CARRIE
Director: David Carson
Cast: Angela Bettis, Patricia Clarkson, Rena Sofer
THE RAGE: CARRIE 2
Director: Katt Shea
Cast: Emily Bergl, Jason London, Dylan Bruno
Reviewed by Brian M. Sammons
You’ve got to love Scream Factory for remembering the forgotten. I mean, everyone knows of the original Carrie movie from 1976. It was the Brian De Palma, split screen classic, based off of Stephen King’s first published book, and staring Sissy Spacek as the titular character. Everyone probably knows about the 2013 remake, with Chloë Grace Moretz as an unbelievable Carrie, and a sleepwalking Julianne Moore as her mother. Yeah, it’s not a very good movie, but it is recent, so for good or ill, you know of it. But did you know there were two other Carrie movies? Yeah, most people don’t, but Scream Factory does, and they have released both, remastered in HD, on a Blu-ray two-pack. Is it worth a get, or is everyone just going to laugh at it? Well get your prom dress, and why not bring an umbrella, and let’s find out.
Before the most recent remake, there was another one made for TV back in 2002. It’s pretty much the same story that went before, but that’s only natural for a remake. There is a young girl named Carrie White and she is the odd duck in her high school and the butt of everyone’s joke. One day she discovers she has powerful telekinetic powers and so she begins to explore them. Before she can run out and join the X-men, there’s the high school prom where her classmates play a cruel joke on her. What follows is a gloriously over-the-top revenge and pretty much, that’s the story of Carrie.
What makes this TV remake stand out was the performance of Angela Bettis. While not as iconic as Sissy Spacek, she does a very good job, and is miles better than Chloë Grace Moretz, at any rate. What makes this movie sort of blah are the limitations of being a TV movie. It is a pale shadow of De Palma’s movie, to be sure, but it’s not completely without merit. Worth a watch as a novelty, for Bettis’ performance, and to add it you your horror movie mental lexicon should you ever need to reference it in a conversation. Hey, no fooling, I watch movies for that reason alone sometimes.
The Rage: Carrie 2 is the sequel that came out 23 years after the first movie and Lord knows those super late sequels are always so good. Well this one starts with a little girl named Rachel and her crazy mom trying to keep her safe from the devil. Hmmm, where have I heard that before? The mother is institutionalized and the girl given to a foster family. Years go by and when Rachel is in high school she runs afoul of some rapey football players and makes the acquaintance of the school counselor, Sue Snell. Yep, the same Sue from the original movie, played once again by Amy Irving. Sue, having a bit of déjà vu, starts looking into Rachel’s history and discovers her father was Mr. White. You know, the same Mr. White who was the missing father to the telekinetic ticking time bomb, Carrie White. Small world, isn’t it? From there it’s the usual story, bad kids plan to embarrass Rachel, only this time using cameras instead of pig’s blood. A massacre ensues and then the obvious attempt for a jump scare ending.
While more original than the TV remake, and not a terrible movie in its own right, the links to the first movie seem way forced and unnecessary. I would have enjoyed a fresh approach more, without any of the baggage Carried (ha) over from the first movie, because here it seems so ham-fisted. Still, it’s not bad.
As for the special features on the Scream Factory two-pack, they’re not bad. Usually two-for-one bundles get short changed on the extras, but not here. The Carrie remake has a director’s commentary and a trailer. The Rage gets a bit more love with a director’s commentary, an alternate ending, a collection of deleted scenes, and a trailer.
Carrie & The Rage: Carrie 2 Blu-ray two-pack is for diehard fans of all things Carrie. They’re not bad movies, but they’re not all that necessary, and they feel more samey then they had to. They’re a good enough watch for the most part, but perhaps not worth a re-watch. So if you’ve never seen them before and you want to, or you’re a fan of one or both of these films already, then this disc is for you. If you’re anyone else, then consider this a moderate recommendation at best.
