By Jacob Cameron

Carrie is a new series on Amazon Prime that has tough shoes to fill. The book, written by Stephen King, is held in high regard. As well as the 1976 film adaptation from Brian DePalma. If this series had any chance at being a success, that chance lied in the hands of Mike Flanagan. A chance that Flanagan took with gusto.

Carrie is the latest Stephen King property to be taken on by Flanagan. Gerald’s Game, The Life of Chuck, and Doctor Sleep were all helmed by Flanagan. This adaptation of Carrie starred Summer H. Howell, Samantha Sloyan, Amber Midthunder, Matthew Lillard. This version of Carrie is set in modern times; where Carrie must face the modern climate of high school, all while negotiating with her developing telekinesis.

Summer H. Howell gives a great performance as Carrie. Because this adaptation is updated for the modern day, Carrie’s naïveté and outcast nature are brought about in different ways. This version’s Carrie can hold her own if the need arises while always trying to be kind and trying to give others the benefit of the doubt. The ending of this story is obvious to those who have either seen the other film adaptations or read the book. With this in mind, Carrie remains sympathetic and tragic nonetheless.

Because this is a series, this gives a chance for the story to breathe and develop the other characters. One of the more surprising examples is Carrie’s mother, Margaret, played by Samantha Sloyan. In other adaptations, Margaret White is the crazed religious zealot. In this version, she is a zealot of a different kind; blending the religious aspects with a dash of conspiracy theories. However, Margaret does have moments where she is borderline sympathetic and even reasonable.

Lillard and Midthunder are both good; with the latter having more to do in the series than one might believe. In fact, because of the length of the series, you see more development with the bully characters and other outside parties. Chris Hargensen, played by Alison Thornton, gets a sizable story arc, which is just as tragic as Carrie. The series takes notes from the original book in that there are many different perspectives shown. With a different approach to how the death of Carrie’s father affects the White family and everyone else in their orbit.

Because this is a modern update, there are themes that appeal to modern times, such as cyberbullying and the divisive nature of social media. These plot points are both a blessing and a curse. In the grand scheme of the narrative, these themes come into play for the famous prom scene. But some of the side plots related to these themes did become tiresome. It looks like something out of the TV show 13 Reasons Why. There are some plot points that feel underdeveloped in an attempt to connect to other Stephen King stories.

In the end, this is a worthy remake. There are some strong performances, the story is mostly engaging, and there are some genuine scares. The show does get a bit tiresome; but it does get the job done.

Carrie Will Be Streaming On Prime Video On October 7th, 8/8 Episodes Reviewed

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