Review: Carrie
Stephen King is known for writing horror stories with a usual supernatural undertone and while a majority of them get a film treatment, they are often met with mixed results. One of his most popular properties would be that of Carrie. Thanks in large part to the original film starring Sissy Spacek. Thus, it is no shocker too see this story get a remake, as that tends to be the trend that the horror genre is on at the moment. (Stephen King is having another one of his famous films being remade, It) This film, unlike previous horror remakes, has plenty of star power attached to it both behind the camera and in front of it. Director Kimberly Peirce is famous for her work on Boys Don't Cry and Stop Loss. Chloe Grace Moretz is a growing star in the industry having done plenty of films in her young career and suits the role of Carrie perfectly. However, the one big surprise is how Julianne Moore, while being a talented actress, fails to nail the role of the psychotic Christian mother. The film also is just about identical to the original film, which is not exactly a bad thing either.
The film starts off as we see Carrie (Chloe Grace Moretz) being born, but in a very strange and unsettling way that was a bit on the confusing side. We see Margaret White (Julianne Moore) giving birth in her home and she feels that God is testing her. She feels that her daughter was born of sin and she is tasked with the divine task of killing her spawn. She, however, cannot go through with it. The film fast forwards and we now see Carrie in high school struggling to get along with her peers. She is very much an outcast as her mother had always told her to cover herself up and that if she didn't act a certain way then she would be punished. This led to Carrie being bullied in school and also at home. Usually, at school she was degraded on a more psychological level. Such as having her period at the end of her gym class for the first time sending her into a panic thinking something was horribly wrong only to be laughed at by her peers. All the while, as she struggles to find a place in the world she begins to realize that she has a mysterious power that allows her to move objects with her mind. She decides to learn as much as she can about it as it almost gives her a purpose in her life.
Considering the bathroom incident, the school disciplines the bully who then decides to make it her goal in life to ruin Carrie White's life by any means necessary. After her friend and resident sweet girl of the school, Sue Snell (Gabriella Wilde) decides to allow her boyfriend Tommy Ross (Ansel Elgort) to take Carrie out to the prom, essentially giving Carrie a night that she will never forget. Carrie is at first skeptical thinking that it is another ploy to bully her and berate her once again. However, Sue just feels bad after the bathroom incident. Margaret disagrees with Carie going to the prom as she feels everyone will laugh at her and that Tommy will take advantage of her. Carrie eventually agrees to Tommy's request, but once the bully, Chris (Portia Doubleday) finds out about this, she takes it upon herself to orchestrate a plan to embarrass Carrie on a grand stage. This of course goes horribly wrong, considering how Carrie has super powers.
In the growing trend of horror movies being remade, this remake stands tall above the horrible remakes that have come before it. Albeit, it does have horror aspects to it, I would not really classify it as a horror film. It is in a way a bit of a coming of age story and thus a drama story. It benefits from a classic story but also a very talented director behind the camera. Peirce does a good job and wisely sticks closely to the original while also still finding ways to modernize it to make it more applicable to today's audience. The cast does a fantastic job, outside of Julianne Moore. She just felt out of place and overly corny in the part. Chloe Grace Moretz does a terrific job of both endearing the audience to her but also having a little bit of a nasty streak to her, which probably comes from her days of being on Kick-Ass. The bullies and Sue Snell are a bit of one-note characters, but they serve a purpose. Overall, it is an entertaining film, but if you have seen the original film there is no difference between that one and this one.
