Originally published on Set The Tape
Stephen King is often cited as the biggest selling horror writer alive, and whilst that title may have been misplaced (it’s actually R.L. Stine) he’s by far the most adapted. There have been more film and television shows made from King’s work than perhaps any other living writer, and now Arrow Video are offering fans of the horror genre a chance to experience the very first Stephen King adaptation in never before seen 4K Ultra HD glory as Carrie gets a fantastic new home release.
Adapted from the novel of the same name, Carrie tells the story of a young girl who has been living with trauma for most of her life. She lives with her single mother, a fierce Christian who preaches about the sins of the world, and who abuses Carrie (Sissy Spacek) to the point where the girl finds herself locked in a small cupboard, forced to pay whenever her mother deems her to have done something ‘sinful’.
Unfortunately, her school life isn’t much different, and she has no friends, and the popular girls treat her like dirt. Things become worse for her as the film begins, with what has now become an infamous scene, in which Carrie has her first period whilst in the locker-room showers. As Carrie panics, going through something she’s not been prepared for, the other girls laugh at her, throw sanitary products at her, and abuse her in her moment of terror.
This begins a series of events that will see Carrie learning that she has psychic powers, and ends in tragedy as revenge and petty hate ruins multiple lives in what’s become one of the most defining coming of age stories and revenge tales ever crafted. And despite the age of the film, one that’s very much steeped in its 1970s setting, much of it still feels very relevant, and anyone who has been on the receiving end of school bullying will immediately recognise what Carrie is going through.
It’s been said that in horror stories there are only victims and monsters, and Carrie is one of those cases where that can be said of everyone in the story. Carrie herself is very much a victim; it’s clear from the very first moments of the film, even before the famous shower scene. Carrie is seen being abused in her first seconds on screen. She’s a victim through and through, and even when she’s trying not to be, when she’s trusting in some actual good people and taking a risk, it’s all ruined for her as she’s made a victim in the worst, most public way possible. And she’s also the monster of the film. She causes death and destruction on a scale that even scaled back for the film still results in hundreds dead. She’s one of the more unusual figures in a horror film, as she’s both our protagonist, the person we’re rooting for, and the monster at the end of the story.
And Spacek plays this dual role wonderfully. Much of the film has her as a meek, shy girl who seems to want to just curl up into herself and remain unseen by all around her because she’s used to any interaction ending in pain. But when the time comes for her to get her revenge she becomes a terrifying figure, with a look on her face that’s genuinely chilling. With just a change of expression and body language Spacek goes from victim to monster in a second. It’s not hard to see why she was nominated for a Oscar for her performance here, and why the film became such a success.
Her bullies, played chiefly by Nancy Allen and John Travolta, are more monster than victim, spending much of the film as figures that you can’t help but hate. Allen is the typical girl bully, managing to perfectly capture the kind of teen that most of us will have known at some point or other. She’s cruel, manipulative, and uses her popularity and beauty as weapons in her arsenal. Whilst Travolta plays a cruel character, an abusive and cruel boyfriend, there’s still a sense that he’s a follower to Allen’s Chris, ready to go along with her plans to hurt other people without hesitation. And you’re right to hate them throughout the film, but come the end the punishment for their crimes feels harsh, as their actions not only result in them being punished, but cause the deaths of others. They’re forced to watch as people are brutally killed, the weight of their actions brought down upon them, a punishment worse than their crimes.
The film is often held up as a revenge story, but perfectly illustrates why revenge is often empty, and causes more harm than good. The scene in which Carrie sees the whole school laughing at her is filmed in such a way that it’s not clear whether it’s just in her mind, and that most people might actually be shocked and appalled by what happened to her. And once she’s gotten her brutal and bloody revenge she returns home, saddened, simply wanting to be held by her mother. Carrie is less a story about revenge being good and cathartic, but more of a warning about how it simply destroys everyone involved. And because of these themes it’s clear why this film is still so well respected and relevant almost five decades later.
The new 4K restoration of the film on this release looks absolutely fantastic, and crisp and clear as never before. Details that before would have simply been lost in background noise are now sharp on the screen, and there are times when it feels like discovering the film all over again as you take in all of the content that the film has to offer. The new release also comes with a host of special features, including an audio commentary from some experts on Stephen King who are clearly big fans of the film, and whose discussion has an infectious energy to it that will make you smile more than once.
Along with this are a series of interviews with members of the cast and crew collected from previous releases that total more time than the film itself, and offer some delightful insights into the making of the movie. Outside of the disc there’s also a 40 page bound book with writing on the film, a poster, and a series of postcards.
For the very first Stephen King adaptation, of one of the writer’s early books, Carrie is still one of the best examples of King’s work put to screen. It helped to make the career of director Brian De Palma, and launched a number of small actors into big roles that would follow. And it’s just a damn good film that will likely remain popular for a long, long time to come.
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