Carrie (1976)

Carrie White, a shy, friendless teenage girl who is sheltered by her domineering, religious mother, unleashes her telekinetic powers after being humiliated by her classmates at her senior prom.

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writers:

Stephen King (novel), Lawrence D. Cohen (screenplay)

Stars:

Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sissy Spacek	...	Carrie
Piper Laurie	...	Margaret White
Amy Irving	...	Sue Snell
William Katt	...	Tommy Ross
John Travolta	...	Billy Nolan
Nancy Allen	...	Chris Hargensen
Betty Buckley	...	Miss Collins
P.J. Soles	...	Norma
Priscilla Pointer	...	Mrs. Snell
Sydney Lassick	...	Mr. Fromm
Stefan Gierasch	...	Mr. Morton
Michael Talbott	...	Freddy
Doug Cox	...	The Beak
Harry Gold	...	George
Noelle North	...	Frieda

Storyline

It's nearing the end of the school year. High school senior Carrie White is a social outcast, largely due to being unwise to the ways of the world based on her upbringing. Her mother, Margaret White, is a religious fanatic, her extreme views primarily targeted against sex, which she believes is a sin. She even believes natural associated processes such as menstruation are a sin, about which she has refused to mention to Carrie. Mrs. White's beliefs were taken to that extreme largely because of her own failed marriage and her husband Ralph long ago having run off with another woman. The only adult authority figure who tries to help Carrie with her life is her phys ed teacher, Miss Collins, who is nonetheless warned not to get too close to go against how Mrs. White chooses to raise Carrie, Mrs. White whose beliefs are well known in the community. An impromptu event that happens among Carrie's phys ed classmates against her leads to her classmates being punished. One of those students, ...

---

Plot Keywords:

telekinesis | female rear nudity | female nudity | female frontal nudity | prank | 

---

Taglines:

If you've got a taste for terror you have a date with.... (Australia)

---

Genres:

Horror

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

MGM Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 November 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Carrie

Filming Locations:

124 N 7th St, Santa Paula, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,800,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$33,800,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Red Bank Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

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.

---

Goofs

Chris is trying to convince Billy to help her prank Carrie at the same time that Sue is trying to convince Tommy to take Carrie to the prom. At this point, Chris has no way of knowing that Carrie is going to be at the prom at all.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Miss Collins: Okay! Game Point: 15-14, this team serves!

---

Alternate Versions

Two different versions of the locker room scene currently air in TV prints -- both are edited versions of the theatrical cut of the scene, complete with red credits offset across the screen. In the more widely seen one, the nudity is completely blurred out with strategically placed fogging. A second version is sometimes seen which features some light fogging and Nancy Allen covered by bra and panties which were animated onto her nude body.

---

Connections

Referenced in The Last of the High Kings (1996)

---

Soundtracks

There Is Power in the Blood
(uncredited)
Written by Lewis E. Jones
Performed by Piper Laurie

User Reviews

Though cluttered up with crass humor, De Palma's trashy flair and killer instincts make this a classic screamer...

When picked-on high schooler Carrie White discovers to her horror that she's been made the butt of a nasty prank, she unleashes her secret powers at the school prom and all hell literally comes loose. This sequence, filmed in split-screen, is a canny marvel of technical wizardry, twisted imagination and production design (check out that gorgeous blaze that erupts behind Sissy Spacek). The cinematographer lights everything up like fluorescent goodies in a candy-box (the continuity problems with Carrie's appearance here can be overlooked). But Carrie's anger is all encompassing--it's a high school holocaust--and some of her victims are innocents, like the gym teacher (played very sensitively by Betty Buckley). Carrie has become as bad as her enemies, and director Brian De Palma doesn't seem to understand the irony (he's also too interested in girl-peeping, although to his credit nobody comes off looking foolish). The picture is fun on the surface, but has a depressing undermining that is never quite resolved. Spacek's performance in the lead is flawless; Piper Laurie exceptional as her deranged mother (it was her comeback role, Oscar-nominated, yet it nearly typed her as a horror-movie actress); Nancy Allen, P.J. Soles, and William Katt are excellent as Carrie's classmates; Amy Irving is intriguing as schoolmate Sue who just wants to do the right thing (Pauline Kael of The New Yorker complained that Sue's role in the disaster wasn't made clear, but I disagree. I think she's conflicted and guilty and wants to help, wants to see Carrie bask in some of the glory which she helped create). Although an improvement over the Stephen King source novel, "Carrie" isn't perfect and is weighed down somewhat with dirty jokes and cheap laughs. Certainly it is a stylish picture, with beautiful (if repetitive) music by Pino Donaggio, and the final sequence is still being copied today. *** from ****