Fatal Femmes is a series of screenings exploring the feminine grotesque in cinema, featuring witches, weightlifters and many other horrific women.
As part of the season, Pictureville is showing Brian De Palma’s 1976 of Stephen King’s Carrie. The classic horror film focuses on social outcast Carrie White, who is bullied by her peers in high school and her controlling mother. After being humiliated by her classmates at prom, Carrie unleashes her powers of telekinesis and the night takes some dark and twisted turns.
Carrie has become a classic; a unique horror film focusing exclusively on women’s problems. Women drive the story, which explores female power, identity and rage.
Through protagonist Carrie, we witness struggles with menstruation, feelings of guilt around being a woman, and the harrowing experience of being mocked and rejected by female peers. As the film goes on, De Palma emphasises Carrie gaining female power through the supernatural. However, this is blurred by the rage she feels from being wronged by those around her.
It is an emotionally driven movie with powerful acting, especially in Sissy Spacek’s portrayal of Carrie White. Spacek convincingly portrays her character as a tragic, shy, yet somewhat humorous girl through her exaggerated and dramatic performance.
For a movie filmed in the 1970s, the visual effects of the supernatural elements are impressive and convincing. Nevertheless, some scenes, like the mirror breaking, might make today’s audiences laugh. But the overall cinematography of the film is remarkable—with its vibrant colouring and excellent camera work, it brings the extraordinary plot to horrifying life.
Catch Carrie alongside horror classic Suspiria and contemporary features including Love Lies Bleeding and The Witch at Pictureville Cinema, 25 October – 2 November 2025. Find out more about Fatal Femmes on our website.