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Unlike most other horror films, this one has a "heart." Horror is such a crowded genre that for a film to stand out it needs something extra, like in "Get Out," "The Exorcist," "The Silence of the Lambs," etc.
*Sissie Spacek both looked and acted every bit the part!* I vaguely remember someone commenting on how Spacek's character could simultaneously convey both *subtle scary and sad* just by communicating with her eyes alone, which made the telepathy genuinely look "real". And it was the kind of scary subtlety that was *totally missed by both Angela Bettis and Chloë Grace Moretz who also later played the character* in later adaptations.
If that's the case for de Palma and Coppola, then would you say that their movies are then hysterical? Since both directors have their movies' stories and main characters exhibit a kind of stylised "going-through-the-motions" outlook on reality?
Amazing film. Loved your review and analysis. Your channel is so underrated these reviews deserve way more views. Keep going can’t wait to see what you review next!
You’re on a hot streak, Maggie... two of my favorite films in as many weeks; first ‘Nights of Cabiria’ and now ‘Carrie.’ Let me catch my breath. First of all, it’s great to see Brian DePalma’s films get some love on your channel, especially ‘Carrie.’ I have always adored this film, warts and all, since the very first time I saw it as a young boy. Not only is this one of my favorite horror films but it is also my absolute favorite coming-of-age film. DePalma’s sensibility marries so perfectly with all of the intense hormonal themes on display, beginning with that idyllic opening titles sequence that culminates in blood; a harbinger of things to come. In a way, DePalma seems to be saying, “Okay, I know we all remember that other iconic shower scene - well, try this one on for size.” Throughout the film, his Hitchcockian influences collide with maximum brutal force against the heightened dynamics between daughter and mother, in the process gifting us with one of the greatest acting duets in history. Every scene in which Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie appear is compulsively watchable; I hang on their every breath... their shared moments are, by turns, comically mundane, emotionally histrionic, and ridiculously campy (oxymoron I know) - and I love it! A high wire act that still keeps me glued to my seat. I could go on and on but I’ll just add a couple more things. Add to this mix (‘70’s gothic source material, DePalma’s delicious mise en scène, inspired casting of the two leads) Pino Donaggio’s enchanting score, and you get a circus-like cavalcade that threatens to undermine itself... the very fact that it doesn’t is a tribute to all involved but especially to DePalma’s fearlessness as the master ring leader. As to the film’s central performance, Sissy Spacek affects me so deeply and thoroughly in this role, it hurts just to think about it. It is a raw, magnificent performance that seeps into my marrow. In the same way that John Travolta is forever cursed by Nancy Allen’s character’s screams at the end of ‘Blow Out’, I will always be haunted by Spacek’s wailful pleas in ‘Carrie.’ A tour de force that is an eternal part of my personal pantheon (included below): • R. Maria Falconetti... The Passion of Joan of Arc • Gena Rowlands... A Woman Under the Influence • Meryl Streep... Sophie's Choice • Guilietta Masina... Nights of Cabiria • Monica Vitti... L'avventura • Sissy Spacek... Carrie • Michelle Pfieffer... The Age of Innocence • Vivian Leigh... A Streetcar Named Desire • Whoopi Goldberg.... The Color Purple • Kate Winslet... Revolutionary Road
Very nice review. "Carrie" is my favorite film of all time. I totally agree with what you said about Sissy Spacek's performance and how she is so good that it hurts. Best performance ever for me. Haunting, so sad music from Pino Donaggio.
Me too, it is and always will be my favorite movie of all time. I write and direct movies now and I always find elements of Carrie in my stuff : the clear linear narrative, the economy in dialogue, show don't tell, punchy finale, etc. If I can only touch the greatness of that masterpiece, I will be happy.
One of Brian De Palma's best. That tracking shot in the start of that prom scene is just masterful. The forgettable remake had nothing interesting to show from a directing aspect.
Stop the Philosophical Zombies Studios took back control in the 1980s after major blockbusters like Jaws, Star Wars, and ET became a thing, and the the filmmakers of the 1970s started to have major financial flops. It always comes down to money. Studios gave filmmakers free reign in the 1970s because they made money, and the took that free reign away in the 1980s because they no longer made money. Ironically though, the modern blockbuster era was created by these New Hollywood filmmakers of the 1970s, like Lucas and Spielberg.
