Carrie (1976)

Starring: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie
Directed by: Brian De Palma
Rating: I Liked It

**SPOILER ALERT**

I almost didn't put the spoiler alert in there, because the movies is pretty aged, but I didn't want to give away anything anyone might not know. 

Being the fan of horror movies that I am, I know that I should've watched this "classic" horror flick a long time before now. It's never been one that really caught my interest, though. Despite the fact that it's based on a Stephen King novel, whose writing I enjoy very much, I always passed it up thinking I wouldn't enjoy it. I can't say that it's one of my favorite horror movies, but it's definitely disturbing in its own right, and it is, after all, Halloween weekend. 

There are three levels on which this was disturbing to me.

First, Carrie's (Spacek) relationship with her mother, Margaret (Laurie), is disturbing on more than one level. The treatment Carrie receives from her overly-religious mother is hard to watch. She's belittled at every turn and locked in a closet, among other things. This women obviously should not have had children. 

Next, Margaret's behaviou and ideals in and of themselves are disturbing. It's one thing to be a person of faith, but it's another thing to be a zealout. Plus she's taking out her religious beliefs, which are extreme, on her daughter. Had she been a better parent, the movie would've turned out differently altogether. 

Finally, the movie's ending really bothered me. It's a case a couple bad apples. So many of the kids were really trying to accept Carrie and make her part of the group. It was only a few that were playing the prank. Even a lot of the ones who obviously knew what was going to happen didn't find it all that funny when it went down. In Carrie's mind, though, she saw them all laughing at her, and in her anger, destroyed them all, good or bad. 

It's not often that a movie like this really makes you stop and think, but this one might. Especially with all of the talk about bullying in the US, you might say it strikes a certain timely note in our current culture. I know they made a remake this year, and I think I'll have to check it out soon to make a comparison.  In the meantime, if you've never seen this one, take the time to give it a watch. Warning, parts of it may make you uncomfortable.