250th Review Carrie (1976)

        250 movie reviews, well I’ll be. It’s just crazy to think that I’ve been doing this for so long during the pandemic and now it’s just a hobby. I’m glad that some might read to at least be illuminated on some film analysis or curious to know what I think about a movie you all may have seen. Originally, I was going to do a review on George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. As you can see, it isn’t happening. To improvise I thought we’d look at Stephen King’s first adaptation with Carrie. 

1. Brian De Palma

        Keeping up with the October tradition of talking about a Stephen King work, I decided to look at the first one. And well to finally talk about Brian De Palma in this initiative. For the uninitiated, he was part of the 1970s group of filmmakers that practically changed American Cinema. It was him, Spielberg, Scorsese, Coppola and Lucas that changed an entire landscape that is still being felt to this day. 

        This may also be the first time some were exposed to De Palma. He’s made some of the greats including this one, Scarface and The Untouchables  to name a few. That one was the first time I’ve sat down and watched his movies. Some may not realize that he contributed to a film franchise that is still going on. He directed Mission: Impossible back in the mid-90s. And the seventh sequel just came out recently. No one could’ve thought that 30 years ago, one entry of his would kick off a beloved franchise. 

2. A Thing about Carrie

        Alright, so let’s get down to business with this one. The movie is spelled out right down to the poster spoiling a key point in the film. It’s rare for a movie to just give away that part, but it sort of works to have people watch to see how Carrie got blood on her. We see right in the beginning that she’s the outcast of her school. So much so that when she has her period, every girl in the locker room teases her. 

        The level of empathy we have for her is just astounding. This is one of those rare films that we just want her to have a happy ending when the film ends. Like, just the level of abuse she suffers from school to her own home is just so heartbreaking. I’ll elaborate more on her home life in a bit. Aside from her constant living state, we do see moments that show that some people care about her. 

        In one scene, we see one classmate Sue tell her boyfriend Tommy to go out with Carrie to help her with her low self-esteem. At first, he’s hesitant but ultimately relents to ask her out. It’s both Sue and Miss Collins that have the best interest for her to look out. Among the crappiness of her school, it shows that some people do care for her, in spite of what her mother thinks. 

        When she’s at home with her mother is just so incredibly sad to see. It’s established earlier that her mother Margaret is a traveling zealot looking to convert new people in her neighborhood. It’s bad when one of the mothers of Carrie’s classmates just hands her a 5 dollar bill to have her leave. Just seeing Margaret use her religion as a way to put down Carrie is upsetting to me. 

        One moment is when she tells her mom about her period just made me both sad and upset. Both Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie sell the domestic abuse to its fullest. Right down to when Margaret pulls Carrie’s hair by dragging her to a broom closet to have her pray. 

        Lastly, one can’t talk about this film without talking about the Prom scene. Everything leads up to it when Tommy rents a tux, and Carrie is sewing her own dress. This is the one moment where after everything that we’ve seen happen to Carrie, we just want her to be happy, for at least a good amount of time. After the school punks Billy and Chris pull the string that causes the pig’s blood to fall is when we see the true power of Carrie. 

        We get small glimpses of her powers earlier. And a bonus is when she actually tries to understand them when she’s at a library to get the confirmation that she isn’t going crazy, but is just an extraordinary gift. Back to the prom, it’s an editors dream to showcase her blood covered face and her powers is just a chef’s kiss. It would’ve been ruined if all of it was cut and spliced together. Having it be side by side shows just a real-time look of what’s happening. 

3. Legacy

        The film was both financially successful and critically acclaimed. It practically kicked off Brian De Palma’s popularity as a director and established Stephen King’s legendary authorship. It was his first adaptation of his works and many more to come within a matter of years and decades. Carrie’s been featured in one of the best horror films list of the decade and one King’s best works adapted. 

        I was surprised to learn that it got nominated for an Academy Award. For both Spacek and Laurie were nominated in their categories but lost out. It’s surprising for one thing a horror movie getting nominated when The Exorcist came out and many more were nominated based on their performance and special effects. Spacek would ultimately win her Award in the film Coal Miner’s Daughter.

        The film, like many other of King’s adaptations, started a franchise. There was a sequel that came out 20 years after the fact. It focused on Carrie’s half-sister and her newfound abilities. It was criticized for basically doing the exact same thing as the first movie did. In 2013, it was remade with Chloe Grace Moretz portraying the girl but got mixed reviews that didn’t really add anything new to the story in general.

4. Overall

        Carrie is a must watch for anyone marathoning De Palma films or exploring King’s various adaptations. It’s one of the essential viewings for 70s horror.