Carrie (2013) - Review

Chloe Grace Moretz is amazing.  She takes this completely unnecessary, and plainly inferior remake that treads way too closely to the original film and manages to almost save it.  Granted, it’s still an entirely average film in most ways, but Chloe is totally mesmerizing as the titular Carrie.  She’s simultaneously adorable, creepy, and pitiful, knowing exactly when to emphasize one over the other.  She is the reason this movie works as well as it does.

Nobody quite measures up to Moretz in sheer intensity, but Julianne Moore does her damnedest as Carrie’s wacko mother, and Judy Greer does a respectable job as the one friendly teacher in the school.  The problem with this film is that most of it simply treads too much of the same ground as the original without bringing anything new to the table.

The one exception to this is the climactic prom scene and the aftermath, which does expand a bit on the carnage and Carrie’s complete and utter meltdown (SPOILER, but not really).  This scene, despite the cheesy CGI, is at least marginally interesting and provides a different avenue than the all-too-similar first and second acts of the film.

I suppose it wouldn’t have been as noticeable if I hadn’t watched the original only a few days earlier, but there’s really only one reason to watch this version over the original: Chloe Grace Moretz.  As with most remakes, or reimaginings, as they sometimes prefer to be called, this winds up feeling totally unneeded and ultimately a bit pointless, despite the fact that it is indeed well-made.

Before the movie came out, I remember reading an article in which this movie was described as an origin story to a twisted Carrie superhero series.  Now that I think I could be into.  But that’s such a weird concept.  That’s like saying “OK, we’re remaking The Shining, but it’s going to basically be the pilot for our new hotel sitcom!”

Jack Torrance:  I’m not gonna hurt you – I’m just gonna bash your brains in!

*audience laughs*