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Review
Archives
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Today's
Date is:
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Carrie:
Special 25th Anniversary Edition
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Reviewed
by: |
David
Litton |
| Genre: |
Horror |
| Video: |
1.85:1 widescreen
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| Audio: |
Dolby Digital
5.1, Mono |
| Language: |
English,
French, Spanish |
| Subtitle: |
French, Spanish
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| Length: |
1 hr, 38
min |
| Rating: |
R |
| Release
Date: |
8/28/01 |
| Studio: |
MGM |
| Commentary:
|
None |
| Documentaries:
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3 documentaries:
"Acting Carrie," "Visualizing Carrie," and "Carrie The Musical"
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| Featurettes:
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None |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
"Stephen King and the
Evolution of Carrie" |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
Yes |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
None |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
Animated
photo gallery |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Sissy Spacek,
Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, John Travolta, Nancy
Allen, Betty Buckley, P.J. Soles |
| Screenplay
by: |
Written by:
Lawrence D. Cohen |
| Produced
by: |
Paul Monash |
| Directed
By: |
Brian de Palma |
| Music: |
Pino Donaggio |
| The
Review: |
In the motion
picture business, there are films that are easily forgotten,
and those that are not. "Carrie" is one such film, a horror
picture that, after so many years, still manages to enthrall
audiences from all walks of life. The perfect blend of horror
and sentiment, the film manages to sweep us up in its human
story, and allows us to get to know our characters, before unleashing
the havoc we know must come. On this, it gets the highest passing
grade. In a role that she will forever be remembered for, Sissy
Spacek portrays Carrie White, a simple, ugly-duckling-type teenager
who is bantered beyond belief by her classmates. The seemingly
protective principle can't seem to remember her first name,
while her own teachers find fault with her. But even they cannot
compare to Carrie's hyper-religious mother, who takes her preachings
of God and his words to the absolute extremes, forcing them
upon her daughter fragile mind. At this point, the cast has
already produced some very fine performances. Piper Laurie steals
the show with her bloated Mrs. White, filling her character
with a crazed depravity that, to this day, goes unmatched by
any other film character. Many first-time actors begin their
film careers as Carrie's classmates, including Amy Irving, who
plays Sue Snell with a believable remorse. Sissy Spacek, however,
will send chills up your spine in her role as Carrie, filling
her character with sorrow and pity. The film progresses at a
nice pace, allowing us to take in the important things. Carrie
finds that she is able to move things without physical strength,
discovering that she possesses the unusual power known as telekinesis.
She is able to keep her powers tame, but when high-school hot
shot Tommy Ross asks her to the prom (a silent gesture of apology
from Sue, Tommy's girlfriend), she becomes very wary of what
may happen to her. Through all of this, director Brian de Palma
and his stellar cast are able to create such a wave of sentimental
emotion for Carrie that the final conflict, the famed prom incident,
is hardly a gruesome act of violence. Unlike other horror films,
whose deaths and mayhem have little effect, our sympathy for
Carrie provides a light of understanding as her character is
pushed to the limit of her self control, and goes berserk on
everyone. And that is what makes this such a unique horror picture:
the large amount of emotion embedded in its story. Few films
have successfully given audiences a chance to feel some sympathy
for a character that commits gratuitous acts of violence; here,
we can sympathize with Carrie because of the sufferings she
experiences during the film's progression. The planned prank
that culminates at the prom is such a devious, mean-spirited
trick, that in the end, we can't help but look at the masterminds
and think to ourselves, "Serves you right." But rather than
keep a sharp focus on the revenge factor, which is only minute,
the movie shows her actions as provoked and unintentional. In
the movie's first and second acts, Carrie shys away from her
power, seemingly more frightened by it than willing to use it
to her advantage. And even after the mayhem she creates, right
down to the final showdown with her mother, there is the feeling
of repentance, that she is immediately sorry for what she has
done. "Carrie" is not only a film for the ages, but it remains
one of the most effective horror pictures in recent memory.
So much do we feel for Carrie that her actions seem somewhat
justifiable, if not forgiveable. The tension that mounts throughout
the film is excrutiatingly intense, making this one of the truly
great edge-of-your-seat thrillers of all time. -- |
| Image
and Sound |
After the
release of "Ben-Hur" on DVD, I was convinced that no other remastering
operation could top that of the Biblical epic. I was wrong.
MGM's re-releasing of "Carrie" in a commemorative, 25th anniversary
special edition boasts THE BEST audio and video remastering
effort I've seen for a dated motion picture. So many times have
I seen "Carrie" on cable, or watched it on VHS, or viewed it
on its first DVD release over a year ago. Truth be told, this
is the way in which everyone should see "Carrie" for the first
time. If you've had the chance to see the film already, then
this is the way to own it. MGM takes a classic film and gives
it a truly magnificent make-over, and the result is amazing.
The image quality is superbly mounted, a handsome display of
cleaned-up images and bursting colors. What the first DVD did
wrong, the new one does even better. Fleshtones take on a more
natural look, while the colors of costumes and clothing, not
to mention the ever-present red hues and pig's blood are more
vibrant than ever before. And even darkened scenes, such as
the scenes inside Carrie's home, and a scene in John Travolta's
car, have shadows that are solid, devoid of noise or grainy
artifacts. The sounds of "Carrie" are even richer and evoke
the sense of tension crossed with sympathy that de Palma aims
for. Pino Donaggio's magical, dreamlike score wraps beautifully
into the surrounds, while the sound effects used in the final
showdown during the prom are brought to full capacity. Deep
bass is, for the most part, reserved, though is present is some
of the score, and during the prom sequence. The audio makes
good use of the soundfield given. Just as "Carrie" set a new
standard for horror movies, this new edition is a remastering
effort that should serve as a model for every DVD of classic
films. A superb achievement! -- |
| The
Extras |
To commemorative
its 25th anniversary, "Carrie" is packed with special features
that are some of the best supplements I've seen on any DVD released
this year, or any year! What makes them so wonderful is their
stark relevance to the movie itself, and how rich in behind-the-scenes
information and facts they are. There are three documentaries
included. "Acting Carrie" features the entire cast and crew
discussing the film from conception to production, and includes
some very surprising facts. Would you believe that Sissy Spacek
was not the first actress considered for the title role? Did
you know that Amy Irving's mother in the film was her real-life
mother? Most of the cast got their start with this film, and
despite their varying successes, their reunion for this documentary
is warm-hearted and full of depth. "Visualizing Carrie" is a
technical documentary on the smarts involved in making the movie,
from the various unending camera shots to the dazzling fireworks
display during the prom scene. Everyone knows that corn syrup
was used for the pig's blood, but did you know that the flames
were generated from rubber cement? Did you know that the film's
original opening scene involved a rock storm brought on by young
Carrie? "Carrie The Musical" reveals that "Carrie" was developed
into a musical, as writer Lawrence D. Cohen discusses his intentions
of bringing the movie to the stage. "Stephen King and the Evolution
of Carrie" is an article that reveals King's original conception
and inspiration of the novel, and then talks about how the novel
was transferred into a movie, and some of the changes made to
the novel to fit the movie better. And animated photo gallery
is a stylish portrait of this classic film, while the theatrical
trailer still sends chills up the spine. There's no doubt about
it: this is one terrifyingly excellent DVD! |
| Commentary |
None |
| Final
Words: |
"Carrie"
is a film unlike no other, and so is this DVD release. I've
never watched any supplemental material so engrossing, so interesting,
and so involving as that of this edition. Compare this release
to the growing number of two-disc releases on the market, and
you'll find that it matches up, and even beats some out. One
of the best DVDs of 2001! |
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