Best Actress in a Supporting Role 2015: Rooney Mara in Carol

Rooney Mara received her second Oscar nomination for her performance as Therese Belivet in Carol. 

Carol is quite simply a masterpiece about the romance between a young aspiring photographer and an older, lonely, married socialite in the early 1950s. I have no problem in saying that this movie is pretty much perfect from every point of view: Todd Haynes's beautiful, delicate direction not only should have been nominated for an Oscar, but it probably should have won; the acting is perfect all around, not only from the two leading ladies but also from Kyle Chandler, who succeeds in making a potentially one-note villain touchingly human, and the always reliable Sarah Paulson; the cinematography is stunningly gorgeous, the score is wonderful and everything else - from the costumes and the sets - is just perfect. And of course it's not only beautiful to look at but it's also an incredibly moving and compelling experience and the last half an hour alone touched me more than any other movie from the year. 

I've mentioned in my review of Alicia Vikander's work in The Danish Girl that I felt that she belonged to the leading category and not the supporting one: well, her case of category fraud is nothing if compared to Rooney Mara's - Therese is without a doubt a lead character in Carol, just as much as the title role. In fact, the movie is not only about their romance but also about Therese's coming of age: actually, the book was told entirely from Therese's perspective and even if in the movie Carol and Therese are given equal importance she's still very much a leading character. But, again, what about the actual performance? Between the two leading characters of Carol, Therese is easily the less showy, quieter character. It's actually quite a passive character as Therese is a young woman who doesn't really know herself yet and rarely makes a choice but rather just go along with the situation (as she later admits herself in an heartbreaking scene): a lesser actress probably would have disappeared next to Cate Blanchett's magnetic Carol and failed to make Therese an interesting character but Mara, being the terrific actress she is, gives an absolutely captivating performance that makes Therese never less intriguing than Carol. Mara does an incredible job in portraying Therese's shyness and lack of self-confidence without ever overplaying - she just naturally makes it a part of Therese's personality. Her first scenes (particularly the scene of their first lunch) with Cate Blanchett are wonderfully played by Mara because she captures so well both Therese's awkwardness when she is with Carol as well as her infatuation for her. You can see how much Therese is drawn to Carol and Mara makes her nervousness, fear of doing or saying the wrong thing, almost palpable. Mara makes Therese just an extremely endearing character because she makes her a character to which you can relate so much. 

But past from her timidness Mara brings to Therese such a luminous quality that it is never in question why Carol would be attracted to her: she's quietly enchanting and she shows that inside Therese lies a strong personality that hasn't just quite come outside yet. And as her relationship with Carol progresses, Mara does a great job in portraying Therese's process of self-discovery as she slowly realizes who she truly is and who she wants to be. Mara portrays Therese's transition from a shy, insecure girl to a more mature and strong young woman so naturally it's almost unnoticeable but by the end of the movie you realize how much Therese has changed. In the novel (which, by the way, is great) the reader entered into Therese's mind and therefore knew all of her thoughts and all of her feelings and Patricia Highsmith did a terrific job in describing Therese's maturation and coming into her own as a person. And what Highsmith expressed with words, Mara expresses beautifully with her eyes: what Patricia Highsmith wrote so delicately, you can read it all right across Mara's face. Her quiet breakdown on the train is one of those moments in which she communicates tons of feelings without having to say a word. 

And then of course there is her chemistry with Blanchett,  which is just amazing: together they make for a beautiful couple as they both realize so well their mutual attraction and, eventually, love. The sex scene is such a deeply moving moment because the chemistry between the two actresses is something so delicate and special, and they both did a terrific job in slowly building up to that moment - and when it finally comes it leaves you speechless. But outside of that scene throughout the whole movie you can find so many small, beautiful and lovely interactions between the two: when they decide to take the road trip, when they laugh and drink wine at the hotel, when they give each other Christmas presents... all of these are little wonderful moments that make their love story unforgettable. The scene of their last dinner together is oustandingly acted by Mara as she shows so wonderfully that as much as she is still hurt by Carol's previous rejection she still clearly loves her as deeply as ever. And the final, wordless scene in which Therese finally makes an active choice in her life made me cheer, and Mara's subtle acting makes the moment even more powerful. In the end, this is a phenomenal performance that relies upon subtlety and quietness yet could not be more emotionally powerful. From the first scene to the last, Mara gives an absolutely compelling performance in which she never misses any emotional beat. 

5/5