OCTOBER 23, 2012 10:19AM
W is for ... (31 Days of Halloween, Oct. 23rd)
WHITE, CARRIE (old and new)
The King is a very accomplished man. I wonder if his most enduring story will be "Carrie, " the amazingly operatic American Gothic tragedy. Don't we see its themes play out to this day, sadly enough, on the news? Rabid fundamentalism, bullying, the tragic consequences of school violence?
It seems to me film executives are desperate to remake it and think "the kids" are unable to relate to something in the 1970's with no cellphones or internet. I'd love to know for sure if teens today (DAMN KIDS GET OFF MY LAWN!) are somehow incapable of connecting with DePalma's incredible film adaptation of the story.
There was in 2002 a made for TV remake, starring Angela Bettis and Patricia Clarkson. Emptionally empty, I didn't care for it, especially the ending which I DON'T MIND SPOILING because it was a silly setup for a "Carrie The Series" that thankfully never saw the light of day: Carrie lives, she and Sue Snell drive off and umm, become fugitives from the law and... fight crime? Become waitresses in a Mexican resort? Who knows.
As you may know, a remake is soon to come out. I will go see it. From what I understand, it will have a narrative structure similar to the novel (articles, Congressional testimony, news excerpts, and Carrie's POV). I wonder if Chloe Grace Moretz will be able to hit the same notes of outcast sympathy that Sissy Spacek did? Julianne Moore will playMargaret White's mom, and I cannot wait for that.
On that last point - you can argue who the true villain of Carrie is: the telekinetic prom queen? The rotten mean girls? Or Carrie's unbalanced Fundamentalist monster of a mom? Slate recently had a piece on the new musical production of Carrie titled "Margaret White was Right":
"In the fascinating new musical revival of Carrie, however, we finally get a fair take on Margaret White. Marin Mazzie, who plays Margaret, rejects the easy caricature of her as an unthinking zealot, and delivers a complex portrait of a mother who is passionate, well-intentioned, and tragically flawed."
And I just don't know ... I suppose artistically it's a good idea? Right? But to me, it's like a nuanced portrayal of Leatherface or something. I really feel that Margaret White should be a one-dimensional monster for the story to work and the point to come across, and this is not because I have hostility towards religion (I do towards fundamentalism inserted into the laws of my country). Thoughts?
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Comments
Sissy Spacek seemed to own that role. This new girl had better be good or "there will be [pig's] blood!"
As to the mom's pov, think about it: single mom, deadbeat dad; mom seeks strength and guidance from religion albeit not my brand of religion. This does happen a lot sans telekenises. R
As to the mom's pov, think about it: single mom, deadbeat dad; mom seeks strength and guidance from religion albeit not my brand of religion. This does happen a lot sans telekenises. R
As much as I love Julianne Moore, I'll be skipping the remake.
As for who the villain is: the mean girls and her abusive mother. I don't care what someone's been through, there is no excuse for being horrible and abusive to people. Now, arguing from the perspective of mental or emotional illness re: her mother changes the scenario, and from that perspective I can bring some degree of empathy, but it's only a degree and, at the end of the day, Carrie is the true victim here. What she (brilliantly played by Spacek .... or Sissy Space, as per my mother's malapropism) does at the end of the film, isn't villainous: it's standing up to bullies who I don't have any sympathy for as they're the ones who started it all.
As for who the villain is: the mean girls and her abusive mother. I don't care what someone's been through, there is no excuse for being horrible and abusive to people. Now, arguing from the perspective of mental or emotional illness re: her mother changes the scenario, and from that perspective I can bring some degree of empathy, but it's only a degree and, at the end of the day, Carrie is the true victim here. What she (brilliantly played by Spacek .... or Sissy Space, as per my mother's malapropism) does at the end of the film, isn't villainous: it's standing up to bullies who I don't have any sympathy for as they're the ones who started it all.
Trudge - see, King's
novel goes into her background without trying to humanize her. It turns
out she quite enjoyed the sex she had to conceive Carrie, and so, she
thought Carrie was the devil's spawn even before objects started
moving...
VA - I think you'll always find people in the audience yelling "you GO girl! Don't let anybody ruin your prom!"
My thought - you do need to explore the raving, violent face of extreme fundamentalism, and sometimes in fiction you will need a one-dimensional monster to drive the point home. Yes, the real world isn't like that and it's multifaceted, but as far as art goes, I'm happy Stephen King decided to express that in the form of Margaret White.
VA - I think you'll always find people in the audience yelling "you GO girl! Don't let anybody ruin your prom!"
My thought - you do need to explore the raving, violent face of extreme fundamentalism, and sometimes in fiction you will need a one-dimensional monster to drive the point home. Yes, the real world isn't like that and it's multifaceted, but as far as art goes, I'm happy Stephen King decided to express that in the form of Margaret White.
Trudge - see, King's
novel goes into her background without trying to humanize her. It turns
out she quite enjoyed the sex she had to conceive Carrie, and so, she
thought Carrie was the devil's spawn even before objects started
moving...
VA - I think you'll always find people in the audience yelling "you GO girl! Don't let anybody ruin your prom!"
My thought - you do need to explore the raving, violent face of extreme fundamentalism, and sometimes in fiction you will need a one-dimensional monster to drive the point home. Yes, the real world isn't like that and it's multifaceted, but as far as art goes, I'm happy Stephen King decided to express that in the form of Margaret White.
VA - I think you'll always find people in the audience yelling "you GO girl! Don't let anybody ruin your prom!"
My thought - you do need to explore the raving, violent face of extreme fundamentalism, and sometimes in fiction you will need a one-dimensional monster to drive the point home. Yes, the real world isn't like that and it's multifaceted, but as far as art goes, I'm happy Stephen King decided to express that in the form of Margaret White.
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