Arriving on Prime Video October 7th with all eight episodes in binge format, ‘Carrie’ represents the latest effort by horror veteran Mike Flanagan (‘The Life of Chuck’) to bring Stephen King’s work to the screen.
Created and showrun by Flanagan, the show stars Summer H. Howell (‘Hunter Hunter’), Samantha Sloyan (‘Midnight Mass’), Siena Agudong (‘The 4:30 Movie’), Arthur Conti (‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’) and Amber Midthunder (‘Prey’).
Related Article: Mike Flanagan’s ‘Carrie’ TV Adaptation Ordered to Series by Amazon
Initial Thoughts
Before the likes of Zach Cregger, Kane Parsons and Curry Barker, Mike Flanagan was the go-to horror guy of the current generation. Across screens big and small, he’s proved he has what it takes to deliver thoughtful scares and, in the case of ‘The Life of Chuck,’ hope (even in the face of oblivion).
While he’s an old hand at bringing Stephen King stories to the screen, ‘Carrie’ is perhaps his biggest swing yet –– aside from the Brian De Palma movie, no one has really been successful in translating the trauma of Carrie White. Can Flanagan?
Script and Direction
We’ll answer that question right away with a big old “yes!” Flanagan and his co-writers have come up with a superb rendition of the story that keeps the core ideas intact while expanding out and modernizing the true terror –– teen/high school life. Embracing the expanded running time a series offers, he’s also smartly found ways to make the antagonists believable humans, give the teachers some depth and dialed into Carrie’s mother’s beliefs in a way that makes her more than just a zealous monster.
Leading a directing team that also includes Kyra Sedgwick and Axelle Carolyn, Flanagan has also made the show stylish and utterly compelling.
Cast and Performances
Summer H. Howell is excellent as the terrified, but stronger-than-she-realizes title character, and has a fine supporting cast around her. Samanatha Sloyan, a Flanagan regular, is superb as her mother, while everyone from Matthew Lillard (as a school principle) to Siena Agudong’s more layered take on “villain” Sue Snell are great.
And ‘Battlestar Galactica’ fans take note –– this is practically a reunion, spurred by ‘BSG’ superfan Flanagan, having used a few cast members from the Ronald D. Moore version of the sci-fi show before.
Final Thoughts
Though its finale might be divisive (we won’t say why as to avoid spoilers, but it certainly hints at a story beyond the basic ending of the book), ‘Carrie’ is one of the most successful TV series of the year, not just one of the best horror offerings.
‘Carrie’ receives 80 out of 100.
What’s the plot of ‘Carrie’?
The series follows misfit high‑schooler Carrie White (Summer H. Howell) who has spent her life hidden away inside the walls of her home with her fiercely protective mother, Margaret (Samantha Sloyan).
After her father’s sudden, untimely death thrusts her into the unforgiving ecosystem of public high school, Carrie is forced to navigate a viral bullying scandal that tears through her community, the relentless pressure and casual cruelty of the social‑media age, and the awakening of mysterious telekinetic powers that rise alongside her adolescence.
Who stars in ‘Carrie’?
- Summer H. Howell as Carrie White
- Samantha Sloyan as Margaret White
- Siena Agudong as Sue Snell
- Josie Totah as Tina Blake
- Arthur Conti as Billy Nolan
- Amber Midthunder as Rita Desjardin
- Matthew Lillard as Henry Grayle
List of Mike Flanagan Movies and TV Shows:
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