I think she got prettier as she got older.
Donna/LadyGigi Savige needs to sit her ass down!

It was all in presentation. Look at how different she looked throughout the entire movie compared to how pretty and feminine she looked in her delicate prom dress. Two very distinct images:
I personally think she's beautiful. I love her freckles. Although she looked frail and brittle, I think that was all par for the course. Generally speaking, I find her very attractive.
She was also supposed to be representative of a stunted, sheltered and abused young girl brought up by a puritanical, overbearing religious zealot of a mother. We never really understood the mother's reasonings until the very end when she spoke about having sex.
They also did a very good job pairing up Sissy Spacek with Piper Laurie. I could buy them as mother and daughter, and they played so well off of each other.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith

Must be you, but on the other hand, Carrie wasn't supposed to be a raving beauty.
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

I never actually have seen it. Is it just me or the main actress is actually ugly?

MAGA! FAFO! Schrodinger's Cat walks into a bar, and doesn't. Dumbocraps: evil people who celebrate murder.

It's pretty good. Just kind of odd. I think the prom where Carrie goes psycho is some of the best stuff in the horror genre.

I like all of them. They were right for their characters.
Though Travolta was a bit over the top.
Nancy Allen is a very sweet person in real life…not like her character in the film.
This isn't my favorite film for each of them though. I think the best roles for each were the following:
Sissy Spacek - 3 Women
Amy Irving - Voices
Nancy Allen - I Wanna Hold Your Hand
P J Soles - Rock 'n' Roll High School
William Katt - First Love
Piper Laurie - Tim (playing the older love interest of Mel Gibson)
Priscilla Pointer - Looking For Mr. Goodbar
John Travolta - Urban Cowboy (even though
Saturday Night Fever
was a better performance)
Sydney Lassick - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (though I have a guilty pleasure for
Night Patrol
)
Betty Buckley - Tender Mercies
It's interesting that Brian De Palma's top choice for the Carrie character, was the actress, Betsy Slade. Betsy was a real life mean girl who did not get along at all with her co-star, Pamela Sue Martin in the film,
Our Time
, which is a film about a teen who has an abortion.
Sissy Spacek wanted the role of Carrie so bad that she had to go all out to convince De Palma that she was best for the role and proved herself right.
The wrong choice would've been Farrah Fawcett, who tried out for the part but then turned it down due to nudity.
Jill Clayburgh had tried out for Betty Buckley's role as the gym teacher.
Are you okay?

Yes! 100 years old! Wonderful!
I have seen her in so many
TV shows and a number of movies over the years. I've always liked her. Great character actress.
I especially find her funny in this one, when she raises her glass to Margaret White and says, "I'll drink to that!"
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

Did you now her mother is actress Priscilla Pointer? Priscilla is still alive and 100 years old.

I still like the movie.

Oh well,
You are one of the few who felt that way back in the day.
These days, I do find it a tired overused stunt.
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

I did, and I thought it ruined a good movie.

I think it ruined the movie. It was a cheap shot in an otherwise decent movie.
Just curious… Did you see this movie in the mid 70s when it first came out?
As I recall, there wasn't that much horror that relied on those scare jumps.
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

Cheap jump scare. Thought it detracted.

I thought it was brilliant and completely unexpected. It also conveyed the message that people remember their bullies.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith

I think it ruined the movie. It was a cheap shot in an otherwise decent movie.

True. That was one theater experience I will never forget. I felt the shock from everyone around me. It was wonderful!
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

That dream scene at the end probably scared everyone who watched it from ever reaching down towards a grave for the rest of their lives! I know it spawned many other movies to reimagine the same scenario. It was executed with such precision. Just when you think she's going to have a beautiful moment of divine escape due to her change of heart, Carrie wouldn't let her rest, even in her dreams!
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith

Ahhhhh….
I got the names of the characters mixed up!
Amy Irving! Right. She played Sue.. she was very pretty. Especially the dream scene toward the end. Ethereal!
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

That really did it for me as well. They pulled at us right out of the gate with poor, terrified Carrie confused, bewildered and scared. All those girls but especially the mean girls just targeting her. The onslaught of mob mentality. We haven't really progressed that much, have we? The mob still takes over.
Noooo. I did not like Nancy Allen. Not only did I find her physically unattractive, but her sadistic, cruel, and manipulative attitude was a turn-off. She even utilized it against Billy (Vinny B). I'm talking about Amy Irving.
As for Sue^^ - her character arc shows redemption. She started off as one of the mean girls, but she learned empathy and compassion, came to regret her cruelty and also tried to actively make up for it. I also thought, next to Sissy Spacek, Amy (Sue) was the prettiest girl in the movie. Oh, and Piper Laurie was gorgeous. Damn, that woman has serious acting chops. She's brilliant. She has such presence and command.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith

Yes! I think I mentioned that I never really liked him in Welcome Back Kotter. I remember seeing him do his hit single on American Bandstand around the time that Carrie was coming out. Dick Clark was interviewing him and they played a clip, naturally cutting out the naughty words.
A couple of weeks later, my roommate practically had to drag me to the theater to see Carrie. I didn't even really know what the movie was about. I just knew that Vinnie B was in it. I quickly changed my mind when she told me that Carrie was written by the same author of the book I was currently reading … Salem's Lot.
It was always the shower scene in the beginning and the humiliation those girls put her through that upset me. The shock right from the start.
So you liked Nancy Allen?
She certainly played the part of a mean girl very well.
I liked her in Dressed To Kill too!
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

It's fun seeing Travolta hamming it up just being….well, Vinny Barbarino pretty much. It's his default.
This resonated with me so much with me. I felt like I could identify with Carrie so much.
One thing about the movie that I couldn't stomach was the pig scene. That bothered me mostly because of the pig, but also because it was brought on by the machinations of a bully being manipulative.
Damn, Carrie never stood a chance with that mother of hers. I always felt like she deserved to have that vindication at the end.
PS: I was always super crushed out on Sue.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith

I personally think this was done better than the book, and that's saying something, because most film adaptations are never quite as good as the book.
The book was more of a series of newspaper articles and snippets from diaries.
DePalma did an amazing job, making this a palatable story for a film audience.
You asked a pretty question; I've given you the ugly answer.
Fasten Your Seatbelts….
It's Going To Be A Bumpy Night!

I keep finding myself drawn to older movies as well. Newer movies rely on less story development and more on CGI enhancements to deliver the bang. Meh. I prefer stronger characters and a stronger plot.
"Your emotional state is not my responsibility." – Warren Smith