Carrie is a remake of a classic. It wants to scare you, and mostly it succeeds. But it also wants to feel modern, and that ambition is the problem.
Trailer, via ScreamFactoryTV.
The Premise
Carrie is about a girl who grows up in a strict household, attends a strict school, and finds out she can move things with her mind. That setup is simple and strong. It has been simple and strong since the original movie came out in 1976. The new version follows the same outline: a bullied teen, a secret power, a prom night disaster. Nothing about that outline changes here. The girl is still isolated at home, still picked on at school, still discovering a gift she does not understand. And the disaster still waits at the end.
Setting Up the World
The film spends a long stretch setting up its world. We see Carrie’s home life, her school life, her classmates’ cruelty. This is all familiar ground, and the movie leans into it. The bullying scenes are harsh, and they land. The family scenes are tense, and they work. But the setup drags in stretches. Some scenes feel like padding, added to make the runtime look fuller. The film is not afraid to show how Carrie lives, how she is treated, how she suffers in silence before her powers come into their own.
The Telekinetic Power
When Carrie’s powers finally emerge, the film shifts into a different gear. The telekinesis effects are smooth, and they hold up well against the older version. The film’s handling of the power feels less like a gimmick and more like a character trait. Carrie can move things, and the movie treats that ability with weight. It is a small win, but a real one. The power stops feeling like a trick and starts feeling like part of who she is.
The Destruction Scenes
The climax is where the remake tries hardest to separate itself from the original. The plan for the prom is built around Carrie, and the film stages the destruction with scale and chaos. It is loud, messy, and effective. The destruction scenes are the best parts of the movie, and they are the clearest reason to watch this version. The remake does not just copy the original’s disaster; it makes it bigger, messier, and scarier.
The Middle Section
The problem is pacing. The middle section drags, and the film loses focus. It spends too long in the hallways, in the classrooms, in the quiet rooms, before it gets to the moments that matter. The tension builds slowly, and it breaks before it reaches its peak. By the time the prom arrives, the payoff feels earned but rushed. The film is building toward a big moment, and it takes its time getting there.
The Lead Performance
The lead performance carries the film. She plays Carrie with a mix of fear and strength, and she sells both sides of the character. The supporting cast is fine, though less memorable. The bullies are mean, the teachers are weak, the classmates are cruel, and none of them leave much of an impression. The film is about Carrie, and everything else exists to push her toward the climax.
Production Design and Cinematography
The production design is solid. The school looks like a real place, the town looks like a real place, and the lighting gives the film a dark, oppressive tone. The cinematography is competent, though it rarely rises above serviceable. The film is easy to watch, but it is rarely striking to watch. The images are clear, the colors are dark, but they rarely stand out on their own.
The Score and Sound
The score is quiet where it should be, loud where it should be. It supports the scenes without overpowering them. The sound design is strong during the destruction scenes, giving the chaos a physical presence. The film sounds good, even when it isn’t doing much visually. The sound helps sell the disaster, making the mess feel real.
The Verdict
Carrie is a remake that works in fits and starts. Its best scenes are genuinely scary, and its worst scenes are simply dull. The balance between the two is uneven, and the film never quite settles into a steady rhythm. It is a film of highs and lows, with the highs being higher than the lows are low.
The destruction scenes are the clearest reason to watch this version.
That line captures the whole picture. The remake is worth seeing for the final act, and worth skipping for everything before it. It is a mixed bag, and it knows it.
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