All About Cate

If W’s December issue argues that Cate Blanchett is the “embodiment of perfection,” it doesn’t have much to argue against. At Monday’s premiere of “Carol” at the Museum of Modern Art, guests couldn’t help but gush. “She is a force of nature,” declared director Todd Haynes. “She’s sort of everything you could imagine that she would be and then some,” added co-star Rooney Mara.

The star continued to be the topic of polite conversation at the after party, where guests like Zosia Mamet, John Waters, and Kyle Chandler mingled politely in the Pool Room of the Four Seasons. “Oh, wouldn’t you be disappointed if you had Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara?” joked screenwriter Phyllis Nagy. “Everything they do is a surprise. It’s not within the parameters of what the script and the director asks them to do. They always exceeded an expectation or brought a nuance or some odd that that just mere mortal actors do not.”

Always the humble star, Blanchett kept the focus on the film. “I hope viewers fall in love with the love story,” she cooed dreamily. “And remember either the moment when that happened to them or the fearlessness that one needs to do that—the universality of the love story.” The perfect answer, naturally.