Jadia at the Movies: “Carrie: She’s Definitely Back!”
November 22, 2013
What comes to your mind when you think of Stephen King? Horror? Deceased and
possessed pets, maybe? How about a telekinetic girl who goes violently insane? Well, if you
thought all three, you were correct. October 22 saw the return of Carrie White remade from her
original 1976 film debut in Carrie which was adapted from the novel of the same name written
by King. This modernized remake of Carrie stars Chloë Grace Moretz of Kick-Ass
fame as the
abused, telekinetic Carrietta “Carrie” White. The role of her fundamentalist mother, Margaret
White, is portrayed by Oscar-winner Julianne Moore.
The film opens with Carrie enduring an extremely personal, embarrassing moment in
which her female classmates taunt her mercilessly. While being consoled by her gym teacher, a
light bulb in the room mysteriously breaks. When Carries mother Margaret is called to pick her
up, Carrie shows great fear of her. Upon arriving home, Margaret beats Carrie while claiming
that God is punishing her for sinning. Margaret then forces Carrie into a closet where she is
locked for hours to pray for forgiveness.
One classmate, Sue Snell, feels remorse and guilt for her participation in the bullying of
Carrie. To make up for her participation in the mistreatment, Sue talks her boyfriend, Tommy
Ross, into asking Carrie to go to prom with him. Carrie agrees, much to the dislike of her mother.
Chris Hargensen, ringleader of the taunting classmates, is banned from prom after she
decides not to participate in the school mandated, week-long detention for Carrie’s mistreatment.
To exact her revenge, Chris plans a horrifying scheme to make prom night a “night to remember”
for Carrie.
If you have seen the original
Carrie
or read the novel by Stephen King, then you know
the iconic prank that is pulled. For the sake of those readers who have not, I will force them to go
see the remake to find out what happens, and no searching the internet for a summary! That is
cheating!
Although the
Carrie
remake involves some modernization, it does a fantastic job of
staying true to the original plot. Audience members really feel empathy towards Carrie for what
she goes through, both at school and home. Julianne Moore portrays the fundamentalist Margaret
White terrifyingly well, and Chloë Grace Moretz is wonderfully adept in playing this
unforgettable character. To top that off, effects used in the film were excellent.
Carrie
is scary, horrifying and intriguing. What better way to spend a weekend night?
Come on, you know it is a good excuse to hold someone’s hand. Hey, it might even inspire you
to pick up the novel that this film was based on and see if there were some things that maybe did
not make it into the film. After all, it was the first published novel by the literary king of horror.
On my Most Awesome Rating Scale,
Carrie
deserves of a seven out of ten.