Cate Blanchett as Carol Aird in 'Carol'. The Weinstein Company/Courtesy Everett Collection
Forbidden love has rarely been as luscious as it is in Todd Haynes' sweeping romantic drama set in 1950s New York. Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara) is a quiet department store clerk who encounters Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett), an elegant customer who entrances her. The two eventually get to know each other and carry out a secret affair, but their bliss is interrupted when Carol's soon-to-be ex-husband uses the affair as leverage to get full custody of their young daughter. Adapted from the 1952 novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, Carol was one of the most celebrated films of 2015, earning a 10-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival, topping numerous year-end critics' lists, and receiving six Oscar nominations (though curiously not for Best Picture). —K.J
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