Moretz: The CARRIE Novel Drove The Film

In this interview, Moretz discusses the Stephen King novel and her choice not to watch previous versions of Carrie before taking on the role herself.

Examiner Calls CARRIE remake a "mess"

Examiner posted Tim Estiloz review of the CARRIE remake.  Does he like it?  Well, he does say it is fun in parts, but the truth is that he does not think it was a strong film.  He says the original stands the test of time and that a remake was unneeded.  Here's the bullet point version. (I'm drawing these from HIS points, they are not mine!)

• The remake offers nothing new.
• Pierce follows DePalma's vision while at the same time tries to move in her own direction.
• Pierce "tinkers" with the characters, resulting in a more shallow rendering of the story itself. He points out Margaret White in particular, noting, "Margaret is now not only an overly religious zealot bathing herself and Carrie in misplaced guilt; but also, she's a self-mutilating cutter doing additional outer damage to the body that already shelters her damaged psyche."
• Carrie comes across as a "mildly rebellious teenager" -- not the "frail and frightened teen tht Spacek played to perfection."  (I think I liked the more confident Carrie.)
• DePalma built the final scene up with such suspense that it "evoked Hitchcock at his finest."  However, Estiloz calls the Pierce version "bland and tension free."  why?  Because we already know what's going to happen!  That's not exactly Pierce's fault, except that she chose to remake a popular classic film.  Hey, try remaking Star Wars and see if we're not really surprised when Darth Vader turns out to be Luke's father -- again.  Discussing the moment when pigs blood is dumped on Carrie, Estiloz says, "rather than keep us on the edge of our seats anticipating that moment, Pierce rushes to the event as if it's just the first inconsequential cog in a wheel of repetitive and overdone visuals for shock value alone."  Ouch.
• In DePalma's film, Carrie is shown  out of control.  The Pierce version gives us a Carrie who is completely aware of what she is doing.  I had not thought about this until Estiloz pointed it out.  Maybe this is why I hate movie reviews -- because I end up agreeing with them when I don't want to.  He's totally right!  This Carrie is taking eye for eye, while DePalma's Carrie was simply at the mercy of her own powers seeping out of her; she is simply "unable to escape her deadly rage."

Estiloz closes with a few kind words for Moretz and Moore while taking another final digs at Kimberly Pierce:

Moretz and Moore do admirable work for the roles they're saddled with; doing their best to add some dimension to a screenplay where dimension is sorely lacking. The two actresses vainly attempt to elevate the burden of banality that weighs this film down. However despite their efforts, they cannot overcome director Pierce's misguided vision for this bloody mess of a remake.

I think the many folk looking to remake other King films might take note.  There is a growing chorus of "why bother" beginning to circle these movies.  Do we need another Pet Sematary?  No!  If all these remakes would pool their money, maybe someone could get started on The Dark Tower.

www.examiner.com

CARRIE 2013 ROCKS!

Carrie rocks!   really. . . there's rocks. . .

I took my mom and two of my daughters to see Carrie.  They are now being seen to by a trauma unit as they recover from shock.  Nah -- it was good stuff.

Do you need to be told there might be spoilers?  I will not tell you how it ends.  I will not tell you if there will be a sequel.  I will tell you that I thought it was just as good a telling of Carrie as the DePalma film. 

Tell ya up front, I liked it a lot.  No use giving movies stars or grades, just saying honestly that I thought it was a strong film is enough.  Carrie 2013 can stand toe to toe with any other Stephen King adaptation. 

