Mike Flanagan’s darker, riskier Carrie adaptation takes a few too many detours
Summer H. Howell and Samantha Sloyan lead an unsettling horror series that soars—until its dubious end.
The series Prime Video's Carrie has taken a darker and riskier approach compared to its source material. Creator Mike Flanagan has devised a modern adaptation featuring Carietta "Carrie" White, who is portrayed as an innocent and earnest girl, unlike in Stephen King's 1974 novel or the 1976 film adaptation. Carrie finds herself yearning for her own identity after being confined to her home in Chamberlain, ME, for her entire life.
In this new version, she attends Ewen High, makes friends and enemies, develops hobbies, attends a party, gets high, and learns about the negative aspects of social media. Flanagan's signature style shines through with his moving soliloquies, slow-building psychological dread, vivid imagery, additional jump scares, and literary inspirations.
The adaptation maintains the core themes of King's novel, making it relevant to today's youth due to issues like teenage anxieties, bullying, and institutional oppression. The show also explores the corrosive influence of social media on Carrie's life.
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