Carrie
1976
****½
Director: Brian De Palma
Cast: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, Nancy Allen, John Travolta, Betty Buckley, P. J. Soles, Priscilla Pointer, Sydney Lassick
Carrie White, a socially awkward and bullied teenage girl with a fanatically religious mother, discovers she has telekinetic powers. An unexpected prom invitation gives her a sense of hope, but the night ultimately turns tragic. Brian De Palma's terrific horror film is based on Stephen King's first novel (1974), later remade with less success in 2002 and 2013. De Palma deploys his box of cinematic tricks (especially split diopter shots and split screen) into full use to turn this into one of his finest works. The climactic prom scene is incredibly intense. Sissy Spacek's wonderful lead performance is simultaneously fragile and powerful.
