I've come to a point now that I'm not surprised or really upset that Hollywood has been deciding to remake classic horror flicks instead of gambling on original stories. I can have all the nerd rage I want but it's not going to stop them. I can easily choose not to watch. This is a stance I originally took on Carrie but then along came a pretty great teaser trailer and the realization that Stephen King's 1974 novel had already been redone as a mini-series in 2002 as well as the original spawning a (as I remember it) weak sequel in 1999. I also had to remind myself that, in no way, could the performances of Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie be matched. This is an update meant for a new generation (as evidenced by the importance of social media to the plot) and it definitely could've turned out a lot worse.

The opening scene, which depicts the religiously fanatical Margaret White (Julianne Moore) giving birth to a baby girl and trying to murder it, is a really good mood setter before things settle down into the story we're familiar with from Brian De Palma's adaptation. It's years later and Margaret's baby has grown up into the social outcast teenager Carrie (Chloe Grace Moretz). She's the target of much teasing from her classmates and it gets even worse when she experiences her first period during gym class. It's a traumatic experience made worse by the bitchy Chris (Portia Doubleday) uploading a clip to YouTube for everyone to laugh at. Even the attempted help of teacher Miss Dejardin (Judy Greer) doesn't do much and we get the first hint that Carrie is in possession of telekinetic powers.

If you've seen the 1976 original, then you pretty much know where the rest of the movie is headed, as Carrie tries to get a grip on her powers and deal with her pretty psychotic mother who is prone to lurk about and quote scripture, Chris and her friends plan a prom night revenge because they get expelled, and Carrie gets a brief taste of high school normality after classmate Sue (Gabriella Wilde), feeling guilty for the bullying, has convinced her jock boyfriend Tommy (Ansel Elgort) to take her to the prom. Then comes the prom night massacre finale which, though not nearly as intense at the original, is pretty decent and includes a scene of Carrie going all "Darth Vader" on Desjardin. Cue an ending that is more in line with King's novel but not nearly as satisfying as the shock finish De Palma dreamed up.

Like I said earlier, there is no way our leads could match Spacek and Laurie. Moretz, who seems to be popping up in everything these days, isn't nearly ugly duckling enough to play the tormented Carrie and no amount of crossing her arms across her chest and glancing around awkwardly is going to change that. Moore does her best to be over-the-top maniacal but also can't compete with Laurie's batshit crazy turn in the original. In fact, it's a problem all the actors have to deal with trying to compete with the 1976 cast. They're all pretty good in their roles and it was a agreeable change to see Greer in a non-comedic role with Elgort's Tommy being the only true weak link.

When all is said and done, I didn't hate Carrie. In fact, I found it to be a pretty entertaining return to the well. Director Kimberly Peirce does a solid job and tries her best to emulate De Palma's imagery but I feel she could have put a more feminist spin on the material seeing as she made the powerful Boys Don't Cry. I also didn't get the genuine feeling of high school hierarchy or realism captured by the original and question the decision to show the famous "bucket of pig's blood" scene multiple times in a row. Let's just face it, it's a pretty monumental task to match the 1976 flick (which is definitely a top five Stephen King movie) but at least this tries more than a lot of the big studio remakes tend to - here's looking at you A Nightmare on Elm Street... (Chris Hartley, 11/27/14)

Directed By: Kimberly Peirce.
Written By: Lawrence D. Cohen, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

Starring: Chloe Grace Moretz, Julianne Moore, Judy Greer, Portia Doubleday.