I recently found your RU-vid page and it’s refreshing to see someone review movies other than blockbusters these days. You have an appreciation for movies with great stories and great characters as that is a lost art these days in the era of silly blockbusters.
This movie is also the reason Tom Savini had Jason topple the canoe in the end of Friday the 13th. He had just seen Carrie and thought the hand coming out of the grave in the ending scene had such a great effect.
Absolutely wonderful review. Maggie I actually teared up listening to you talk about this just by virtue of how vividly you’re able to capture some of my favorite movements from the film. Thank you.
Great review once again. Believe it or not youre playing pretty big part in my journey of discovering cinema with your interesting and thought provoking takes on numerous films that enrich my knowledge and thought process about them. Thank you so much for that and keep making these. You have a big fan in Czech Republic :)
Had the day off, rooted through my closet to take stock of my Stephen King collection. Found Carrie and couldn't put it down. Watched the movie to end the night. Been quite a day. Great video by the way.
In my top five of all-time favorite films. I agree with you on a lot of points, one of them being that Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie are phenomenal. But for me, I see lots of subtleties in their acting that give their characters and their relationship with each other depth and keep their performances from seeming overwrought. Like, say, the way Carrie softly cries for a moment or two when she's washing off the blood in the bathtub. Or Margaret stroking Carrie's hair after Carrie says, "It was bad, Momma. They laughed at me," suggesting that Margaret cares for her daughter, at least for a moment before her guilt leads her to reveal how Carrie was conceived and her fanaticism leads her to ... well, I won't provide any spoilers, in case someone who hasn't seen it reads this. Thank you for discussing this. I look forward to watching more of your reviews. Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music (and movie lover)
I like the way you talk about movies, it sometimes makes me forget that you are taking about a movie. This was a trip, in my mind I can switch you talking about “Carrie” and imagine you are talking about one of my new favorite movies “Tonight She Comes” have you seen it? It’s free on the Tubi app, I highly recommend it.
Keen on this, Blow Out and The Untouchables. It’s interesting to see how younger film fans see De Palma, cos you think of the contemporaries and how the films have aged. I agree with a lot of what you said.
I love your review and I'm so glad I found your channel. I'm loving your analysis and I think you are absolutely fantastic. Can't wait to watch more! :)
You are by FAR the smartest, most well spoken film reviewer on youtube (that I've ever seen at least). I can't wait to see your subscriber count in the hundreds of thousands.
Great review as usual! 💖 Have you ever seen Picnic at Hanging Rock? It would be amazing if you decided to review that film, it’s certainly one of the most mysterious and enigmatic movies of all time.
Awesome review I love how you talk about the movies, I love Bryan De Palma movies my favourite I think is Casualties of War, I definitely would love to hear your take on that movie! I also like Scarface and Carlitos Way
I saw Phantom of the Paradise first, then Obsession. That hooked me on Brian DePalma. Body double and Dressed to Kill also favorites. I love your channel and how you are open minded. Thanks
De Palma's style is very suited for giallo-esque films, which is why "Dressed to Kill" and "Body Double" are my two favorites of his. His weakest is probably "The Untouchables," which ironically is his biggest commercial hit and the only one to win an Oscar (for Sean Connery). It does have that great slo-mo gunfight at the train station with the falling baby carriage -- homage to "Battleship Potemkin." His films homage other films a lot, notably Hitchcock's films, of course.
Oh man this brings back memories. My family had this movie as well as Charlene and Mommy Dearest on a VHS and we watched it all the time. We would tell each-other "THERE ALL GONNA LAUGH AT YOU!" when we were going to do things. My mom used to always say "NO MORE WIRE HANGARS!" It would make us laugh. Love the review like always. I keep saying it and Ill keep saying it. You are the best movie reviewer on RU-vid or anywhere else. Do you have plans to review Charlene, or Mommy Dearest?
