If you’re unfamiliar with the plot for the movie Carrie, it’s essentially all the ingredients for a school shooting, except Carrie has no access to guns. What she does have, though, is a particular set of skills. Powers if you will. As she deals with the adversity of being picked on in school, of having a terrible home life, she slowly develops these skills. And then one day, at the prom of all places, the emotions spill over, and her powers get out of hand.
If you’re unfamiliar with the plot for the movie Carrie, it’s essentially all the ingredients for a school shooting, except Carrie has no access to guns. What she does have, though, is a particular set of skills. Powers if you will. As she deals with the adversity of being picked on in school, of having a terrible home life, she slowly develops these skills. And then one day, at the prom of all places, the emotions spill over, and her powers get out of hand.
I can see some people taking the common stance of “they already did this movie, and it was perfect! Why do it again? Have we run out of ideas?! It’s just like Hollywood has come to a point where…” and you know how that diatribe continues. I don’t think this was an unnecessary venture. It’s been a few years since I watched the original, but one thing I don’t remember is really caring about Carrie. You watch her go through the turmoil of high school as an outcast, but I mostly remember thinking, “oh …yep, they pushed her too far. That’s what happens.” But in this installment, you care for Carrie, who is played excellently by Chloe Grace Moretz. She wants to be a normal teenager. Sure, she’s a little odd. She gets her period as a 17-year-old for the first time and has no idea what is happening (the bullies really enjoy this), but Grace-Moretz (is that how people refer to her? CGM?) is a touch too attractive for you to really buy-in to the notion that no one likes her or has ever liked her. Her home life, however, gives you a better idea. Her mom is a religious nut played very well by Julianne Moore (who I typically am not wild about because of that weird open-mouthed “I’m having the best time imaginable” smile she does too frequently, but in this I liked her because there wasn’t much smiling from her character) and she makes Carries life Hell. Everything is evil. The kids are bad. Showing your shoulder is immodest. Having friends? That’s right – you’re going to hell. So Carrie loves her mom, but she also fears her. She fears losing her approval. So, she doesn’t make friends. She doesn’t do normal things.
And at school, because she’s awkward – she is picked on relentlessly by Chris played by Portia Doubleday. Chris is utterly evil and hateable. Whoever cast Doubleday must have seen her walk in the room and said “I hate her so much …she’s perfect.” She torments Carrie relentlessly and adds to you as an audience member rooting for Carrie to summon her powers and destroy Chris. There are decent kids at school, and they decide to do something nice for Carrie. The popular girl has her boyfriend invite Carrie to prom. That should work out pretty well, right? The awkward girl venturing out among the masses? Not if Chris and her terrible boyfriend have a say in the matter.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie. CGM is captivating, although it was difficult at times to buy her completely as an awkward weirdo, and she looked a little magician like in using her powers at times. Judy Greer gives my favorite performance of the movie, and maybe of her career. Very likeable and believable. And I liked Kimberly Peirce as a director. The suspense in Boys Don’t Cry is intense, and I thought she handled all the elements in Carrie, especially the suspense, very well. My critiques would be that it felt very teeny at times. A bit of a Twilight feel, but that went away as it got further in. The blood was a little less than great. I’m a pretty big fake blood snob, so that was difficult, but overall I would recommend seeing this movie. It’s a new spin on an old story, and I think they did a good job making it fresh while sticking to the original plotline. There’s even a covert Breaking Bad reference hidden in the prom scene.
Rating: 2.5 ex-presidents
Dave Huntsberger