Carrie (2013)

"Carrie had some sort of power, but she was like me, like any of you. She had hopes and she had fears. And we pushed her. And you can only push someone so far, before they break."

- Sue to the White Commission

Carrie is a 2013 horror movie. It is the third film adaptation of Stephen King's 1974 novel of the same name, though MGM and Screen Gems, who are producing the film, employed a script, that is reportedly more faithful to King's original novel.

The film stars Chloë Grace Moretz as the titular Carrie White, and Julianne Moore as Carrie's mother, Margaret White. Following the initial announcement of March 15, 2013 as the release date, the film's public launch was later postponed to October 18, 2013. A shy girl, outcasted by her peers and sheltered by her religious mother, unleashes telekinetic terror on her small town after being pushed too far at her senior prom.

Plot
Carrie White is a girl in her last three months of her senior year at Ewen High School in Maine. One day, while showering after gym class, Carrie has her very first menstrual period. Knowing nothing of menstruation, she thinks, she's bleeding to death. The other girls laugh at Carrie and tease her by throwing tampons and feminine napkins at her. One of the girls, Chris Hargensen, who has long bullied Carrie, even records the event on her smartphone and later uploads it to YouTube. The gym teacher, Miss Desjardin, comforts Carrie and takes her to the office, where Principal Morton gives her a dismissal. But when Principal Morton tells Carrie that he'll have to inform her mother of the event, Carrie becomes frightened and causes the water cooler to suddenly explode. Carrie's deeply religious mother, Margaret, is called and picks Carrie up from school early. While sitting in the car, a young neighbor boy named Tommy "Thomas" Erbter begins taunting Carrie, chanting "crazy Carrie". Tommy is suddenly pushed off of his bike and runs away in fear. Believing Carrie's period to be a "sin", Margaret abuses Carrie and locks her into a closet. As Carrie screams to be let out, she makes a crack on the door. Both Margaret and Carrie are surprised at this and Carrie realizes, she has telekinetic powers.

The next day, Miss Desjardin informs the girls, who teased Carrie during class, that they will sprint for a very long time as punishment for the bullying. When Christine protests, Miss Desjardin informs her, that anyone, who doesn't do this, will be suspended for three days and banned from the prom. Christine, feeling that she did nothing wrong, stops sprinting and tries to encourage her friends to stop as well and when all of her friends refuse, Christine vows revenge. When Christine's father, who is a lawyer, threatens to sue the school unless Christine's suspension is rescinded, Miss Desjardin reveals that someone uploaded a video of the shower incident to YouTube, most likely Christine. Christine's lawyer father, John Hargensen urges his daughter to hand over her phone to prove her innocence, but she storms out of the office.

Carrie researches telekinesis and learns, how to harness her abilities. Sue Snell, one of the popular girls, that took part in teasing Carrie in the shower room, feels bad about what she did and tries to find a way to make it up to her. When Sue realizes in class, that Carrie feels attracted to Tommy, Sue asks her athlete boyfriend Tommy Ross to take Carrie to the prom and show her a good time. When Tommy asks Carrie, she is at first suspicious, but then accepts Tommy's invitation. Carrie informs her mother, that she has been invited to the prom, but Margaret refuses to permit Carrie to attend. In pleading her mother for permission, Carrie manifests her telekinesis, which Margaret believes comes from the Devil. Carrie explains, she is not the only one who harbors telekinetic abilities, but Margaret is unmoved, believing that Carrie has been corrupted by sin.

