Post #5: Adaptation of Carrie

If I were to make a film adaptation of the Stephen King novel Carrie, there are three important scenes that I would keep the same.

First, one of the most important scenes of the entire book is the locker room fiasco where Carrie is made fun of by all of the girls. This is a milestone in the book because along with "becoming a woman" Carrie rediscovers her powers and starts to learn to control them after this horrible incident. This also sets up the pure hatred Carrie has for the other girls and how they bully her. Another reason to include this part is because of the strong emotion it shows. Carrie is humiliated and thinks she’s bleeding to death while the other girls find true disgust for their classmate. Chris and Sue, who are introduced in this scene, come to be important characters throughout the book and become part of the reason for Carrie snapping at the end.

The second scene that I would keep the same is the crowning of Carrie and Tommy as Prom Queen and King. This is a very important part of the book because when the pig blood is dumped onto Carrie and Tommy, Carrie has been embarrassed for the last time. The blood is the final act that makes Carrie snap. It changes her character entirely.  Carrie changes from a sad girl who cries to a monster that destroys the town and kills almost her entire class.

The final scene that should remain the same is Carrie’s final confrontation with her mother. It is after the pig’s blood and she comes home looking to kill her own mother. Margaret White is sitting in the house, knife in hand, waiting to kill Carrie. She tells Carrie about her carelessness before she was married. Margaret wants them to pray together one last time. While Carrie’s head is bowed she strikes at her with the knife. It ends up stabbing her in the shoulder. Finally, Carrie slows her mother’s heart to a stop. This is important because it shows the result of all the years of punishment and loathing from Mrs. White.

One thing I wouldn’t include is Chris and Sue talking at the restaurant. Although, it shows that Sue feels guilty for her actions and Chris does not, it is not important enough to the story to keep in. It is a minor detail that is added for effect. In movies, you have to cut things down to the most important things that keep the story moving. This is just not one of those things.

Another thing that I would cut out is some of the witness questioning. Maybe one would be ok to clear up some things but Sue’s was the most important. You could show some of what Carrie did without having it be set up as a police questioning. Showing Carrie burn townspeople alive would be a lot more effective than having a witness talk about the event. It cuts down on the time and I think it would be confusing to hear all of the witnesses’ stories.