Stars: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, Nancy Travis
Director: Brian DePalma
We now reach our first Stephen King movie in this review series, Carrie. When I reviewed this year in horror films, there was really only one other film that was in serious contention, The Omen. I like The Omen, as far as creepy kid films go it is one of the best, but is it a favorite of mine? No, it is not but I have watched it more than once. The atmosphere is great and the thought of my child being the devil is certainly a scary one, but I never really reach for this when I am in the mood for a horror film. I have only watched The Omen a couple of times while most of the films on this list, including Carrie, are pretty much annual watches.
Brief synopsis:
Carrie White has a complete meltdown when she is taking a shower after gym class and starts her period. Completely sheltered by her religious fanatic mother, Carrie has no idea what is happening and believes she is bleeding to death. She begs for help only to get pelted with pads and tampons by her fellow students. The gym teacher finally calms her down but not before all of the lights burst in the locker room, the first sign of Carrie’s burgeoning telekinetic powers. Carrie goes home and is punished by her mother for becoming a woman. Mrs. White is convinced that Carrie is being punished for impure thoughts. While Carrie is being punished by her mother, the gym teacher is punishing the girls who tormented Carrie by putting them through an exercise marathon in detention. Chris Hargenson, the leader of the pack, eventually cracks and refuses to participate. Her rebellion costs her the prom. She vows revenge.
Meanwhile Sue Snell, another one of the participants, gets her boyfriend Tommy to ask Carrie to the prom as penance for her part in the attack in the locker room and Carrie begins to come into her powers and assert herself with her mom.
Spoilers below (you have been warned):
Carrie goes to the prom with Tommy and they are crowned king and queen following a rigged election. After a cruel prank by Chris where a bucket of pig’s blood is dropped on Carrie’s head, she goes into a trance and unleashes her full powers on the laughing crowd. After killing everyone in the gym and setting fire to the school, she heads home. Chris and her boyfriend Billy try to run Carrie down in the street but she uses her powers to crash the car, killing them both.
Carrie gets home to her mother and finally breaks out of her trance. Her mother stabs Carrie in the back in attempt to kill her. Carrie saves herself and kills her mother. She then pulls the house down on herself, dying in the rubble. Sue visits the site of Carrie’s death with flowers and she grabbed by Carrie through the ground however, this is just a nightmare Sue is having. She wakes up screaming and is comforted by her own mother.
My thoughts (with spoilers):
Carrie is one of the earlies horror films I ever saw. I was probably in 5th or 6th grade and it really made an impression on me. Carrie did not ask for the life she was given. She was the victim of a religious fanatic mother whose husband couldn’t handle her and left. Carrie suffered the brunt of her mother’s insanity. She was abused, locked in a closet if she did not behave, and forced to recite her mother’s version of scripture. She went into school so beaten down and unable to socialize that she never had a hope of being popular.
Teenage Carrie just wants to survive high school. Because of people like Chris Hargensen, that was not going to happen. Chris is a mean girl to the core, pissed that she was rightfully punished for abusing Carrie and determined to make her pay for the punishment doled out by the gym teacher. She is a sociopath, completely devoid of empathy or even sympathy for Carrie. Carrie is an easy target for her hatred because Carrie doesn’t fight back. Or at least she didn’t until she developed telekinesis. Once Carrie realizes she can move things with her mind, she starts asserting herself. She stands up to her mother, accepts Tommy’s invitation to the prom, and actually seems happy to be going. But Chris cannot let that happen. Because of her need to always come out on top, she dooms their entire class to death.
The acting in this film is top rate. DePalma and George Lucas did joint auditions for this film and Star Wars at the same time (there is actually footage of William Katt, who plays Tommy, auditioning for Star Wars) and the young acting talent on display is wonderful. Sissy Spacek is perfect as Carrie White. Spacek says so much with just her eyes and the scenes where she is setting the prom on fire are chilling. A quick turn of the head and a glare of the eyes and you know exactly what is going on in her head. She has to make the biggest turn of the film, from meek to killer, and it is a believable turn. Spacek received a Best Actress Academy Award nomination and it is easy to see why.
Piper Laurie also received an Oscar nomination, for Best Supporting Actress. and it is easy to see why. Margaret White is a complex villain, a woman scorned by a cheating husband and left to raise a daughter you can tell she never wanted. She turned to religion, but she has to twist it to her own narrative, trying to keep her daughter from every experiencing any kind of connection with anyone but the Lord. Margaret White is terrifying and Laurie’s portrayal of her, especially at the end when she is trying to kill her daughter, is bone chilling.
DePalma’s direction is amazing and really creates a different feel than a traditional director might have done. DePalma knows every trick of the trade and is not afraid to use it. Slo-mo, fast forward, kaleidoscope, dream sequences, and of course the infamous split screen at the prom. While he may get a little carried away with these tricks in his later films, they work well here, adding to the disconcerting feeling of the film.
Carrie is a classic, plain and simple. Do yourself a favor and skip the prom. Instead, grab a group of friends and settle in for a horror movie marathon and make sure to invite Carrie. But don’t invite the sequel or the remakes, they can take their chances at the dance.
Other films from 1976 to check out:
Silver Streak – Classic comedy with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor on a train filled with intrigue and laughs.
Family Plot – Alfred Hitchcock’s last film and, while not one of his best, it is still a fun watch.
Murder by Death – An old mansion, a murder, and plenty of comedy. A millionaire calls famous detectives to his house to solve a crime. A lot of fun and plenty of familiar faces for movie fans.