I’ve never seen Carrie throughly thru to my recollection. To be honest I’ve only seen the film in various scenes on television and I’m sure they censored it. Being in quarantine I’ve dived into past films and I’ll add Carrie to my list. I haven’t even seen Rosemaries Baby. Not to detour my comment but I did grow up with films like Alien, John Carpenters films such as The Thing, The Fog, Christine and such. Thank you for the review its great to listen to you passionately discuss your love for film
Maggie notification crew is ever vigilant. Now I can call it a night. : ) I always loved this movie ever since I was a kid in the 80's. Something was really sweet about the good-natured characters in it, and to this day I'm not sure if real people would ever act that way or if it was an echo of an earlier culture. Strangely I saw the same thing in the Exorcist. There was just some kind of deeper affection between the characters that you just don't feel in movies anymore. I guess it's a trade-off of the information age; we are more distracted to the point that it possibly drives us apart into our separate screen-worlds.
Good Job! You analysed this film well, but not the age that the film was made. Sure it was set in the 1970s, but more than the hair and the clothing the 70s were also one of the last decades where Religious Fundamentalism held sway across the nation--if not the entire Western World. Margret White was a mirror to the older women watching the film at that time. Their daughters were raised in large part as Carrie had been raised, and I know from listening to my mom discuss the film with her friends over an afternoon of Canasta (I was under 18 at the time of release so could not see the film) that many of them --my mom included--actually feared their daughters seeing this film from the fear that they might 'get ideas' from the way Carrie ended her mother issues. I agree that Ms. Spacek is eerie to watch but that makes her portrayal of people so interesting. Finally, yes, for me the by-play between the mother and daughter is really the most interesting part of the film, however, unlike you when Carrie left the gym covered in blood, I did not feel joy, I was not rooting for her. In my eyes she was a monster. She had just murdered dozens of people and I felt that someone needed to bring her down before she went on to murder many more. I do admit that I did not want Chris and Billy to run her down and felt they got what was coming to them, but when her mother stabbed her, I was relieved. In the end with the rocks, I felt joy that this monster was finally gone. In the Sue scene afterward, I dreaded when I saw the hand that she might NOT be dead, and was relieved again by the revelation that it was not the case.
You're a high calibre reviewer; & person. Love listening to; and lookin' at ya. I Binge your reviews!! I love De Palma too. 'Carlito's Way' just popped in ma head/Pacino.x.
‘Greetings’ and ‘Hi Mom!’ are my favorites of his. It’s fresh out of film school and inspired by French New Wave, it totally makes me want to pick up a camera and go! If you want to check out some awesome social commentary that still applies today check out the ‘Be Black Baby’ vignette on Hi Mom!
Unrelated to Carrie but cheers for introducing me to Bodies by the Smashing Pumpkins; I've not been able to stop listening to it since you posted it on instagram
Been watching lots of De Palma recently and I’m just dying I mean DYING to hear your thoughts on films like Body Double, Blow Out, Scarface, Sisters, please please review more of his work if you have the time.
would love your take on some of Michael Haneke's films. Have looked through your archives and didn't find any. Going through his filmography right now and I don't know how I should be feeling.
That scene when the prom king and queen are crowned, just marvelous cinema. Some people argue that, once the laughing starts in the crowd, it's all in Carrie's imagination ... And she lashes out at a mostly innocent audience in the gym. Either way, it's a glorious piece of suspense and editing and music. I saw the remakes (2002, 2013), and have no desire to watch them again, especially the 2013 one. What a waste of time. There was a TV film some years back which tried to stay closer to the book; I tried looking it up online but there seems to only be info on the 1976, 2002 and 2013 movies. The novel works so well because King hints at horrific events that will occur in the future, tantalizing us with anticipation. The original is so primal and delightfully strange. Kudos to Pino Donaggio for his excellent score with its mix of lovely romance and thrilling suspense and goofy comic relief. Sissy and Piper are fantastic, and their scenes together are so intense and charged with emotions. Sissy showed up at auditions having greased her hair and face with Vaseline and wearing an old childhood outfit. Also, to her credit, that is *her* hand reaching up from the ground in that famous sequence in the climax; Spacek insisted on it being Carrie's genuine hand grabbing Sue. DePalma, good as he is, repeats himself from time to time, blatantly (but is it intentionally?). The final scenes of Carrie and Dressed to Kill are essentially lookalikes in several ways-- a woman is jolted physically from a ghastly nightmare (as the soundtrack surges dramatically). I love Carrie. It would have to fall somewhere in my Top 30 horror movies. It feels something like Cinderella goes to hell.