Christine, her boyfriend Billy Nolan, and his friends, Jackie Talbot and Kenny "Kenneth" Garson slip onto a nearby farm, where they kill a pig and drain its blood into a bucket. Christine and Billy then break into the gym and hoist the bucket to the ceiling. On the night of the prom, Margaret tries to prevent Carrie from going to the prom, but Carrie telekinetically locks her mother in the prayer closet. When she arrives at the prom, Carrie seems to enjoy herself. To the surprise of everyone, Carrie and Tommy are named prom queen and king. This is revealed to be the result of Christine's best friend Tina Blake slipping fake ballots into the ballot box as part of Chris and Billy's plan with the help of her other friends, the Watson sisters and Heather. Meanwhile, Sue, who is at home, receives a text from Christine taunting her about her plan of revenge on Carrie. Sue drives to the prom, arriving just as Carrie and Tommy are about to be crowned. Sue sees, that everything is fine, until she spots the bucket of pig blood dangling over the gym. She then tries to warn everyone, but Miss Desjardin, who spots Sue, hustles her out, suspecting, that Sue is planning to humiliate Carrie again. Chris dumps the bucket of pig's blood onto Carrie and Tommy, drenching them. Carrie is shocked and devastated, that the biggest moment of her life has been ruined once more. As Christine's idea of a double-dump, Tina and her boyfriend, Jackie set up the video of Carrie having her period in the locker room on the projection screens. Most of the people begin to laugh. Carrie attempts to walk off the stage, but decides to stay, when she sees the video. Remembering her demonic power she decides to use it. When Miss Desjardin attempts to comfort Carrie instead of doing something against the laughing, Carrie accidentally pushes her to the floor, shocking everybody in the gym. Just at this moment the emptied bucket falls on Tommy's head. He falls on the floor. Everyone is shocked by this. Carrie goes to see Tommy after realizing what has happened, but bursts into tears, when she realizes the hit has killed him by cracking his skull and brains. No one goes to them. Carrie then looks up at the stage and sees Billy's sunglasses and lights, realizing the prank was intentional. As Christine and Billy attempt to drive away, Carrie, who is now completely lost her sanity causes the blood to float around her. Tina, Jackie, Heather and her date attempt to flee, but Carrie unleashes her power by sending a tornado-like shock wave throughout the gym, and sends everyone flying across the room at full force. Heather, who is closest to the fire door tries to get out, but Carrie spots her and throws her against the door like a rag doll, which Sue witnesses in horror. Carrie then locks all of the doors, so nobody can escape from her wrath. Sue tries to call the police on her cell, but failed. Principal Morton tries to get everybody under control, but to no avail. Jackie and Kenny attempt to move the bleachers to get out through the windows, but Carrie knocks Kenny down and crushes Jackie between the bleachers, cutting him in half like a chicken sausages. Tommy's friend, Freddy "Frederick" Holt records Carrie on his camera, and Carrie sends a table smashing into his face. Carrie then turns on the sprinklers and spots the twins, Nicki and Lizzy running to the exit, and sends them both down on the floor. They try to stand, but Carrie holds them down long enough for the other panicking prom-goers to trample the twins like a helpless Pomeranian puppies, killing them. Wires on the ceiling fall down and cause a fire to spread around the gym. Carrie's English teacher, Mr. Ulmann, tries to help Tina get away, but Carrie sends a burning metal crescent moon flying between them, forcing them to separate from each other. Carrie then proceeds to send the electrical cords flying at Tina, whipping her like a female Labrador Retriever until she stumbles into fire on the floor, which then kills her as her body burns into ashes. Carrie then uses her power once more to pick up Miss Desjardin and holds her up in the air, as she sends gasoline and wires on the floor and safely places Miss Desjardin on the stage.

As the school burns to the ground, Carrie flies away from the gym covered in blood, leaving a trail of fire and mass destruction in her wake. When Christine and Billy attempt to flee in Billy's car, Carrie causes the road in front of them to cave in, forcing them to turn around. Seeing Carrie before them, Christine urges Billy to run Carrie down, knowing that Carrie would not let them get away. He relents, but Carrie smashes his grill, causing Billy to break his nose bone on the wheel, killing him instantly. Christine survives and is shocked to see Billy dead. As Christine attempts to get out of the car, Carrie locks the door. Out of options, with no way out of the car, Chris moves into the front seat and tries to start the car, but Carrie levitates it into mid air. Chris stubbornly continues to try and run Carrie over, which droves Carrie to drop the car and send it crashing into a gasoline pump, smashing Christine's face through the windshield. Carrie walks over to witness her head tormentor suffer, before she finally dies. As Carrie walks away from the scene, the car finally explodes with Christine still in it as she burns into skeleton.

