#9 CARRIE - Horror Countdown to Halloween

Brian De Palma's Carrie is as mesmerizing as it is horrifying. The horror is birthed out of deeply human emotions and that's largely what makes the film so powerful some 35 years after its release. It also contains a classic surprise ending that has been copied endlessly. The film was based on a novel by Stephen King and the success of this film helped his career greatly.

Carrie, played wonderfully by Sissy Spacek, is not just some stereotypical outsider in high school. She is a complex girl, both innocent and disturbed. The film makes her a real person battling the pressures of high school. The fact that she has telekinetic powers seems secondary for the first half of the film.

Carrie draws the negative attention of Chris, played by Nancy Allen, who makes it her mission to humiliate Carrie. She plots an evil scheme with her wasted boyfriend, played by John Travolta. Carrie not only has trouble at school but at home. It's here the film's true horror shines. Mrs. White, played with wild energy by Piper Laurie, is a religious nut-case of a mother. When Carrie gets her first period, Mrs. White believes Satan has perverted her daughter. Her period must mean she is sexually active, something Mrs. White fears the most.

The scenes between Laurie and Spacek are amazing. The closed-off set of their home has a claustophobic feel to it. As the oppression and abuse grow in Carrie's life, so does the feeling that this house is closing in on her.

The film culminates at the prom. In a tour-de-force scene De Palma pulls out every trick in the book. Long, complex shots, split-screen, and clever editing are all used to create one of the most memorable scenes in horror film history. The fact that these scenes have emotional resonance is credited to the film's earlier half that established Carrie as a real and complex teenage girl.
written by Matthew Robinson