Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures/Screen Gems
It was probably a shock to the producers of the new Carrie movie: raking in only $17 million in its first weekend. This under-performance could be seen as puzzling, since it’s a horror movie and the timing of its release should have made for a prime debut, what with Halloween being very close. Then again, this result is not entirely a surprise either.
Probably the most glaring reason this movie didn’t open so well is that there was no need for the film to be remade at all. Sissy Spacek’s version was fantastic and it didn’t require any update. The current filmmakers were likely hoping to catch a generation of people who hadn’t seen the original. Very few remakes, especially in the horror movie genre do very well, generally, anyhow. There is something almost intangible that is captured in the original film that no amount of mimicking and usage of the same shots can replicate. This appears to be another textbook case here. Audiences certainly seemed to know that, so who wants to pay for the theater tickets when they can instead wait to see it on Netflix or Amazon?
Sure, Chloe Moretz and Julianne Moore are both good actresses, but had they wanted to make a horror movie, they could have done something different instead of essentially attempting to breath life into something already living. The new movie did its best, however with the added technology and social media helping drive Carrie into even more angry isolation – a nice touch – but ultimately, this was not a movie that needed to be reimagined.
As Halloween gets even closer, the numbers may go up some, but it will still likely be seen as a big disappointment. Hopefully it can be a lesson to Hollywood producers in creating new ideas – not rehashing and reheating old ones, leaving them well enough alone.
