When going to see “Carrie,” remade by Kimberly Peirce, you have to keep an open mind. It is a remake based on the epic Stephen King novel, so the story is not a new one. With this being said, this movie was without a doubt a clever remake. The movie starts off with the introduction of Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz) and her mother Margaret White (Julianne Moore) in their eccentric home.
Her mother is very religious and punishes Carrie for natural events, such as a girl coming of age. Shortly after the movie begins, Carrie begins to realize she has telekinetic powers. She thinks they are harmless and fun, but Carrie is constantly picked on and laughed at during school, and for what? The kids at school do not know of her powers just yet. This movie gives new meaning to teenage bullying in a very subtle way. She is bullied her whole life, and is eventually pushed over the edge.
When Carrie is asked to prom by Sue Snell’s (Gabriella Wilde) hot jock boyfriend, Tommy Ross (Ansel Elgort), she believes the kids in her class are trying to trick her, yet again. She confides in her teacher, Ms. Desjardin (Judy Greer), and she tries to stop them. However, Sue wants Tommy to take Carrie to the prom as an act of kindness. She genuinely feels sorry for Carrie and for what she has had to go through. Eventually, Carrie accepts Tommy’s invitation and makes herself a beautiful pink dress.
After the naming of prom king and queen, things take a turn toward the dangerous side as Carrie reveals her powers and learns just how strong they are. Everyone will know Carrie’s name and her story by the end of the night. This stunning thriller left its audience at a loss for words. The acting was flawless. Moretz was a perfect fit to play Carrie. She filled Sissy Spacek’s shoes perfectly and didn’t leave her fans disappointed. She played the lonely and secluded teenage girl with crazy telekinetic powers spectacularly and then was completely stunning once things didn’t go quite as planned during the prom.
Moore was outstanding as the crazy mother of the sad young Carrie. She made the audience hate her character, yet love her at the same time, because without her, there wouldn’t be much of a story. It wouldn’t have been as powerful if the mother had been normal, being eccentric and overly religious added to the intensity of the movie.
This movie was very well made and did an excellent job at keeping the audience on the edge of their seats, even if they had seen the original and read the book. It added new elements, being a more modern version, which worked well and made it more relatable. Some points were a bit more dramatic than they needed to be, especially the scene where the pig blood is poured on Carrie’s head. It is the climax of the movie, and everyone knows it, so it would have been better to keep that part simple.
The rest of the movie was spectacular and portrayed being bullied in a non-dramatic, but effective way. The feelings involved were extremely believable and so far it seems audiences have reacted really well to it. It was an excellent remake, and I would suggest every fan of horror movies go see it. You can’t be a horror movie lover without seeing the classics, even their remakes, right?