Random thoughts:

• The relationship between Carrie and mama is nicely played out.  They love each other deeply, but one is so broken that she is unable to overcome that brokenness and embrace her daughter.  In fact, the moment her daughter needs her most is the moment Margaret's own brokenness reaches its zenith. 
• Though  the story takes place in the present, the world for Margaret White has not progressed  a bit.  Her house seems like something from the 70's.
• I like it that Carrie has a sense of God's love and  rejects her mothers whacky theology.  She is bold, declaring that God is a God of love and telling her mother  that the things she is saying aren't even in the Bible.  Glad the Bible is the standard of truth.
• Carrie's power is not telekinesis.  I don't know what she has, but it's not telekinesis.  It's more like -- the force.  This girl is like Darth Vader.  Her power goes terrifyingly beyond telekinesis.
• This Carrie might be a little socially awkward because of scars from her  mother, but she's not an emotional  weakling.  That's probably good, since Chloe Moretz has an inner strength that can't be hidden. 
• Is the movie a remake, or is it a reimagining of the book?  Both I think.  There are definitely scenes in the movie that were also in DePalma's that are not in the book.  However, the story does more with King's source  material than the classic did.
• Who is the hero in Carrie?  Teachers.
• Scenes with the principal seem forced, rehearsed and awkward.

The story is beautiful  -- until the pigs blood.  A traumatized girl is swept away from her abusive mother by a handsome young man, taken in a limo to her school prom where  she  is complimented, loved on and  affirmed -- and then she is crowned queen. . . that's awesome!  I leaned in to my daughters, "Listen, this movie isn't going to get  better than it is right now," I said as they announced Carrie the prom queen.  "Let's go now."  Of  course, they didn't want to leave, so the fairy tale gets blown up -- scissored -- crushed -- knifed -- and everything else. 

Despite what previous reviewers have implied, there are no swipes or digs at homeschoolers, or faith itself.  I had no sense of a political "statement" being made.  Margaret White is a broken person, so everything in her life is broken as well.  Her relationships are broken, her daughter is broken, her understanding of God is broken, her attitude toward her own body is broken.  It is amazing that in real life I see young people who come from really messed up homes, but they are emotionally okay.  They might have some debris, some small scars, but really they made it through unscathed.  Carrie has  that kind of strength.

I found the prom scene where everyone is laughing at Carrie quite unbelievable.  When someone is picked on publically like that, the response is not that kind of laughter.  That doesn't give young people enough credit.  The whole school doesn't follow the mean girls.  The school was enjoying her  triumph -- they wouldn't so quickly turn on her.  They would be outraged by what was done.

I think this Carrie pulls the viewer in better emotionally than the original.  However, I have never  seen the original in a theater -- that might matter.

Carrie is one of Stephen King's strongest characters.  Emotionally she is able to stand up to and rebel against her abusive mother.  Physically, she has powers that could hold off Superman.  Sign the kid up for the Justice League -- where do you get an application? 

Moviefone: Watching De Palma's CARRIE For The First Time

On the hunt for a review of the upcoming Carrie, I  noticed this link provided to King's website to the original Carrie movie by director Brian De Palma.  Katie Calautti discusses her sisters first viewing of the film and how it pretty much traumatized her.  She also looks at why the story itself holds up.

"it's a movie about a girl getting her period, essentially. I can't believe somebody wrote that! Like, there's more to it, but it essentially started and ended that way -- the reason they poured pig's blood on her is because they were mocking her for what happened when the bathroom scene went down in the first place. It's a central theme in this, and I get that it turns into something much bigger, but it's all predicated on a period, which, to me, is so strange. Why wouldn't you pick something else?"

Why?  I think King wanted to pick something else.  That's why Carrie went in the trash.  But it connects with us; something in the story is strong and speaks up for itself.  That's why Carrie came out of the trash!

Calautti relates that her sister was unaware Carrie was being remade.  In fact, her sister yelled that they would never get away with that today (blowing up as school).  She shared these thoughts  about the upcoming film:

So what are her requests and predictions for Kimberly Pierce's version? "It'll be really interesting to see how Miss Collins changes -- you obviously can't slap a student in the face nowadays," she said. "But if you take a look at Columbine and a number of instances since then, there's a lot of outcasts. I feel like this new film needs to change the dialogue on that, introduce the whole idea that outcasts should be embraced and not chastised. And the prom massacre? Obviously it's a fantastical plot line to have someone stare at a hose and have it telepathically move, but the locking the doors and the starting fires? That reasonably could happen in real life, and I don't see how that won't rub people the wrong way. I wonder if they'll tweak that somehow."

