Carrie (2013)

**Carrie** is a 2013 American supernatural horror film directed by Kimberly Peirce based on Stephen King's 1974 novel of the same name, which was released on October 18, 2013 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, Screen Gems and Misher Films.

## Plot

High school can be tough for many teenagers, but for Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz), it's especially hellish.

A shy and awkward teenager being raised by a religious zealot mother (Julianne Moore), Carie is frequently the target of bullies, but Carrie has a secret talent: She can make things move with her mind.

One fateful night, a cruel prank at Carrie's senior prom pushes her over the edge which causes her to unleash her telekinetic powers and wreck havoc.

## Cast

* Chloë Grace Moretz as Carrie White
* Julianne Moore as Margaret White
* Judy Greer as Miss Desjardin
* Portia Doubleday as Chris Hargensen
* Alex Russell as Billy Nolan
* Gabriella Wilde as Sue Snell
* Ansel Elgort as Tommy Ross
* Barry Shabaka Henley as Principal Henry Morton
* Zoë Belkin as Tina Blake
* Karissa Strain as Nicki Watson
* Katie Strain as Lizzy Watson
* Samantha Weinstein as Heather Mason
* Demetrius Joyette as George Dawson
* Mouna Traoré as Erika Langton

## Production

In May of 2011, representatives from MGM and Screen Gems announced that the two companies were producing a film remake of "Carrie."

The two studios hired Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (who wrote Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark) to write a screenplay that delivers "a more faithful adaption" of Stephen King's novel. Aguirre-Sacasa previously adapted King's work The Stand into a comic book in 2008.

Reshoots were ordered, as the screenplay was re-written by Lawrence D. Cohen, who also wrote the original film.

Upon hearing of the new adaptation, Stephen King remarked: *"The real question is why, when the original was so good?" He also suggested Lindsay Lohan for the main role and stated that "it [the film] would certainly be fun to cast."*

Actress Sissy Spacek, who played Carrie in the 1976 adaptation, expressed an opinion on the choice of Lohan for the character of Carrie White, stating that she *"was like, 'Oh my God, she's really a beautiful girl' and so I was very flattered that they were casting someone to look like me instead of the real Carrie described in the book. It's gonna be real interesting."*

In March of 2012, the role of Carrie White was offered to Chloë Grace Moretz, who accepted the role. Other actresses that auditioned, turned down or were considered for the lead role consisted of actresses such as Shailene Woodley, Haley Bennett, Emily Browning, Lily Collins, Bella Heathcote, Dakota Fanning and Hailee Steinfeld.

Principal photography or "Carrie" began on June 28, 2012 and ended on September 7, 2012. Filming took place in Ontario, Canada (in Toronto, Newmarket and Mississauga).

Because Chloë Grace Moretz was a minor at the time of filming, she was limited to 8 hours of work per day. Many of Julianne Moore's scenes where she was interacting with Moretz's character (who was not in frame) were shot with director Kimberly Peirce subbing for Moretz.

Chloë Grace Moretz admitted to not having watched any previous incarnation of "Carrie' prior to this film from the audition and she ultimately chose not to so as to create her own spin on the character and not try to copy Sissy Spacek or Angela Bettis' performances.

To help prepare her for the role of Carrie, director Kimberly Peirce sent star Chloë Grace Moretz to homeless shelters to meet people who had genuinely lived tough lives.

Portia Doubleday dyed her hair brown to play the role of Chris Hargensen.

While shooting the scene in which the girls are exercising on the football field, it was a hot day that lingered around 103 degrees which made Kimberly Peirce worried that the cast was going to collapse from the heat.

Kimberly Peirce stated that they used about 1000 gallons of fake blood (with about 50 tests, hair and makeup for Chloë Grace Moretz, and everything else). Moretz also said in an interview that she worked in the blood for about three months.

Chloë Grace Moretz insisted that she not be told when the fake blood was going to be dumped onto her because she wanted her own reaction to be authentic.

When approaching the telekinetic powers, Kimberly Peirce went through the script page by page and gave a number rating from 1-10 for the level of Carrie's powers during the telekinesis sequences.

As part of the promotion for the upcoming Halloween release of "Carrie", a telekinetic coffee shop surprise prank was set up with stuntmen and actors to terrify unaware customers with a girl with "ESP" (the actual prank video is included on the DVD/Blu-ray release of the film).

## Box Office

"Carrie" grossed $16,101,552 during its opening weekend. Overall, it grossed $84,790,678 on an estimated budget of $30,000,000.

## Critical Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, "Carrie" has an approval rating of 50% based on 180 reviews with an average rating of 5.49\10. The site's consensus reads: *"It boasts a talented cast, but Kimberly Peirce's 'reimagining' of Brian De Palma's horror classic finds little new in the Stephen King novel -- and feels woefully unnecessary."*

On Metacritic, it scored a 53 out of 100 based on 34 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews."

Michael Philips of the Chicago Tribune wrote: *"The acting's strong; in addition to [Chloe Grace] Moretz and [Julianne] Moore, Judy Greer is a welcome presence in the Betty Buckley role of the sympathetic gym instructor. But something's missing from this well-made venture. What's there is more than respectable, while staying this side of surprising."*

Variety magazine said: *"Director Kimberly Peirce’s intermittently effective third feature eschews [Brian] De Palma’s diabolical wit and voluptuous style in favor of a somber, straight-faced retelling, steeped in a now-familiar horror-movie idiom of sharp objects, shuddering sound effects and dark rivulets of blood."*

Joe Neumaier of The New York Daily News called Chloe Grace Moretz a *"terrific young actress."*

Writing for The Dissolve, Nathan Rabin said: *"Despite the talent involved and the notoriety of the source material, Carrie feels strangely small, even television-sized."*

Rene Rodriguez of the Miami Herald wrote: *"This Carrie becomes less involving as it goes along, ceding its emotional power to special effects and unconvincing gore, and culminating with a closing shot so lame and uninspired, it’s as if the filmmakers just gave up and called it a day."*

The Boston Globe said: *"The new Carrie is a thoroughly dispiriting remake — “retread” is the appropriate word — that could have been directed by any proficient Hollywood hack."*

In Slant Magazine's review of "Carrie", they wrote: *"In focusing on predominately kid-gloves portrayals of her teen players, Kimberly Peirce never properly addresses the machinery behind their doom, which is why the film is relentlessly lifeless when it's not literally ripping off De Palma shot-for-shot."*