Carrie (1976)
Also known as "Carrie - Special Edition "
If you've got a taste for terror… take Carrie to the Prom
Starring: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, Betty Buckley, Nancy Allen, John Travolta, P.J. Soles, Priscilla Pointer, Sydney Lassick, Stefan Gierasch, Michael Talbott, Doug Cox, Harry Gold, Noelle North
Director: Brian De Palma
Running Time: 98 minutes
US MPAA rating: N/AUK BBFC rating: 18
Drama, Horror
On DVD Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) might be a schoolgirl with telekinetic powers, but 'Matilda' she ain't. Bullied by her classmates and virtually ignored by all but one of her teachers (Betty Buckley), this girl needs help - and, I might be taking a wild stab in the dark here, but I blame the parents.
Dad, you see, did a runner years ago, whilst mum (a laughably OTT Piper Laurie) is two bricks short of a bungalow. A fanatical God-botherer, she locks Carrie in the cupboard with a life-size model of Jesus, calls absolutely everything under the sun a "sin" and, worst of all, incessantly pesters the neighbours (who've clearly not yet worked out that they could hide behind the sofa and pretend not to be in whenever she rings the doorbell). Yup, Old Mother White is well and truly off her rocker.
It looks like things could be looking up for young Carrie when burst sofa look-a-like Tommy (William Katt) asks her to the prom - but little do they know that a pre-'Saturday Night Fever' John Travolta lurks in the background armed with a bucketful of pigs' blood. The swine!
Yes, this is 1970s horror in all its full-blown crapness. Director Brian De Palma replaces aspects such as shock and tension with pointless split-screen visuals, unintelligible camerawork and a tedious slo-mo build-up to the downright ridiculous finale. While Spacek's performance in the lead role is a good one considering the circumstances, not a single character in the film seems to have any sense of either perspective or reality.
Based on a novel by the hit-and-miss Stephen King, 'Carrie' is considered in many circles to be a horror classic. So by all means give it a whirl and make up your own mind - but, personally, I cannot think of a single reason to recommend it.
DVD Extras: An animated stills gallery, original trailer, and a whole bunch of featurettes including 'Acting Carrie', 'Visualising Carrie', 'Singing Carrie' and 'Cash and Carrie' (actually, I made that last one up).
It's Got: A teenage tantrum taken to extremes.
It Needs: For each and every character to be given a good shake.
Alternatives: Carrie (2002 version), The Exorcist, Halloween
Summary: Over-acted over-directed tripe
Review by Gary Panton
Review Date: 30th January 2004
External Links
Official Web Site
Carrie at the IMDB
Comments3 Comments |
| Gary Panton's review of Carrie is so incredibly wrong, so single mindedly narrow and uninformed that I am left in a complete and utter stupor. How anybody could claim that De Palma's incredibly sophisticated camerawork and color scheme are "pointless" does not understand the medium of Film in the first place. I hold an M.A. in cinema studies, teach film and am pursuing my Ph.D. I mention such tedius academic endeavors only to point out the fact that I actually understand the mechanics of cinema and visual storytelling. "Full blown crapness?????" The script was flawlessly adapted, the acting - superb (two academy award nominations) yes over the top in Laurie's case, but if you understand the concept of satire, oh gee, I'm sorry, Mr.Panton clearly does not. I could go on just as positively as he does negatively and criticism is parasitic at times, so I'll just say this. Carrie broke "new ground" my man, and in a genre that is rooted in firm stylistic conventions and modern cliche - That says A LOT. This web site should be a little more selective...................... |
| Comment by:- A disturbed reader | | 22 June 2004 | ip: logged |
| i like it how she gets her rags in the shower i want that to happen to me oneday i also hope people throw tampons at me while im in the shower naked. |
| Comment by:- Bella Suprina | | 14 November 2004 | ip: logged |
| LOL, Gary Panton...Who are you?? I sure as hell hope you don't review movies for a living...What's your favourite film? Dude wheres my car? Pokemon the movie? For all of you who read that review above, you should forget it right away as nothing could ever be more narrow-minded and amateur. When Carrie was released somewhat 30 years ago (1976 if i remember right) it was considered a breakthrough in the art of cinema. The acting was brilliant; Sissy Spacek was nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars, and later went on to receive several more. Piper Laurie also won a Best Supporting Actress nomination for the flim. Although if watched today it feels a little outdated (probably due to the inability to produce special effects in those days, and the overall feel of the film in general) it still stands as a landmark film. It drifts a little from the book at times, but not so much so that it affects the story in any way. When you look past the age and date of the film and appreciate the accomplishments of Carrie, it really is a fine piece of cinema. |
| Comment by:- m7 | | 06 December 2004 | ip: logged |
