Carrie (2013) Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: A girl with telekinetic powers is tormented by her controlling mother and bullied by her classmates until she snaps.

Review: It's been quite a few years since the last time I saw the original so I will try and keep comparisons to a minimum. On top of that, I never saw the made for TV remake nor have I read the book, but, from what I have read, the adaptations have been relatively faithful and Stephen King was mostly pleased with the original movie. Most changes appear to be minor or to add dramatic flair although I don't think any of the actresses portraying Carrie White look as the book describes her. The original "Carrie" film is typically regarded as a horror film, but I don't think it would be fair to label this version as such. In some ways, that fact is the downfall of the film, while, in other ways, transitioning the focus more toward Carrie's development enhances the story. I'd say the majority of the film is a hit or miss kind of situation whereby some elements are made better, but some come off as stupid and/or pointless.

Let's first deal with Carrie herself since she is the center of the whole story. I know a lot of people disagreed with the choice of Chloe Grace Moretz for the role, but I think she did a commendable job even if perhaps a little too cute to be portraying an ugly outcast. Ms. Moretz captures the timid nature of Carrie successfully while bringing a certain sympathetic charm to the character not wholeheartedly present in the original. Granted, Carrie is meant to be scary by the end of the film, but that's not what they were going for anyway so I guess mission accomplished for better or worse; although the red eyes stained with the pig's blood was a nice touch. It's kind of hard to explain but one of the main reasons why you can relate to this incarnation of Carrie is because she looks more normal and appears more altruistic than the first film; instead of becoming a villain, she becomes a tragic hero of sorts. For example, in the original, Carrie kills pretty much everyone regardless of whether or not they messed with her or not. In this movie Carrie only kills the individuals that wronged her with slight collateral damage. I prefer her to be in control of her powers out for revenge rather than rampaging psychotically; it was satisfying to see her exact her revenge while she was simultaneously sparing those that had tried to help her throughout the film like her gym teacher (I'm aware they weren't chummy in the book). I should also note that Carrie's revenge actually created a few inconsistencies since some of the people she killed she would have had no idea they were involved with the prank against her. If it weren't for the whole killing everyone at prom deal, much of this film could have worked as a romance film and wouldn't have been half bad. In fact, Carrie's torment is probably more severe than in the original since now people are recording her bleeding in the shower and loading it on the internet to make a bigger fool out of her which emphasizes her goodness, because she kills even less people while having more reason to than before. Maybe I simply liked Ms. Moretz too much as Hit-Girl and I'm projecting, but I really wanted to see things work out for this Carrie and her not end up dead!

Much like Carrie, most of the other characters have become more sympathetic with outright reasons why they are the way they are or implications as to why. So now Sue has more guilt and maybe even cares for Carrie, Miss Desjardin is concerned for Carrie's well-being realizing the cruelty of the kids, and Chris is perhaps abused by her dad and so she vents through Carrie and would explain why she's attracted to a sleazy guy like Billy. Neutral characters like Tommy have now been altered to be full-fledged good guys but they added a certain layer to him that was interesting; he talks about how he used to be bullied and eventually beat up the kid so he wonders why people mess with Carrie for no reason since he can relate. But he's not so over the top that he likes Carrie, just enough to show why he wouldn't object to taking her to the prom but would still prefer to be with Chris. This is one of those situations where it flows better when watching the film, but I can see how it would infuriate purists of the book. As far as Carrie's mom, I think they vastly improved the character through Julianne Moore's performance. They definitely capture the insanity while adding a masochistic side not properly presented in the original as she struggles to cope with an ungodly world stabbing and cutting herself. There is a point when the mom is waiting for Carrie at night and you see her rocking back and forth on the lawn, and you definitely get the vibe she's been crazily doing this for hours.

As for other nuances and details: I was really disappointed in the weak CGI effects; there is a part where Carrie is flying, and I'm laughing it's so bad. You'd think they could have made the final prom massacre and subsequent fight against Chris, Billy, and the mom look better. But speaking of such, Carrie killing Chris and Billy was great with an almost "Final Destination" vibe to their demises. The massacre in the original looked so much better and Carrie walking out of the school, soaked in blood, looked unsettling in comparison. Also, keeping with the nicer Carrie theme, she doesn't attack random people on her way home after prom either. The ending is really bad here with a final shot of Carrie's grave and stupid CGI cracks coming out of it as if Carrie is still alive or something. Sue's creepy dream of Carrie's hand coming out of the grave is a creepier zinger if you feel so inclined to include a fucking zinger. Something that never really amounted to anything and maybe belongs with a deleted scene was one of the girls that messed with Carrie was greatly implied to be having some relationship with the one douchebag teacher. Finally, Sue is declared pregnant unlike the book but in a weird way as if Carrie is connected to it rather than the implication she possibly killed it; eh, make of it what you will.

By now you are either raging over what you've read or considering to check out this version. I will admit that another "Carrie" was kind of unnecessary, but I enjoyed the direction they took it. I prefer Carrie as a more sympathetic and nice character who wants revenge rather than a morally ambiguous turned berserk character. I guess a part of me would like the hero to be redeemed rather than fall, and the regular Carrie wouldn't be able to be redeemed while the Ms. Moretz version could be. I hate to say it, but this really would have worked better as a chick flick and it had a lot of hallmarks of one too. Because of the numerous flaws and huge changes to the characters' personalities, I had to lower the score. This isn't to say that I didn't enjoy the film, because I did, I simply recognize the problems and accept them. I would still recommend this film if you're not entirely a purist as more of an alternate take on the character rather than a straight up remake, but go in with an open mind nonetheless.

Notable Moment: When Tommy defends Carrie after she reads her poem in class. It was actually a heartfelt moment and could have made for an interesting romance setup if this were a whole different film.

Final Rating: 6/10