Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Carrie 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson April 5, 2024

Is Kimberly Peirce's Carrie (2013) a remake of Brian De Palma's legendary 1976 classic or is it just another interpretation of Stephen King's eponymous 1974 novel? It's been reported that Peirce wanted to do a close and faithful adaptation of the original source material but the higher-ups at Sony and Screen Gems preferred to use the De Palma film as a model. (This would serve as a terrific subject for a documentary.) This would explain why original adapter Lawrence D. Cohen's name appears as the primary writer above Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa's since dialogue from the first film is reused in the 2013 version. (Apparently, Cohen wasn't involved with Peirce's film at all.)

But on a cinematic level, Peirce's style of filmmaking is different from De Palma's in several ways. For example, Peirce doesn't employ the split-field diopter, split screens, or displaced diegetic sound (e.g., the famous line, "They're all going to laugh at you.") in her movie as De Palma sometimes does in his. In addition, Carrie '76 was shot in the spherical 1.85:1 while Carrie '13 was photographed in Scope 2.39:1. Peirce, who shares a friendship with De Palma, is a huge fan of his first studio picture and respects it enough not to try and imitate it. There are some similarities, though. For instance, cinematographer Steve Yedlin's use of deep focus and the camera angle of Margaret White (Julianne Moore) coming down the stairs, which is framed in much the same way as Piper Laurie's descent in the original.

The reason Peirce has made a modernized version of King's novel is to demonstrate how bullying has morphed into different forms (cyberbullying and bullying on social media). The film succeeds in that regard. Where its much less successful is sound design and overuse of CGI. Carrie (2013) follows a trend in modern horror in which sound effects and score are doubly amplified for maximum impact. The viewer feels beat over the head at least one too many times. Moreover, the visual effects are so extravagant during the two climaxes that it creates a wide gulf between the realism Peirce shows of the teens' everyday lives and the extraordinary events in the finale, which become too supernatural.

One reason for this is Peirce's overzealous efforts to make Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz) noticeably different from how she's portrayed in De Palma's film. For example, Moretz's Carrie has telekinetic powers not only in the eyes, but also in the hands and feet. Peirce turns her Carrie into practically a sorceress, extending her hand (as if she has an invisible wand) to make objects levitate and people to fly back. In addition, this Carrie's feet are so strong that they can affect the gravitational pull of roads.

A majority of performances delivered in De Palma's film are superior to the ones turned in here. There's only one prom queen in the Carrie universe and that's Sissy Spacek. Chloë Grace Moretz still gives an excellent interpretation of Carrie and the transformation she undergoes: from a socially awkward, humiliated teen to a fully empowered girl unafraid of her bullies. Julianne Moore is terrific as Carrie's religious zealot mother but Aguirre-Sacasa doesn't give her enough material to fully realize her character the way Cohen did for Piper Laurie. Nancy Allen and Amy Irving are absolutely wonderful as Chris Hargenson and Sue Snell in the original. As Sue in the '13 film, British actress Gabriella Wilde does a fine job of exhibiting sympathy and compassion for Carrie. Portia Doubleday is strong, assertive, and nasty as Chris. Ansel Elgort gives a better performance as Tommy Ross than William Katt does. Katt is good and doesn't overact, but Elgort has a more charismatic and magnetic screen presence. Elgort eases himself into Ross and masters the character to perfection because he's so natural. On the other hand, Australian actor Alex Russell isn't as successful in his turn as Billy Nolan. It's mostly a one-note performance as Russell's Nolan is mostly just sneering and menacing. John Travolta imbues Nolan with not only those two qualities, but also charisma and a sly humor.

