The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)

Well, we sampled an hour of THE RAGE the other evening, the far-
from-long-awaited sequel to the first film based on the first novel
by Stephen King.  Remember CARRIE?  Brian DePalma dumping buckets 
of blood on Sissy Spacek?  Screams and flames and then someone made
a musical about it??  Now, a double-decade later, Spacek's charac-
ter's father's *other* high school-aged daughter (don't ask) is ex-
periencing similar symptons:  isolation from peers, objects moving 
by themselves, a mother who keeps praising Jesus, etc.  However, 
unlike Spacek's meek 'n' mousy original, Carrie 1999 is an only 
*slightly* freaky metal chick who comes across more self-assured 
than anything else.  (Think a teen Sigourney Weaver, thanks to Emily
Bergl's resemblance.)  She ain't helpless, which (a.) makes for a 
pleasant change but (b.) is also a problem for the film.  See, as 
the plot propels the characters toward an inevitable (and likely 
humiliating , then bloody) confrontation, there's no one to root 
for.  She's not vulnerable enough, nor are her tormentors that vic-
ious.  In fact, there's really only one instance of jarring violence
in the first hour, when a student takes a flying leap and lands 
face-first on a parked car.  (The bone-crunching impact is viewed
through the windshield, suggesting that director Katt Shea has pio-
neered a new technical technique:  the suicide cam.)  Well, judging
by the number of teens talking back to the screen at last night's 
sneak peek, THE RAGE is likely to be the rage.  This is teen escap-
ism at its most effective and, alas, one of the reasons we grew 
bored and left after an hour.  Gotta love that hip dialogue, though.  
Some of the slang I logged:  "skank," "prick," "duh," "word," 
"bogus," "bites," "klept it," "seriously dissed," and, my favorite, 
"Melrose Place super-bitch."  Like, Rafael Moreu is credited with 
screenplay.  (Rated "R"/~100 min)

Grade: W/O

Copyright 1999 by Michael J. Legeros
Movie Hell is a trademark of Michael J. Legeros

Originally posted to triangle.movies as MOVIE HELL: You Tell Me How It Turned Out