Review of Carrie (2002) by Kevin T — 29 Mar 2014

Horror remakes stream along the Hollywood pipeline with such frequency that most go unnoticed or are dismissed as money-grubbing, imitative drivel. For the most part, Kimberly Pierce's 2013 remake of Carrie succeeded in surpassing these stereotypes. It is difficult to be overly critical of remakes in terms of originality, because these films aren't looking to be original to begin with. However, this still gives remake directors the liberty to add their own unique vision, and Pierce fails to do so in her retelling of this supernatural and gory tale.

For those unfamiliar with the film's 1976 predecessor or the original Stephen King novel, Carrie tells the story of Carrie White, a young and awkward teenage girl in her senior year of high school. She lives with her mother, Margaret, who is deeply religious to the point of psychosis, going as far as locking Carrie in a closet and forcing her to pray. Because of her sheltered and withdrawn nature, Carrie is shocked when she has her first period during a gym class shower. She screams in pain, believing she is dying, and is teased by the other girls who throw tampons at her and film the event, eventually uploading it to YouTube.

Carrie's mother, believing Carrie's first period is a sign of sin, abusively locks her in a closet to pray. During an angry outburst, Carrie nearly splits the closet door in half. It is at this point that Carrie realizes she has telekinetic abilities and begins to practice her supernatural power frequently. We then meet Sue, a kindhearted girl who takes pity on Carrie after the shower incident. Sue asks her boyfriend to take Carrie to prom as an act of sympathy, and when asked, Carrie hesitantly but excitedly accepts. However, there are sinister events planned for Carrie at prom by those who do not take pity on her, and these events make for a vengefully dark and brutally explosive finale.

Carrie is a film best viewed as precisely what it is-a modernized remake. iPhones and Vampire Weekend songs flow through the familiar plot, attempting to capture current youth culture. However, Carrie remains formulaic, with most major plot points following its predecessor precisely. That is not to say Carrie is a bad film. It is an entertainingly bloody revisit to a horror classic, stylishly updating the 1976 version with a darker ambiance and spectacular CGI. Those unfamiliar with the storyline are more likely to praise the film and its viscerally iconic climax. Regardless, this is not enough to make Carrie successfully stand out as a horror remake.