Carrie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Scream Factory's new release of Carrie (2013) is a 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray "Collector's Edition" that comes with a slipcover. It only includes the theatrical version and not the cut with an alternate ending, which appeared on MGM's Blu-ray/DVD combo that Reviewer Emeritus Michael Reuben covered a decade ago. (Scream's BD-50 has retained the alternate ending as an extra.) The movie appears in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.39:1. In its initial press release, Scream Factory stated that the transfer for the UHD was given a new 4K scan from the original camera negative. However, the picture was finished with a 2K DI for the theatrical prints and has been upconverted here. The presentation on the BD-66 is an upscaled 2160p transfer. Yedlin shot the movie on an ARRI ALEXA camera, captured using ARRI Raw, and recorded on Codex Digital. The 4K appears with Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible).

I watched the UHD disc in its original resolution, Scream's Blu-ray upscaled to 4K via my player's settings, and the MGM BD in 1080p. The 4K disc is the best way to experience the film. The 2014 Blu-ray was very good for its day but has more muted colors in comparison. Scream's 2160p transfer makes some nice corrections. Skin tones are warmer. (See Screenshot #s 16-18 and 22-24). You can also notice crisper blacks with DV and HDR. (See Margaret lying down on the bed in frame grab #21 compared to #19 and #20.) Perhaps the biggest difference I picked out between the 4K and MGM is the latter lacks detail in medium shots where the actors are framed with lower lighting around them. The level of detail on the 4K is pretty outstanding. The feature on the BD-66 boasts an average video bitrate of 85.0 Mbps, while the full disc delivers an overall bitrate of 94.0 Mbps. Scream's Blu-ray carries a mean video bitrate of 34.8 Mbps, an increase of 7 Mbps from the MGM.

Screenshot #s 1-15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30, & 33 = Scream Factory 2024 4K Ultra HD (downsampled to 1080p)
Screenshot #s 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, & 31 = MGM 2014 2K-scanned Blu-ray
Screenshot #s 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, & 32 = Scream Factory 2024 Blu-ray

The 95-minute film receives twelve scene selections from Shout. (The MGM disc has twenty-eight.)

Carrie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Scream has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround (3698 kbps, 24-bit) and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo downmix (2027 kbps, 24-bit) on the BD-66. The mixes and bitrates are identical on Scream's Blu-ray. Scream's 5.1 is identical to MGM's DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround (3697 kbps, 24-bit). I listened to all three mixes. (The MGM also includes Dolby Digital 5.1 dubs in French and Spanish). Dialogue is usually always clear and comprehensible. Julianne Moore's murmurings are sometimes hard to hear but the words are audible if you listen closely. Discrete separation on the surrounds is noticeable when birds chirp, dogs bark, and other ambient noises on the sound track. Satellite speakers are also very active during action scenes. The .LFE and bass along the fronts pulsate when tables elevate in the Whites' family room and then come crashing to the ground. A major standout for the bass' thump is when a splinter begins sticking out of Margaret's prayer closet.

I like that Marco Beltrami went a different route in his score than Pino Donaggio did but the former's music sounds too loud at times. It features standard horror score material but also warmer musical colors for Carrie, Sue, and Tommy. (Beltrami's use of guitar is particularly good.) Peirce incorporates a lot of ballads (primarily on the diegetic track) in her film. Bass sounds excellent when the following songs are played: the Haims' "Let Me Go," Portugal. The Man's "Hip Hop Kids," Vampire Weekend's "Diane Young," The Naked and Famous's "Young Blood," and Krewella's "Live for the Night."

Carrie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Scream and Ballyhoo Motion Pictures have produced a new video essay on the Carrie films and a recent interview with a crew member. Scream has also ported over all the extras from MGM's release.

DISC ONE: 4K UHD

• Audio Commentary with Director Kimberly Peirce - Peirce offers a feature-length track that covers adapting King's novel, casting, editorial choices, and thematic meanings of scenes. There are no gaps as she doesn't let up for a moment. In English, not subtitled.