When Carrie gets home, she sees, that the closet, in which she locked her mother, has been torn open. After Carrie washes off the blood, she sees Margaret and they embrace. Margaret tells Carrie about the night of her conception, relating that after having shared a bed platonically for some time, they felt temptation one night, and after praying for strength, Carrie's father Ralph White "took" Margaret, who found, that she enjoyed the experience. Margaret pulls out a knife/dagger and stabs Carrie in the back. Carrie crawls away in pain as Margaret explains how a devil must be put to death. And after Margaret slashes her several more times, Carrie uses her telekinetic/metallic powers to stop the knife/dagger and levitates a large number of kitchen utensils, impaling Margaret repeatedly, and pinning her against a wall. Carrie then releases her mother and cradles her as she dies in her arms. Realizing what she has done, Carrie becomes hysterical and makes stones start to rain from the sky to crush the house, until Sue shows up. A furious Carrie chokes Sue with her powers, even as she tries to apologize. Carrie decides to let go of Sue and continues to let the stones fall into her house. Sue offers to help Carrie, but Carrie senses that Sue is pregnant, and tells her that she will have a girl. Sue, who had no idea that she was pregnant, is shocked and happy to hear this. Realizing this, Carrie forgives Sue and throws her out of the house, and safely onto the outside lawn, while Carrie continues to hold Margaret. Sue watches as the rain of stones destroy the home and bury it to the ground together with Carrie and her dead mother. During a voice-over of her testimony in court regarding in the incident at the prom, in which most of her friends, including Tommy, were killed and in which she blamed the disaster on everyone, including herself, Sue visits Carrie's grave and places a single white rose by the headstone, which has been vandalized with the words "Carrie White Burns In Hell". A series of cracks then splinter the gravestone's surface indicating, that Carrie might still be alive.

Alternate Ending
The alternate ending is available on Bluray. In the alternate ending, it starts, when Sue visits Carrie White's gravestone just like in the movie. Sue then starts to feel pain in her stomach and screams, believing she is having her baby. She is then taken to the hospital and cries in pain, while the doctor tries to take her baby out. For a few seconds of silence a bloody hand pops out like Carries and grabs her arm. Sue screams in terror and her mother comes to wake her up from a nightmare. Sue imagines a bloody, caring Carrie holding her baby for a second and continues to scream. The scene ends with Sue screaming continuously and her mother holding her. We also see a baby crib for a girl and a huge cross above it. It indicates, that Carrie was right with her analysis, that she was pregnant with a girl, a girl she intends to have and that Sue has become scarred for the rest of her life because of the Black Prom.

Casting
Kimberly Peirce, the director of Stop-Loss and Boys Don't Cry, is slated to direct the MGM/Screen Gems film with a script written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa of Glee, Big Love, and Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark fame. 15 year old actress Chloë Moretz, who has played the child assassin Hit Girl in Kick-Ass and the vampire Abby in Let Me In, has been cast as the lead role, Carrie White. And Julianne Moore will play Carrie's fanatically religious mother. Portia Doubleday (Youth In Revolt) has also been casted as the girl, who started it all, Chris Hargensen. Gabriella Wilde has also been chosen to play the role of Sue Snell, while Judy Greer was casted as Miss Desjardin.

About the new film, Chloë Moretz says, "… We’re kind of going off the book. It’s darker and much more psychological. More ‘Black Swan.’ You’re really looking into her mind and it really looks into the relationship of Margaret and Carrie. It’s set in modern time, so it’s a lot different… It’s something, that’s very different from me. It’s an out of body thing. I’m becoming a totally different person for it. I’m letting go of all of my self-esteem issues and just kind of going into it. You have to." 

Release
Sony Pictures held a "First Look" event at the New York Comic Con on October 13, 2012. It was followed by a panel session with several members of the cast and crew. The first teaser trailer for the film was released on October 15, 2012. The film was originally to be released on March 15, 2013, however the release date was moved to October 18, 2013 for unknown reasons.

The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on January 14, 2014. The Blu-ray features an alternate ending and 9 deleted scenes.

Trivia

 * The original film was 150 minutes long with scenes depicting the White Commission, more in depth description of the characters, an enlarged prom scene massacre and much broader destruction. A lot of scenes were deleted however, in order to create a 100 minute film.
 * This film was done by Kimberly Pierce from a feministic point of view.