Amazon’s Carrie is a cyberbullying headache

Do we actually require a brand-new variation of CarrieThat’s the concern that afflicts any effort to reimagine the traditional scary tale. Stephen King’s 1974 book stays among his most renowned, and the movie variation from Brian De Palma and Sissy Spacek 2 years later on stays unparalleled, regardless of a handful adjustments that followed in the occurring years. Any brand-new version of the story bears the problem of showing why it requires to exist in the very first location. Mike Flanagan’s brand-new Carrie series on Prime Video handles to do precisely that: It not just catches the horror and drama that has actually made the story so long-lasting, however updates it in such a way that feels completely matched for 2026.

Carrie is likewise significant for originating from Flanagan, who has substantial experience both with King adjustments and minimal scary series. He directed King-based movies like The Shining follow up Physician Sleep and The Life of Chuckand ended up being specifically popular for putting out a string of programs on Netflix in between 2018 and 2023, consisting of the similarity The Haunting of Bly Manor and Midnight MassFor many years he assisted Netflix own the month of October, so it was something of a coup when Amazon poached Flanagan with an unique television handle 2022. Carrie is the very first job to come out of that collaboration.

This variation of Carietta White (Summer H. Howell), much better called Carrie, is a protected teen who was mostly separated from the world up until the death of her daddy. That occasion required her and her mom Margaret (Samantha Sloyan) to reenter society for legal factors, which for Carrie indicates participating in high school for the very first time. In spite of a couple of modifications occasionally, Carrie informs the very same standard story as its source product: A lonesome girl is consulted with the extreme truths of the world and is bullied to the point of awakening telekinetic powers that, eventually, are released with damaging force on a town. The essential beats stay in location, consisting of Carrie‘s most renowned scenes; Carrie is still assailed with tampons in a physical education shower when she gets her very first duration, and she’s still splashed with pig’s blood at senior prom by an envious bully.

The Amazon program, by nature of being an eight-episode series, likewise broadens on the story. And, similar to Apple television’s current upgrade of Cape Feara few of the greatest modifications are down to innovation. When Carrie is humiliated in physical education, the entire thing gets shot, which then causes the development of a confidential Instagram account– deal with: “carriered”– that is utilized to bully her and, ultimately, the entire school. Unverified reports are offered life by the account, consisting of whatever from instructors dating trainees to popular kids getting pregnant. What begins as a lot of mean-spirited memes becomes real-world effects. Margaret, who in this version of the story is not just a spiritual zealot however likewise a conspiracy theorist, goes on to end up being a “moms and dads’ rights activist,” battling versus the account with techniques that are strangely comparable to those of conservative influencers.

Flanagan is no complete stranger to utilizing timeless scary to check out contemporary problems. His last Netflix series, The Fall of your house of Usheradjusted numerous Edgar Allan Poe stories into a program that was eventually about the opioid epidemic. Carrie‘s modern-day twists feel far more natural, and wisely change the story into one that checks out simply how horrible the high school experience has actually ended up being with the introduction of cyberbullying. It’s a sort of torture that follows you home, existing beyond the boundaries of a school, which in turn makes it that far more tough for the school to cops. Carrie is the best automobile for this; she’s kind and simple and has little understanding of the outdoors world. Bullying is a complicated and frightening experience for anybody, however its impacts are increased for an innocent kid like Carrie who just does not comprehend why anybody would do this to her. She enters the high school experience with hope and a little uneasiness, and she leaves covered in blood as a town actually blows up around her.

The additional runtime in Carrie is likewise utilized to expand a few of the characters beyond Carrie herself, most especially her mom and her primary bully, Christine “Chris”Hargensen (Alison Thornton). Both have minutes where they’re nearly supportive. Margaret does wish to assist Carrie, she simply sets about it in all of the worst possible methods, while Chris is represented as far more than simply an abundant kid snapping. She’s handling a very distressed home life and does not understand how to manage it. She’s mean and terrible, however you likewise get the sense that she wishes to alter, even if she can’t appear to overcome that bulge. The program is assisted by an exceptional cast– which likewise consists of school professors played by Matthew Lillard, Amber Midthunder, and Rahul Kohli– that make these typically one-dimensional characters look like genuine, credible individuals.

Practically all of the modifications Carrie makes, that include some small twists on the occasions of the story, are rewarding. There is one huge exception. The program makes some heavy-handed gestures to the more comprehensive Stephen King universe of superpowered psychics– yes, at one point somebody utilizes the word “shine”– which actually begins to drag things down as it approaches its explosive ending. Not just does the addition feel unneeded, and even more makes complex a currently intricate story, it likewise makes the severe mistake of eliminating a few of Carrie’s company. I can’t state far more without diving into spoiler area, however the modification gets rid of a great deal of the punch from the ending.

Aside from that, Carrie handles to respond to that challenging concern about why it exists. It’s not just a mainly excellent retelling of the timeless story, however one that utilizes that familiar tale to dig deep into a crucial present subject. Its modern-day features aren’t shallow twists; they increase what was currently a dark and haunting tale. And they make this model as scary as any that came before it.

_{All episodes of Carrie will be streaming on Prime Video on October 7th.}