This new interpretation of Stephen King’s “Carrie” brings a lot of blood to the party but lacks the heart of the original. In his 1976 production, Brian De Palma subscribed to the philosophy of “less is more,” focusing on the human elements of the story to give the supernatural finale a lot of punch. This remake does the opposite, highlighting Carrie’s discovery of her powers throughout the film. While the special effects are cool, the overuse of telekinesis in the first half of the film causes her iconic freakout to lose its element of surprise. I think that the film plays well to this generation, incorporating cell phones and YouTube into the story while intensifying the shock value of the horrific imagery. I was surprised by the casting of Julianne Moore as Carrie’s mother. She demonstrates her seasoned acting chops through the mental abuse of Carrie, but the performance cannot live up to the high precedent set by Piper Laurie. Chloë Grace Moretz was a great choice for the role of Carrie, using her body language to appear very uncomfortable in social situations. She has been so active in Hollywood that it is easy to forget that she was only 16 when they shot this film. Her transformation at the end is pretty terrifying and her transitions from evil to frightened are very effective. The film is entertaining but Stephen King said it best: "The real question is why, when the original was so good?" The 2013 remake of “Carrie” falls short of the original, but at least this interpretation has been enjoyed by more audiences than the failed Broadway musical.
[Pictured: The classic shot]
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