Carol

"I don't know what I want. How could I know what I want if I say yes to everything?"

Filmology Rating: 3 out of 4

Carol has got to be one of the “best” movies that I have ever seen…. that I did not like. This film has been getting a lot of recognition from the Golden Globes and the Oscars and for good reason. This movies cinematography was beautiful. It put you inside the 1950s and made you feel like you were there. That feeling was helped by the great writing, costume design, music, and sound throughout the film. This film is getting recognized in those categories by the Oscar committee and for good reason. I also feel that Todd Haynes should have been nominated for best Director because the way this movie was shot was remarkable. So many interesting, beautiful shots, and artistic angels were captured so beautifully. So for every aspect of what makes a film great, this film was very much up to those standards. Now here is where I have a problem with the movie and it’s a big issue for me. I find the two main characters extremely dull and lifeless. Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara are both up for best lead and supporting actress and that is a surprise to me. Throughout the majority of the film, they are both extremely monotone, lifeless, and just boring characters with little personality. I honestly really never felt a connection to either one of them and because of this, it made me not care about what happened with them and their relationship. I also wasn’t sold on their romance for the majority of the movie. There just didn’t seem to be chemistry between the two and because of this, the relationship then felt forced for me. I get that it was maybe because both of these women were unsure of how to react to one another and only gave a little bit of themselves at a time. However, ever towards the end when all the events and emotions of the movie unfolded for the big climax, it wasn’t believable to me. Now one aspect, or person, that isn’t getting enough attention in this film is Kyle Chandler. I thought that he was the most impressive actor in this movie. He played the husband of Cate Blanchetts character who was having a very hard time with the divorce that Cate wanted to have. I could truly feel this man’s pain because he just loved his wife and he wasn’t sure what to do. He may come off as a villain of the film but I believe he is far from it. He doesn’t want to see his daughter hurt and is desperately trying to hold on to his wife and his family. Overall, this movie is one of the most well made movies that I just didn’t enjoy.

Rating: Rent It

-Nick