Carrie

Based on a chilling novel by Stephen King and with the force of a much-admired Brian De Palma adaptation behind it, Kimberly Peirce’s 2013 interpretation of Carrie may sound unnecessary. Yet in the 21st century the tale of a bullied teenage girl developing potentially lethal telekinetic powers is probably more relevant than ever, with current violent trends like vicious fundamentalism and schoolyard shootings haunting our headlines daily. With subtexts as rich as these and thoughtful director Kimberly Peirce at the helm, a new version of King’s macabre tragedy might find footing within today’s cinematic and societal rhetoric.

A desperate loner yearning for acceptance, Carrie White (Chloe Grace Moretz) has to contend with her zealot of a mother and a bevy of sadistic classmates. When a popular athlete asks her to Prom, Carrie is both startled and amazed, seduced by the notion of being embraced by her often cruel peers. Her mother fears the worst, but Carrie persists, hoping for a night she won’t ever want to forget. What unfolds transpires to be more nightmare than dream, Carrie losing all control and discovering things about herself that move beyond the accepted spheres of normality.

The promise of tapping into the phobias that plague contemporary culture render this remake an encouraging prospect. In the global media never has a fear of being “different” been manipulated so savagely, providing with substantive fuel on which to motor this tale of victim turned perpetrator. Surrounding these intriguing undercurrents with a strong cast adds further purpose, both Chloe Grace Moretz and the ever-dependable Julianne Moore lending a gravitas that ascend the picture above normal genre schlock by default.

Dan Kelly