When it comes to notable female characters in the horror genre, one of the names often said or mentioned is Carrie White from the 1976 film Carrie, directed by Brian De Palma. This is the version that most people have a clear image of in their heads and are most familiar with. It was adapted from Stephen King's novel with the same title. Carrie (1976) follows Carrie White (played by Sissy Spacek), a shy and quiet 16-year-old girl who faces bullies at school and her extremely pious mother at home. As the story progresses, she finds out that she has telekinetic powers that she eventually used as a method to get back at her bullies during senior prom. Now, I will admit that I haven't watched the movie in its entirety and have only seen reviews and film analysis of it on Youtube, which means that I will be discussing this based on the knowledge I have about Carrie (1976), and the themes that surround it that came from watching Youtube videos and clips from the movie.
Carrie (1976) is a film that is quite difficult to watch, especially if you're not a fan of supernatural horror or horror in general. Unlike other movies in the genre, Carrie doesn't have intense jumpscares or serial killers, but rather a slow-burn story that hits the climax in a bloody and terrifying way. Beyond the horror, the movie explores things women experience in their lives, such as menstrual cycles, bullying, and the views of women towards themselves and each other. Throughout the movie, Carrie White is a victim of bullying from other girls, and abuse by her zealot mother, who forces her child to remain pure and clean. Oftentimes, girls who are raised in a household or by parents who control every action of theirs find it difficult to stand up for themselves and have a skewed version of the world around them. In the case of Carrie, her mother had controlled her since she was a child, often instilling her own beliefs of purity in her. There is also a lot of religious imagery in her own home Her mother, insisting that she was a “child of the devil” and must repent for the sins she had committed, continued to skew her perception of herself, only believing that she is a sinful child and asking for penance to be forgiven. Their relationship makes it seem that her mother is the only person that Carrie can trust and run to when things occur, that she is the only person that truly understands her predicament, even if she is the cause of her abuse at home.
The scene where Carrie gets her first period shatters the expectations of purity and cleanliness she is supposed to have. The topics of periods and menstrual cycles are also a vital part of the movie, especially when Carrie gets her first period, during which she was bullied by the other girls in the locker room until her teacher stepped in to stop them and comfort her. Carrie’s teacher was one, if not one, of the only adults who tried to understand her—to make her feel seen and to help her throughout her first period, explaining what it was because her mother hadn't done that for her. Related to that, blood was also an important symbol in the movie. It represented the transition from being a child to an adult, womanhood, and the natural cycle of life from which no one can escape. Related to this, another theme is the way women see themselves and each other throughout the film. Carrie has been constantly abused and bullied by other women, such as her classmates and her mother. This continuous abuse and bullying had a detrimental effect on Carrie and how she saw herself, especially. She saw herself as an outcast—a girl who couldn't fit in with others due to her appearances, a zealot mother, who had controlled every action since she was born, and how she couldn't conform to society.
Out of all the clips I had seen, the one that struck the most was when Carrie fought back against her mother, only for her to be locked up inside a small cabinet. This was a vital part of the movie, as we see (for the first time) Carrie standing up for herself, only for it to go downhill and for her to face punishment. This emphasized that no matter how much Carrie wants to stand up for herself and believe that she deserves a normal life, her mother saw her as an impure child when everything she wanted was normalcy for a girl her age.
During the eventual bloody prom scene, where her classmates spilled pig's blood all over her, we see the breaking point of Carrie's pent-up rage as she kills her classmates and destroys the town. In a way, we see how rage and years of abuse can affect people. Even in its dramatization through the use of Carrie's telekinetic powers (something she felt she had control over when everything around her wasn't controllable), it is rather evident in the way she raged out, causing the deaths of people and the town's destruction. It is also seen how she lost her humanity, even for short moments, because she was never treated like a human.
Carrietta White is a character that deserves better. A better mother. A better environment. A better life. The circumstances she faced helped contribute to her ultimate rage in the end. Carrie (1976) showed her in light of her treatment, how it affected the way she saw herself and other women around her. The acts committed by most of the characters towards her, especially by her mother and classmates, was horrible. Yet, it gave Carrie all the reasons to be angry at the environment that allowed for her dilemma’s to continue and for others to merely watch her slowly lose herself. In the end, Carrie (1976) presented different characters and the experiences they went through; most of the actions aren't easily forgiven by the audience, but it gave an insight into things women experience, such as bullying by other people (girls especially), abuse, how being isolated and never given a chance to grow and discover yourself affects who you are and how you see/perceive the world around you.
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