This week back in 1976, Carrie was released in the U.S. Based on a novel by Stephen King, it was the first of King's novels to be bought to the big screen.
I have only seen this twice before, and have never really been much of a fan, but looked forward to watching it now with a more knowledgeable and critical eye. I'm pretty sure I only ever watched it the first time because of my John Travolta obsession! I definitely forgot how horrible he is in this film!
Sissy Spacek plays Carrie, the shy girl with telekinetic powers who has been truly sheltered from the 'real' world. She plays the part so well; her performance was amazing. Her fear of the unknown, the sweet innocence, and the change to that terrifying look in her eyes after the bucket falls!! Wow.
Her mother is a religious and quite wicked woman, and Piper Laurie plays her so well. She is almost quite terrifying. The more you see of her, the more you feel for poor Carrie.
This is a film that focuses more on getting to know our main characters and building a story to get to that big ending. I think that is maybe why I have found it perhaps a little boring in the past, but I definitely appreciated it much more this time around.
With only a few moments that now look dated, this film has held up well over time. I loved it far more on this watch, and although it will never be a favourite of mine, I can see why it's considered such a classic.
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