Check out the full article at: moviefone.com

FANGORIA Covered In Carrie

Next months Fangoria promises to be packed full of Stephen King goodies.  Featuring Carrie drenched in blood on its cover, the magazine says  the coming issue will include an in-depth look at Brian De Palma, including an exclusive interview.

Also there will be "chats" with CARRIE co-stars P.J. Soles and William Katt. And, there  is also an interview with director Kimberly Pierce (Carrie, 2013).

Find more at fangoria.com

Carrie Still Grabs Us

Remember how at the end of the 1976 De Palma version of Carrie, Carrie's hand reached from the grave?  It  was great!  And in a way, it was a deeply symbolic scene.  De Palma was making good  horror, not intending to symbolize anything.  But the truth is, Carrie still grabs us, doesn't she?

There are still Carrie stage plays, a major Broadway musical just wrapped up -- even after a major flop -- the book has been made into an audio book and in 2013 it will be a major motion picture. . . again.

Sissy Spacek did the unabridged audio edition in 2005 -- Twenty Nine years after she starred in the original  movie.  It's like Carrie just reached out and grabbed her.

Question: Why all these editions of a young writers first novel?  
Answer: Because Carrie still grabs us.

The writer of Carrie has gone on to do many other things.  Has he outdone Carrie?  I think in strict terms of writing, he has.  King is a much stronger, engrossing writer now than he was when Carrie was written.  But the story itself has not been "outdone" by King.  It continues to engage us, draw us in and fascinate us.

Stephen King has gotten older, yet Carrie remains eternally young.  New editions come like waves, retelling this strange story of a kid with powers that could blow the entire town of Haven off  the map.

Here  are the raw elements that make Carrie so powerful:

1. We all identify in some way with Carrie.  We've all been tormented in some way, cruelly picked on in Junior High or High School.  It was "middle school" in the town where I grew up, and it was terrible!

Before Carrie reached from the grave, she reached from the trashcan!  Stephen King's wife saved the novel from the trash can.  She was moved by it, thought it was powerful, and convinced King to return to the book.  What's so powerful about it?  Why does it touch us so deeply?  Come on -- the thing starts in a locker room!  Who hasn't  endured that agony?  Worse, for girls, Carrie suffers her  first  period in a pubic and scary scene.  The sense of shame, embarrassment  about her own body and teasing are all things almost everyone can identify with (though women can identify more directly with the period thing).

2. We all identify in some way with Carrie's tormentors.  Many of us have found ourselves on the wrong side of picking on someone else. Belittling someone, joining in or piling on -- and in our hearts, we were disappointed in ourselves.

3. Crazy people really do exist.  Mrs. White might be nuts, but she is the kind of nut who is not so far out there that  we can't all say, "Yeah, I know someone a little like that!"  She has a twisted theology that allows her to hate (in her case, hate men).  She believes that being hard on herself, and Carrie, will result in God's approval, resulting in self-righteousness.

from www.facebook.com/CarrieMovie

Religious nuts have the ability to miss the full sweep of the Gospel and pick up on bits of minutia -- twisting them into their own strange doctrine.  They particularly love prophecy, since no one can "prove" them wrong (in their own minds, at least).  Did anyone see the postings recently for the new  Carrie movie on facebook?  They showed  notes from Carrie with quotes from Revelation.  No doubt this is the work of Mrs. White.  Revelation is the favorite book of the religious weirdo.  There aren't just a few of these people!  There are so many, most of us have encountered more than one.