Great analysis, as always. During the 70s, Sissy Spacek was defintely tightcast as a very timid, almost otherworthly girl who's developing. But man, she really played that part well. While I didn't love it as much as 3 women or Badlands, (As you pointed out, it is rough around the edges) what made those movies great, are still present in Carrie, regardless.
Your description of the shower scene is stellar. Jesus if that was off the cuff I'm just amazed. Stephen King really rubs me the wrong way now, but I almost want to revisit this book. If I recall correctly it was his first big hit.
Actually, it was his very first novel! And it almost never survived to see the light of day, because apparently he felt so discouraged after writing it that he tossed the manuscript in the wastebasket. Fortunately, his wife noticed it a short time afterwards and grabbed it out of the trash. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Good description of the shower scene. You're right, the film is a time-capsule of the 1970s, and has a surprising amount of resonance for me. I think this is the best De Palma movie I've seen - constantly innovative.
apart from Cher, Sissy Spacek is my favourite actress of all time. She is flawless and doesn't get the recognition she deserves IMO. Piper was pretty incredible in this also. Both deservedly got nominations !!
great review. I'm a big fan of carrie and the remake is okay for me but not as bad as people say. i know you don't like Hanz Zimmer but would like to know if there is any of his pieces you like. Also, I would like to know your favorite stop-motion movies from each decade.
Hard to imagine what kind of film we'd have if the studio's preferred choice of Pamela Sue Martin ("Nancy Drew") had played the lead character. It was only through the good fortune of Sissy's husband Jack Fisk, the art director on the film, being able to persuade De Palma to give his wife a chance to test that we ended up with one of the great films and performances of the era. Splendid cinema serendipity.
Gene Siskel hated scarface.He thought the tony montana character was boring.I thought it was pretty okay.Have you done a review of it yet?Look forward to all your videos.Be well.
This is easily DePalma’s most inspired film. The pain and angst of being a HS teenager has rarely been captured so well. (& Larry Clark, director of Bully, another fantastic film about the cruelty of teenage kids, owes a debt to DePalma/Carrie.)
Discussion question, if that's OK: Do you think Piper Laurie's reaction at the end not only expresses her ecstasy that she will soon be with God but also expresses a sense of freedom Margaret feels from a) no longer having to feel guilty about the way Carrie was conceived; and b) no longer bearing the burden of trying to live "sinlessly," as she would put it? Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music (and movie lover)
Although I had it spoiled, I still remember the chills I got from the prom scene, probably won't forget it for as long as I live P.S. The world needs you to create a Letterboxd account! Or do you already have one?
When you reviewed "Blue Velvet", you described David Lynch as someone who uses genre to tap into the unconscious mind. I've started to see Brian De Palma that way: the narrative flow of his films has the vibe of it being whatever pops into his head, even (and especially) when it's an adaptation of someone else's work. "The Untouchables" is the only one that comes across as cohesive the whole way through, and even that one leans heavily at times on dreamlike imagery. (His homage to Sergei Eisenstein is fitting. Eisenstein and De Palma are cut from the same cloth, their works displaying the same fascination with what editing can do.) I'm not a fan of "Carrie", though. For the same reasons I try and fail to get into Douglas Sirk: all the ingredients are there, but the sum of the parts haven't been mixed into a whole. Moments play well in a TV viewing, but I can't vouch for how it would play on a big screen and my expectations would be low.
