Carrie (1976)

Carrie is a 1976 supernatural film directed by Brian De Palma from a screenplay by Lawrence D. Cohen. It is the first and most known film version of the novel Carrie by Stephen King. The film was followed by a sequel, THE RAGE: CARRIE 2 and was remade twice in 2002 and 2013.

Story
Carrie White is a shy, friendless teenage girl abused by her unstable Christian fundamentalist mother Margaret. The girls at Bates High School also harass Carrie, with Chris Hargensen being especially cruel.

Carrie experiences her first period while showering after gym class. Because of her sheltered life, she does not understand what is happening. She becomes hysterical, thinking she is dying. Chris and another popular girl, Sue Snell, notice Carrie's horror. Rather than help, they and the other girls throw tampons and sanitary pads at her before Miss Collins intervenes. As Carrie becomes more frantic, a light bulb bursts just before Miss Collins makes the other girls leave. Miss Collins brings Carrie to Principal Morton's office. While consoling her, Principal Morton repeatedly calls Carrie "Cassie", unintentionally emphasizing how overlooked she is. When Carrie corrects the principal, an ashtray from the principal's desk flips onto the floor and smashes.

While Carrie is walking home, a neighborhood boy falls off his bicycle immediately after taunting her. Margaret pays a visit to Mrs. Snell's house on missionary work, but Mrs. Snell instead gives her $10 as a contribution to get rid of her. Margaret takes the hint and leaves.

Margaret receives a call from Miss Collins about the locker room incident. She hits Carrie and forces her to recount the story of Eve, specifically the temptation of Adam by Eve and the curses God put on her. Margaret tells Carrie that the "curse of blood" was divine punishment for lustful thoughts. She locks a screaming Carrie in the prayer closet. That night, a miserable Carrie stares at her bedroom mirror until it shatters.

The next day, English teacher Mr. Fromm reads a poem to the class written by Sue's athletic boyfriend Tommy Ross. Fromm invites the class to critique Tommy's work, but mocks Carrie when she calls it "beautiful." This irks Tommy, who defends Carrie. Sue, feeling guilty for teasing Carrie, convinces Tommy to take Carrie to the prom.

Miss Collins berates the girls in the gym who tormented Carrie, subjecting them to a week-long boot-camp-style detention, threatening them with suspension from school and the prom if they do not attend. All the girls show remorse except for Chris, who throws a fit and is banned from the prom.

Carrie suspects she may have telekinesis, and researches it in the library. Tommy asks Carrie to the prom, but she fears another trick. After a pep talk from Miss Collins, Tommy pays a visits to Carrie's house and keeps asking her to the prom; she then accepts Tommy's invitation.

Carrie tells her mother she is going to the prom, but Margaret refuses to let her attend, declaring the prom a sinful occasion. However, Carrie causes the windows of the house to slam shut, revealing her telekinesis. Margaret believes this is Satan's power, but Carrie refuses to listen and insists she will go to the prom.

Chris tells her delinquent boyfriend, Billy Nolan, that she wants revenge on Carrie. She goes with Billy and other kids to a farm, where Billy kills a pig. After draining the pig's blood into a bucket, Chris has Billy place the bucket above the school's stage.

Chris makes a deal with her friend Norma and Billy's friend Freddy to rig the prom king and queen election so that Tommy and Carrie win. As Carrie prepares for the evening, her mother tries to discourage her from going to the prom, telling her everyone will laugh at her. Carrie pushes Margaret onto her bed as Tommy pulls up to the house. Margaret lies in shock as Carrie leaves with Tommy. After Carrie leaves, Margaret quotes Exodus 22:16 from the Bible: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live," an important line that foreshadows future events in the film.

Though Carrie's classmates are surprised to see her at the prom, they treat her as an equal. Sue, who was unable to attend due to lacking a date, sneaks into the prom to ensure everything goes well for Carrie. Spacek's iconic and career-defining role as Carrie White, 1976.After Norma collects all of the ballots, she keeps only those nominating Tommy and Carrie. She gives Chris the signal that she has collected the ballots, and Chris prepares to exact her revenge.

To Carrie's surprise, she and Tommy are named prom king and queen. As the couple approaches the stage, Sue discovers Chris holding a rope attached to the bucket of pig's blood. Before Sue can warn Carrie, Miss Collins forces her out, believing she is there for mischief. As the crown is placed on Carrie's head, Chris pulls the rope and Carrie is drenched in pig's blood. As the crowd looks on in silence, Tommy is knocked unconscious by the bucket and Carrie sees the whole room laughing and jeering at her, when in reality only a few of Chris's friends are doing so. Carrie's telekinesis takes over, closing the doors to the gym and turning on a fire hose. Chris and Billy's friends are knocked out by the fire hose along with Norma and many other people, and Miss Collins is crushed to death by a falling ceiling rafter. Principal Morton and Mr. Fromm are electrocuted, which causes a fire in the gym. Leaving her classmates to die inside the burning school, Carrie walks home covered in blood. Chris and Billy intend to run her over with Billy's car, but Carrie flips the car over, causing it to burst into flames, killing them both.

At home, Carrie takes a bath to wash off the pig's blood, and puts on her nightgown. She then breaks down in her mother's arms. However, by this time Margaret has gone completely mad. She gets on her knees and tells the story of Carrie's conception. Margaret and Carrie's father, Ralph, lived pious lives. Ralph came home drunk one night and made advances toward his wife. They prayed for self-control, but Ralph ended up taking Margaret's virginity, which she enjoyed but felt guilty about nonetheless. Margaret then hugs Carrie as the two recite the Lord's Prayer. In the middle of the prayer, Margaret stabs Carrie in the back. Carrie falls down the stairs and is cornered in the kitchen by her mother, but sends kitchen knives flying at her mother, killing her and having her body shaped in the form of the Saint Sebastian figurine in the "prayer closet". Overcome with guilt and grief, Carrie uses her last ounce of strength to collapse the house upon her and her mother and the house burns down to the ground.

Some time later, Sue, the only survivor of the prom, has a dream in which she visits the plot where Carrie's house stood. As she places flowers on the ground, Carrie's bloody hand shoots out of the ground and grabs her wrist. The movie ends with Sue waking up, screaming, in her mother's arms.

Cast
 * Sissy Spacek as Carrie White
 * Piper Laurie as Margaret White
 * Amy Irving as Sue Snell
 * William Katt as Tommy Ross
 * John Travolta as Billy Nolan
 * Nancy Allen as Chris Hargensen
 * Betty Buckley as Miss Collins
 * P. J. Soles as Norma Watson
 * Priscilla Pointer as Mrs. Snell
 * Sydney Lassick as Mr. Fromm
 * Stefan Gierasch as Mr. Morton
 * Michael Talbott as Freddie DeLois
 * Rory Stevens as Kenny Garson
 * Doug Cox as The Beak
 * Harry Gold as George Dawson
 * Edie McClurg as Helen Shyres

Related Films
THE RAGE: CARRIE 2 is the first and only sequel to this version of the story.