[9]

Brian DePalma directs this Stephen King tale of a ridiculed girl who discovers she has telekinetic powers she can use against her tormenters. King's forte is character, and he's got two rich ones with timid Carrie and her whackadoodle mama. Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie knock it out of the park in two Oscar-nominated performances. Their scenes together are magic -- especially when Laurie drags Spacek by the scalp and locks her in a broom closet just for getting her first period. For me, someone who fears nothing more than blind religious conviction, few scenes are as terrifying as watching Laurie scream, "Eve was weak! Eve was weak! Say it, child!" while slapping Spacek in the face with the Bible.

The film is famous for its climactic prom sequence. After Carrie is humiliated in a shower of pig’s blood before the entire school, she summons the full force of her abilities and damn near kills them all. Even characters who were somewhat sympathetic to Carrie’s plight meet violent ends. It’s a great sequence, though I don’t particularly care for DePalma’s signature use of split-screen — I think it’s gaudy.

While the climax delivers its share of visceral thrills, it’s the rich characterization that brings people back to Carrie over and over again. You sympathize with Carrie so much as a character, that after all the torment and suffering she endures from her mother and classmates, you can’t help but support her decision to commit mass murder. To that end, Carrie is one of the greatest revenge stories ever told.