Nancy Allen claims she never realized her character was going to be so evil until she saw the finished film. She thought she and John Travolta were playing such self-centered, bickering morons that they were there for comic relief. Piper Laurie also thought the character of Margaret White was so over the top that the film had to be a comedy. When Sissy Spacek was preparing for her character, she isolated herself from the rest of the ensemble, decorated her dressing room with heavy religious iconography and studied Gustave Doré's illustrated Bible. She studied "the body language of people being stoned for their sins," starting or ending every scene in one of those positions. In the last scene of the film, Amy Irving's outburst so terrified her real-life mother Priscilla Pointer, that she screamed out "Amy" instead of "Sue." She had never seen her daughter that hysterical and called out her real name in concern. However, the loud ending music covered the mistake. While speaking at a book event in Fort Myers, Florida in 2010, Stephen King recalled that he was paid just $2,500 for the movie rights to Carrie (1976), which may seem like a pittance, but he has no regrets. "I was fortunate to have that happen to my first book," King said. The name of the high school is Bates High, a reference to Norman Bates from Psycho (1960). In addition, the four-note violin theme from Psycho (1960) is used over and over in the film. While filming the bloody prom sequence, Sissy Spacek's trailer was parked behind the set. After being covered in fake blood, for continuity purposes, Spacek refused to wash the effect off. She elected instead to sleep in her bloody clothes for three days of filming. The dizzying camera shot during the prom scene was achieved by placing William Katt and Sissy Spacek on a platform that was spinning in one direction, while the camera was being dollied in the opposite direction. According to Piper Laurie, she honestly thought her character was too over the top fanatical to be taken seriously. Brian De Palma had to take her to the side and personally tell her it was a horror film and not a "black comedy" as she thought it was. Even so, she would constantly burst out into laughter between takes because not only was her characterization and wardrobe laughable in her eyes, but the dialogue itself was humorous for her. To this day, she still refers to and maintains the movie as a black comedy. The ending of the movie is different than the ending from the novel, and in fact, Stephen King liked the ending in the movie better than the ending of his own book. Betty Buckley was 28 at the time of filming, only two years older than Sissy Spacek, and three years older than Nancy Allen and P.J. Soles, who play her students. Sue Snell and her mother Eleanor are played by real life daughter and mother Amy Irving and Priscilla Pointer. For her screen test, Sissy Spacek rubbed Vaseline into her hair and didn't bother to wash her face. She also wore a sailor dress (which her mother had made for her when she was in the seventh grade) with the hem cut off. Sissy Spacek asked Brian De Palma how he wanted her to react when Carrie first realizes that she is bleeding in the showers at the start and De Palma told her, "It's like you've been hit by a Mack truck." Spacek talked to her husband Jack Fisk (art director), who as a child had been run over by a car when he was standing in the streets looking at Christmas lights a neighbor had put up, and used his description of the experience as a basis for the scene. This was the first Stephen King novel adapted into a movie. The success of Carrie (1976) at the box office cemented Stephen King's name as an author. King himself was delighted with the film. Sissy Spacek wasn't considered for the role of Carrie until her husband, art director Jack Fisk, convinced director Brian De Palma to allow her to audition. Until that, De Palma was wedded to the idea of Amy Irving playing Carrie; when Spacek got the part instead, De Palma gave Irving the smaller role of Sue. In Carrie's house, the statue of a religious figure shot with arrows represents St. Sebastian. It is not a crucifix and does not represent Jesus Christ. Piper Laurie had retired from the movie business after The Hustler (1961) when the script for Carrie (1976) came her way. She initially didn't understand the script at all, thinking it rather clichéd, until her husband pointed out that de Palma usually took a comedic approach to his work. When she reread the screenplay with that viewpoint, the part of Margaret White made a lot more sense to Laurie. To become Carrie, Sissy Spacek would intentionally avoid socializing with the other actors on and off set. She would stay in her trailer or hide in the corner or behind the set. Also, before this happened, she warned the other actors that although she loved them, she would be avoiding them so she could stay in character and they respected Sissy Spacek for that and She told them they would have so much fun together after the movie was finished. The ring that Amy Irving wears throughout the movie was a gift to her from Stephen King, the author of the book the film is based on. Brian De Palma had to dump several scenes from the novel due to budget limitations, one of which is where Carrie blows up petrol stations with her mind as part of the town destruction, setting it on fire. The