Next week marks the 50th anniversary of Brian de Palma’s ‘Carrie’ so with that in mind, now seems like the perfect time to return to Bates High School.
In the fifty years that have followed Carrie’s theatrical release, the author of the original source material, Stephen King, has made a name for himself as one of America’s most prolific writers. In that time, according to the international movie database, his work has been the foundation for over 300 adaptations. Carrie is the first, and in the eyes of many, the best, cinematic conversion of his writing. Although that’s not an opinion I share, I will freely admit that it certainly belongs in the small group of great King adaptations.
For anyone who isn’t familiar with the story, Carrie White is a shy, insecure teenager. Suppressed and abused by her mother’s fanatical religious beliefs, she is subsequently ostracized and bullied at school. But Carrie also possesses the power of Telekinesis. A gift she struggles to control. So, when mounting pressure collides with public humiliation, carnage ensues. The reason why Carrie, as a piece of fiction, has passed the test of time, is because it’s a simple, yet sadly still relevant, tale of how destructive cruelty and indifference can be.
A theme that Brian de Palma illuminates in stylized, almost operatic fashion. Whether he’s twisting the knife of suspense with tracking shots, juxtaposing dreamy soft focus with sheer terror or reflecting mayhem with split screen perspectives, the visual language de Palma uses both draws the viewer in and repels them. Whether grounded or kinetic his aesthetic approach to the film is often a great dancing partner for the screenplay. The peak of which is of course the films iconic climax: a callous prank that quickly turns into blood-soaked mayhem.
Whether you’ve seen Carrie or not, you’ll be familiar with the Prom scene as it’s been parroted and parodied countless times. The reason as to why the film's crescendo has continuously reverberated for the past five decades is because the buildup is believable and the payoff is earned.
Admittedly, the pious barbarism of Carrie’s mother is almost cartoonishly unhinged, but it’s contrasted with believable teenage nastiness from her peers. Both channels of heartless behaviour are amplified further by a fantastic performance from Sissy Spacek as the titular protagonist. As Carrie, Spacek takes us on a journey of timidness, feral empowerment, dreamlike wonder, and unbridled rage. It’s a trajectory that squeezes a lot of sympathy from the viewer, but as both guilty parties and innocent bystanders alike feel her wrath, we’re left viewing her through a complex moral prism.
These reasons, along with various others, are why, to this day, Carrie still captures the imagination and is rightfully viewed as a classic.
