By ASIA EWART
Staff Writer
I was extremely skeptical about the success a Carrie remake would garner when I first heard about it late last year.
It’s not always a good idea to tamper with classic movies, especially ones that help launched the careers of Sissy Spacek and John Travolta and featured some very iconic scenes and lines in popular culture, i.e. “They’re all going laugh at you!”
Nevertheless, being a Stephen King fan, of course I was going to see updated Carrie. I love both Chloe Grace Moretz and Julianne Moore, and if I was upset with the way any scenes were handled, I could always chuck popcorn at the screen.
Moretz (Kick Ass, Kick Ass 2) plays the titular Carrie White, a constant target of bullying and harassment at her high school.
Her mother, Margaret (Julianne Moore, Children of Men, Crazy Stupid Love), is a religious fanatic who regularly locks Carrie in a closet to pray and mutters Bible quotes about “Godless times.”
Carrie wants nothing more than to be normal and liked by her peers, but popular Chris Hargensen (Portia Doubleday) and Sue Snell (Gabriella Wilde) aren’t having that, videotaping their bullying of her and turning the school against her.
During a routine struggle to the prayer closet, after Margaret reprimands her daughter for getting her period in the school locker room, Carrie’s anger unleashes a wave of telepathic power. While this terrifies the girl, she is stunned by her ability.
She begins to practice, taking out library books and moving objects in her room.
Margaret sees this as the devil’s work and turns to constant prayer, mocking her daughter, and even self-harms.
Sue begins to feel over guilt over her actions towards Carrie and looks to befriend her. Her kindness carries on throughout the movie and aids Carrie when she needs it the most.
The movie escalates to a new type of horror unseen in the 1976 film. Carrie’s power begins to vastly increase, resulting in the classic prom scene that viewers familiar with Carrie’s story have come to know well over the last 30 years.
While I was skeptical about the movie, I never doubted that it would stay true to the original film, or even the 1974 novel. Moretz did a beautiful job as Carrie, from the frumpy clothes and hunched appearance to her the rage she unleashes when she loses control of her powers.
I did have trouble, however, really believing her as an outcast at times. Moretz is a very pretty girl, and sometimes couldn’t pull off the bewildered looks and anger Sissy Spacek made perfect.
Her Carrie was also a lot more assertive, many times not taking her mother’s abuse and standing up for herself.
Moore stole the show just as much as Moretz did; I loved her performance. Her religious insanity was very much made clear through her slow, quiet speech, disheveled hair, and terrifying actions; I was honestly blown away!
The special effects were very believable this time around; some moments were a bit cheesy and gory, but not enough to turn me off from the movie.
Doubleday surprisingly stood out as antagonist Chris Hargenson; I wasn’t familiar with her work before Carrie, but her role as the classic mean girl was convincingly played and strongly carried out until the very end.
Carrie came just in time for the Halloween season and serves as a great thriller for those seeking it. I highly recommend any and every one go see it!