effects work would have been too expensive at the time. Similar scenes did end up in the remake, Carrie (2013). Stephen King got the idea for Carrie while working in a laundry. Some of the characters, like Carrie's religious fanatical mother, were based on people who worked there with him. Sissy Spacek was 25 years old at the time of filming. Carrie is 17 years old in the novel. John Travolta auditioned on a lunch break while filming Welcome Back, Kotter (1975). He showed up for his audition still dressed as Vinnie Barbarino. Sissy Spacek was widely thought to be too pretty for the title role, since the character in the book is described as chunky, mousy-haired, and covered in pimples, with Spacek being a tall, thin redhead with clear skin. The character was then rewritten slightly, saying that she would be pretty if she made an effort to tidy herself up a bit. Sissy Spacek filmed the scene in the locker room shower without any of the other actresses on the set. This was John Travolta's first major film role Body Count: 22 The film cast includes one Oscar winner, Sissy Spacek; and three Oscar nominees, John Travolta, Piper Laurie, and Amy Irving. The movie Jennifer (1978) came out two years after Carrie. It was part of a wave of troubled-teens-with-telekinesis movies that came out in the wake of Carrie. The movie used the following tagline; "Compared to this, Carrie was an angel." The bucket of pig blood scene has been humorously parodied in subsequent comedy films, such as Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988), Superstar (1999), and White Chicks (2004). The film received two nominations at the 49th Academy Awards: Best Actress (for Spacek) and Best Supporting Actress (for Laurie). In the second-to-last scene (where Amy Irving lays flowers on Carrie's grave) to make it more "eerie", the shot was filmed backwards - then run in reverse in slo-mo - to give it a surreal effect. This is evidenced by a background automobile traversing the perpendicular intersection backwards, which the viewer can clearly observe as driving in reverse.
I found Peirce’s handling of the bullying between the girls to have an original authentic feel not found in DePalma’s movie. There is definitely a layer of infighting between women that men don’t get and this showed it.
Blow Out is pretty cool. I really like the film within a film aspect and the sound design stuff is wicked. Travolta was actually very sympathetic too. I didn't realize that John Lithgow was typecast as a psycho from this movie, all the way to Dexter some 30 years later.
Blow Out is a great companion film to The Conversation. I recently watched both of these along with Blow Up. I love watching films where something similar in one takes me to the next. A similar theme or even just one word or place that reminds me of another. You should definitely read King's novel. A very short read.
DePalma was whispering awful things to Amy Irving in the scene where the gym teacher is handing out the girl’s punishment. That’s why she looked so genuinely upset for her actions towards Carrie in the beginning.
No, it wasn’t De Palma saying things, he told Betty Buckley to say mean things to Amy Irving off camera, because Amy and Betty had become close friends during the making of the film and she was able to use that to get a good reaction out of Amy.
@14:47 - 15:00 : Which is exactly why the *French nickname for an orgasm is "la petite morte"* : because that release of the mind and body is like a warm-up for the release of the inevitable deep sleep. *If you are a Spanish speaker : does Spanish not have an equivalent analogy for the implied similarity between sex and death?*
Never been able to completely watch it [never will] ... The strangeness and cruelty are just too much for my nervous system. [Not an indictment of the fillm]
My god you are so beautiful 🤩 and gorgeous women too as ever and I found you very attractive women too and I love you 💕❤️😘 too now and great 👍 review btw and I love Carrie 1976 Original film and also the Remake of the 2013 version of the same name too Carrie too
There’s really only a couple three things good about this movie. DePalma’s direction, Pino’s score and Sissy’s performance. But really it’s all for naught. Starting with King’s insipid writing, just the stupid premise of the whole thing. I mean it’s all so achingly dumb. And what’s with the “kids” (hell they all look middle aged) driving the cars down the strip. Was that an homage, parody or satire on DePalma’s friend George Lucas’ American Graffiti? What teenager in 1976 is listening to Heatwave? And you didn’t think the beginning in the locker room was exploitive. How you get some woman’s empowerment out of that, I’m sure every lecherous man would like to know. It was like soft core pornography. The steam, soft dreamy music, soft filter, slow motion antics, snapping the towels, hanging all over each other. And the whole thing with the pig’s blood, where does that even come from? Let’s go slaughter some pigs and get their blood, so we can toss it on some girl I don’t like. Really? That’s good story telling? Fucking garbage! Not to mention Vinny from Kotter standing out like a sore thumb. Not even good exploitation trash.
Jesus Effing Christ. I do like this review but its far too long and it involves too much pseudo-psychology. Just tell us what you think and how you feel.
