It's Hell Being A Teen: Carrie As Psychological Horror

Rating: 10/10 (5 March 2005)

This is one of the better horror films in the mainstream repertoire. It's a classic. Though there have been remakes (on television and also on screen, such as The Rage in the late 90's, the original 70's Carrie unleashes deep, psychological horror and frustrations of being a teenager. Sissy Spacek portrays the frail and powerful Carrie, with sympathetic and touching pathos and tragedy. John Travolta makes an appearance as a one of the high school boys who "wrong" her.
In the 70's, it was probably harder to "survive" high school. I grew up in the 90s when individual pride and diversity was accepted. For a girl like Carrie, who is almost reared as an Amish girl, by an unbelievably religious fanatic mother, who dresses differently than the rest of the girls in school, who is shy, awkward, insecure and most significantly- going through puberty (menstruating)..life can be very hard. The way she is treated by others, particularly the character Jon Travolta is playing and his girlfriend, is enough to drive her to madness. It's so understandable why after all she's put up with, she finally snaps. The moment she felt was her best, when she finally believed she was accepted even triumphant, also becomes her worst moment. Lashing out, she finally makes use of the telekinetic powers she has been practicing. Her mother, too, meets a death by her hands. The final scene seems to be the end-all to the tragic mother-daughter relationship. This movie is well-made, well-written and haunting. Stephen King became the king of horror movies with this, his first.