SIDE NOTE. . . what does the note mean?  A lot  to crazy people!  But to sane people, not much.  Wormwood: Revelation 8:11 , Revelation 9:10 Scorpions.  You can make whatever you want of such symbols, if you don't worry about context. . . and when it comes to Bible exposition, Mrs. White does not worry about context. 

4. Carrie nukes her oppressors.  It's wonderful!  She gets even with those who hurt her.  We look forward to seeing everyone get what they deserve.  Or, put another  way, Carrie pays off.  Some books don't.  They tease  and play and then leave you empty.  (Try the Needful Things movie for an example of hollow endings).  But with Carrie, the bad guys get sunk!  In fact, she does what everyone wants to do from time to time -- she drops burning heaps of revenge down on her  tormentors.

Another  "Bully" book that gets remade a lot is Steinbeck's "Of Mice And Men."  The book also has a surprise ending that leaves us talking and rethinking things.  I wouldn't change the ending even if I had the power to . . . but I would like a choose your own adventure on that story.  How about Carrie White lend Lennie Small her powers for a moment and let him do in the big bad farm hands, who are nothing more than taunting teenage girls.

5. It doesn't take King long to get his work done.  Carrie is a short novel.  Any adaptation follows the  same pattern of torment and  then revenge.  But a nice thing about Carrie -- the revenge sequences are not a quick tack on at the end.  In Carrie, we get to relish her powerful revenge.  There are a lot of "oh yeah" moments as Carrie brings down the house.

6. Surprise -- We keep going back, partly, because we want to see HOW exactly she'll carry out her revenge in each edition.  I like De Palma's version best, where mama gets a strange form of crucifixion.  More than that, De Palma lets Carrie reach from the grave. . . very nice!

I asked my wife, "Why does Carrie continue to have such life?  Why does the story about a tormented school girl get so many editions?"  She said it is a timeless story, yet as years go by it lends itself to  new perspectives.  So the story remains essentially, but allows  room for creativity.  This is exactly why I am looking forward to the new Carrie movie.

For a novel written in 1974, Carrie continues to  have an amazing grip on us.

De Palms Shares His Thoughts On Carrie Remake

This is cool!  Seriously, Fagoria is awesome.  Brian De Palma talked to Fangoria about the upcoming Carrie remake:

“I know Kimberly Pierce, I’ve known her for twelve years.  I met her in Paris when she was on a press junket for BOYS DON’T CRY. We spent some time in New York together, we used to go to the theatre together. She’s a bright, talented person. I tried to encourage her to make a movie very quickly after the success of BOYS and it took her years to find right material… 

but anyway, she contacted me when she decided to do CARRIE. We discussed the right way to approach it, who she was going to cast and we had a few discussions about it and basically I gave her my blessing. She’s a very talented girl and I’m really excited to see what she does. It will be more like the book, I think, which is Sue Snell’s testimony which puts Carrie in kind of brackets…”

De Palma's comments actually explain the Carrie trailer and the voice over.

The Fangoria article is HERE.

Spacek Thrilled By New Carrie

Shock Till You Drop has an interview with Carrie star, Sissy Spacek, titled, "Sissy Spacek Thrilled by Potential for a New Carrie."  (HERE)

Edward Douglas says that Spacek will be watching the movie when it comes out, and that she thinks Chloe Moretz is a "wonderful actress." He response to Julianne Moore playing mama? – "That’s great!"

Douglas quotes Spacek:

"They hired a really wonderful director, very talented. It'll be interesting. Our film, it is what it is what it is, and it stood the test of time, but I think that's great, it's like an homage not only to the book but to the film, not only to Stephen King but to Brian De Palma. It's been made many times. There have been several television movies, 'Carrie 2,' two musicals! I remember thinking the first time there was a musical on Broadway, 'Oh my Gosh! The people who ordinarily go to the theaters, that's not really the audience.' The first audience of 'Carrie' has aged now, so I think out of curiosity, I think it's cool. As I understand it, they're not remaking our film; they're going back to the source material, to the book."