DISC TWO: Blu-ray

• Audio Commentary with Director Kimberly Peirce - Peirce offers a feature-length track that covers adapting King's novel, casting, editorial choices, and thematic meanings of scenes. There are no gaps as she doesn't let up for a moment. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW The Devil's Hand: Designing CARRIE – An Interview with Production Designer Carol Spier (22:53, 1080p) - this is more of an extended promotional featurette about Carrie than it is a full interview (which it's not). It may be over twenty minutes but Spier doesn't speak for nowhere near that long. On a video call, the production designer talks about first getting involved in the project and designing the following sets: the Whites' home and its interiors, different rooms in the high school where Carrie's a student, the school gym, and the girls' locker room/shower area. I don't know how much interview footage producer/director Daniel Griffith received from his video chat with Spier, but he could have whittled this piece down considerably. He excerpts several lengthy scenes from the movie that aren't necessary. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW They're All Going to Laugh at You: Adapting CARRIE – An Interview with Author Joseph Maddrey (32:44, 1080p) - Maddrey is the author of the two-volume book series, Adapting Stephen King. He remarks on the origins of Stephen King penning the novel and King's influences, which include the sci-fi B film, The Brain from Planet Arous (1957). Maddrey compares and contrasts De Palma and Peirce's adaptations. This plays like a mini-commentary at times with Maddrey's analysis accompanied by scenes from the 2013 film. In English, not subtitled.

• Alternate Ending (2:30, 1080p) - Peirce comments on this alternate ending only at the beginning. In English, not subtitled.

• Deleted/Alternate Scenes (10:51, 1080p) - nine excised/alternate scenes dropped from the final cut of Carrie that can be played with either the original sound, which is encoded with a Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix (192 kbps), or commentary by Peirce. The director explains the meaning and theme of each one along with some filming details. Unlike the MGM disc, which allows the user to access each scene individually, these must be played altogether. In English, not subtitled.

• Creating CARRIE (20:52, 1080p) - an EPK making-of featurette. It contains interviews with director Kim Peirce, producer Kevin Misher, as well as actors Chloë Grace Moretz, Julianne Moore, Judy Greer, Gabriella Wilde, and Portia Doubleday. A decent look at the film that features a nice amount of behind-the-scenes footage. In English, not subtitled.

• The Power of Telekinesis (3:47, 1080p) - a very brief take on Carrie's powers with remarks by Misher, Peirce, as well as actors Alex Russell, Ansel Elgort, Portia Doubleday, Julianne Moore, Gabriella Wilde, and Chloë Grace Moretz. In English, not subtitled.

• Tina on Fire Stunt Double Dailies (2:07, 1080p) - behind-the-scenes footage of a scene late in the film. The MGM BD has both the production audio and Peirce's commentary on separate tracks, but Scream only has Peirce talking over the footage.

• Telekinetic Coffee Shop Surprise (2:20, 1080p) - As Michael notes in his review, this was a publicity stunt, which was probably designed to create interest and awareness about a new version of Carrie. (Apparently, it was also a YouTube sensation.) In English, not subtitled.

• Theatrical Trailer (2:30, 1080p) - Screen Gems and Sony's official trailer for Carrie presented in 2.39:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround audio (448 kbps).

Carrie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Peirce's Carrie (2013) is a pretty good film in its own right, but it's definitely not in the same league as De Palma's masterwork from 1976. The movie from eleven years ago is well-directed with quality work from several of the actors, including Judy Greer as Ms. Desjardin. Some of the writing is a bit lackluster, though. The sound design is sometimes amplified too much. Additionally, the visual effects are (literally) over-baked. Scream Factory's upscaled 2160p presentation is flawless with improved colors and higher levels of detail than the MGM edition. The lossless 5.1 is the same outstanding mix from the old release. Scream has brought over all the old extras, although its missing a couple of presentation options for them. The recent featurette and interview added to the Blu-ray are alright but not that substantial. I know fans have been waiting for a director's cut that matches all the footage included in the film's test screenings but it remains unknown if and when that can be reassembled. The Scream package earns A SOLID RECOMMENDATION.