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Carrie (TV Film)

Carrie (TV Film)

List Price: $14.95
Your Price: $13.46
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Better than the original
Review: This remake of the 1976 classic I liked better than the original because it goes into more detail of Carrie's early years. I guess that because I read the book, this one sticks a little more closely to the book. Alot was left out of the original. This version is set in more recent years, complete with internet and Carrie reading teen magizines while locked in her "praying closet". The special effects were awesome and the ending is a complete shock. Very different. I realize there are some people who prefer the original but at least watch this one. Especially if you have read the book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: CARRIE FOR THIS GENERATION!!!!
Review: THIS WAS A GREAT ADAPTION OF STEPHEN KING'S NOVEL, CARRIE.
NEW STAR, ANGELA BETTIS, IS FANTASTIC IN THE LEADING ROLE!!
SHE BRINGS HER OWN UNIQUE STYLE TO THIS ROLE.
AS WELL AS A SIMILAR PLOT TO THE ORIGINAL, THIS FILM BRINGS US MORE DESTRUCTION EFFECTS IN "THE PROM" SCENE.
HOWEVER, IF YOU LIKE THE ORIGINAL FILM, SEE THIS VERSION, BECAUSE ANGELA BETTIS TAKES THIS ROLE TO THE EXTREME!!
GREAT MOVIE!!!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Treat For Fans of The Original King Novel
Review: Though I enjoyed the original film that was made by Brian DePalma, who I always felt was a modern-day Hitchcock. I really enjoyed this new movie about Carrie. Movies have been remade since their invention. And why not? I like watching how other directors handle the source material. This new take on the novel was very good and very close to the novel except for the more upbeat ending--which I appreciated because the ending of the book always bothered me. The direction and camera work in the new Carrie is refreshing, real, and very atmospheric. The hazy light in study hall, the greenness of the institutional lights in the interview room, the shadows and light in Carrie's house, the surreal use of blue-screen backgrounds all contribute to make this film play like an odd bad dream. Angela Bettis was remarkable in her portrayal of Carrie. Many folks complained that the other characters were played all wrong--well, that is wrong! And you would know that if you read the novel. Far more improved on the original was the relationship between Chris and Billy. The acting in this movie is excellent and the young cast is very talented. Being a miniseries, there was more time to flesh out characters and actually do the some of the scenes that DePalma wanted to do back in the 70's but couldn't do to time constrants and hasseling from the studio. I bought this DVD and I have it next to the DePalma movie on the shelf. My only complaint is that there were no extra features other than ads for upcoming movies. I even liked the music.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Interesting New Take On
Review: Ultimately intended to serve as a backdoor pilot to a possible weekly series (depending on the ratings the film received on its opening night), NBC's TV movie version of "Carrie" is entertaining in its own right, although not on the same level as the 1976 version. This time around the story is set in present day Maine, with the obvious technological and pop culture references updated from the novel, and the screenplay is more faithful to the book. The film itself was advertised on NBC as an adaptation of the "novel by Stephen King" and not as a remake of the 1976 film (although in quite a few scenes it uses dialogue and camera angles from the that version, i.e. the angle with the bucket in the prom scene, Margaret White's "red, I might have known it would be red" line on Carrie's prom dress when in actuality it is pink).

What really sets this version apart from the original is the wrap-around storyline detailing a police investigation of the events yet to come in the film. This technique of storytelling is similar to the one used by Stephen King in the novel, with a series of excerpts from research papers and books published after the story's climax appearing throughout the tale alongside the main plot. While this worked well in the novel, essentially the film finds itself both a strength and a weakness in using this wrap-around plot technique. Although it helps to build the necessary tension in leading up to the climatic events of the film, the cuts from the main story to the wrap-around story often occur too frequently and for too long at a time, thus giving the movie a sort of disjointed, jagged pace at certain points. The movie would have been improved greatly if the wrap-around plot was used more sparingly and discreetly.

Aside from this, another weakness I found in the film was its length -- approximatley two hours and fifteen minutes, not including commercials. While it is well-known that the movie was made to fit into the three-hour running time for its televised airing, the filmmakers could have shot some interesting scenes that added to the story to help the film fit the required time, but instead shot what felt like "filler" scenes that appeared only to be present to extend the length. These scenes were another factor in giving the film an undefined, jagged pace.

Aside from these issues, however, the film was overall well-done for a TV movie. The performances were uniformally solid, with Angela Bettis giving a new, more confident take on the title character and Patrica Clarkson giving a more subdued portrayal of the religiously-fanatical character of Margaret White, Carrie's mother. The rest of the cast, mostly as the other students at Carrie's school, also give different portryals of their respective characters than in the 1976 version and together result in assembling a quite realistic high school class.

In terms of genre, this version of "Carrie" seemed to be more of an action/adventure revenge story than a horror movie, which was fine considering the already well-made and hard to top horror feel delivered by the original. The visual effects were at times obviously computer-generated and reflected the smaller scale production values of the film (as mentioned in the editorial review on this page), but they worked well enough to move the story along. All of the former being said, the original still remains as the superior version of the story, and I'd recommended it over this one. Nevertheless, I'd still say that the NBC version of "Carrie" was an interesting enough take on the classic story and worth a viewing.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Sorry but this was not a good show
Review: Well it was something that made her bleed


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