Superb direction in this Stephen King adaptation

Rating: 10/10 (23 December 2015)

Brian de Palma's breakthrough movie is still breathtaking after all these years, and the well-remembered ending still packs a punch even when you know what's coming. De Palma's typical trend for excessiveness works well in this movie which boasts one of the greatest, most explosive finales ever filmed; it is this finale which propels the movie into classic status. Sure, the rest of the film, the first hour, is good enough in its depiction of high school horrors, yet de Palma really lets loose at the end with some of the most audacious images ever put on screen.
Every trick in the book is tried in this film; split-screen techniques, slow-motion, fast-motion, distorted camera angles, you name it, de Palma does it. Sometimes this makes the film look dated, but most of the time it works extremely well. Beginning with an unforgettably cruel taunt from a pack of girls in a changing room, Carrie introduces us to Sissy Spacek, who plays what may well be one of the saddest, most pathetic, and sympathetic victims in movie history, bullied at school by her classmates and at home by her bible-thumping mother. You're always 100% behind Carrie in these instances and the final comeuppance of the villains is so well deserved that I was positively cheering her on.
The acting is of a high order, as to be expected. Sure, some of the villains may be exaggerated, but this makes their actions all the more terrible. Spacek is wonderful in the lead role, and even though she's not an obviously likable character you still end up caring deeply and feeling sorry for poor Carrie. Piper Laurie is truly obnoxious as her religious maniac mother and the cause of all the trouble. Whenever I see her in a film, I always remember this and end up despising her, so the performance is definitely a memorable one. Amy Irving (who went on to take a leading role in de Palma's next film, THE FURY) is fine as a schoolgirl with a heart, while William Katt (HOUSE) is chiefly of interest for his terribly dated hairstyle. The fresh faces of Nancy Allen and John Travolta help to create a pair of the nastiest teenage lovers you'll see.
Anyhow, the first hour passes by with some shocking scenes of cruelty and plenty of suspense in the build-up to the finale. We get to see some minor examples of Carrie's handiwork - she makes an ashtray flip over, a bike skid - in order to prepare us for the big event. When it comes, and that bucket of pig's blood tips down, the impact is so powerful (de Palma uses slow-motion for a considerable period of a time here at the crucial moment, and it pays off) that I had tears in my eyes while watching. Then all hell breaks loose, with some well-choreographed carnage to enjoy, culminating in a fiery car crash which is one of the film's pyrotechnic highlights.
Just when you think it's all over for our heroine, de Palma throws in THAT shock ending! CARRIE is a well made film and one of the very best Stephen King adaptations out there. A must see for horror fans as one of the best-directed of contemporary horrors.