Friday, February 19, 2010

The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999).

The Scoop:
This sequel to the great Stephen King flick "Carrie" is a bit of a stretch -- Amy Irving is back, and so is the troubled, telekinetic teen girl, but this doesn't quite measure up to the original.

Irving reprises her role as Sue, the sole survivor of Carrie's prom night rampage, who is now a high school counselor. She spends a lot of time working with troubled student Rachel (Emily Bergl), whose best friend just committed suicide. And, oh yeah, she is also Carrie's long-lost half-sister, who inherited the same telekinetic abilities. As if that wasn't bad enough, she's a loner misfit who the "in" crowd wants to publicly humiliate at a big party. If you can't guess where things go from here, then you need to be hit with a big stick.

Bergl is pretty good as Rachel, but the script by Rafael Moreu is boring, cliched and abysmal in portraying the pressures of high school. Plus, the doggie ER scene is silly, and a mental institution called Arkham? Puh-leeeze. And let's not forget the hereditary explanation of the telekinesis.

But at least music supervisor Richard Winn gets bonus points for the terrific Billie Holiday soundtrack.

Stephen King, of course, had nothing to do with this completely unnecessary sequel, which should be your first warning sign. Stay away!

Best Bit:
The black veins popping up across Rachel's body.

Side Note:
This is Bergl's first film. She had previously only had a small part on the television series "Wasteland." She has since returned to the small screen as a regular in "Men in Trees" and "Southland."

Companion Viewing:
"Carrie" (1976).

Links:
IMDb.
Carrie... A Fan's Site.

Take a Look:
The trailer:

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