville

This is a film in the tradition of Douglas Sirk. It oozes class, from the sets to the acting, but it’s painstakingly one-paced. Todd Haynes has previous with his 2003 film Far From Heaven. If you liked that, you’ll like this, otherwise you’ll be shouting ‘Get a move on’ at the screen. Everyone sounds as though they’re half-asleep and if you’re not in the mood to wallow in the slow burn you may well soon be feeling a tad somnolent yourself.

You’d hope a story about same-sex love and homophobia in the 1950s would pack a punch and have something relevant to say about modern mores, but sadly no. It takes soooo long to get anywhere.

Critics loved it, but they are forced to watch so much trash that any movie with impeccable production values must warrant superlatives. The more discerning filmgoer may wonder what all the fuss is about. You know where this movie is going right from the start so don’t expect any surprises, plot-wise or visually. Even the ending seems arbitrary.

Also, why do so many characters in films vomit to show they’re upset? Aren’t there more subtle ways for filmmakers to show emotion?

Classic Romance - Carol review by Steve

Simply beautiful romantic drama adapted from Patricia Highsmith's 1952 novel. It is set within that period, but is also like a hallucinatory dream. An inexperienced shopgirl (Rooney Mara) has a muted, but life-changing affair with an older married woman (Cate Blanchett as Carol) struggling through a hostile divorce.

This is on the threshold of the Eisenhower decade so the forbidden liaison threatens access to her young daughter. There is some thematic content about the limited rights and freedoms of homosexuals, but this is more intensely the story of an affair. Director Todd Haynes captures the narcotic disorientation of new love

This is principally through the gorgeous expressionist photography. But also the period set design, à la Edward Hopper. And the irresistible performances of the two stars. There is nuance; this not just about their transformative sexual attraction, but also how this is impacted by class, wealth, background, gender, age...

There is an abundance of good taste, including the score, the fashions, the brief sexual content, the muted, sometimes nebulous colours, and the understated script. If that also implies the tempo is adagio, then that is also true. But this is a heartbreaker. More than the social issues, this is about the mysterious complications of desire. 

Slow and rather boring film. - Carol review by CP Customer

With the cast list I was hoping to watch a good film but I was bored within half and hour. I agree with the review below from AK.