The Scene From Stephen King's Carrie That Disturbed Nancy Allen In An Intense Way
Spoilers for Brian De Palma's "Carrie" follow.
Brian De Palma's "Carrie" is a harrowingly earnest adaptation of Stephen King's novel of the same name, in which Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) is thrust into the jaws of a cruel world, prompting her to unleash raw, unadulterated rage. Apart from dealing with a rough, abusive upbringing by her overbearing religious mother, Carrie has to wade through throngs of bullies at school every day, who despise her for not fitting into a mold. Just when Carrie thinks she is socially accepted after being crowned prom queen, she is doused in buckets of pig's blood, which drench her dress completely red. This is a turning point for Carrie, who finally unleashes everything dormant within her: her pain, her psychic abilities, and her rage.
The prom massacre echoes a scene from the very start of the film, where Carrie gets her first period in the common locker room and is terrified that she is going to die. This is an especially horrifying sequence, as it underlines the societal stigmas associated with menstruation, along with the shame and embarrassment that is heaped onto this very natural biological function. Carrie doesn't know why she's bleeding, because no one has ever told her about menstruation, so she runs up to the other girls and begs for help. And what do her classmates do? They become a laughing mob, throwing sanitary products at her and chanting, "Plug it up!"
As you might expect, it was a terrifying sequence for Spacek to film. Nancy Allen, who played Chris Hargensen, one of the primary bullies in the film, recounted how disturbing it was for her as well in the 2001 documentary, "Acting Carrie."
High school is hell for Carrie White
Chris is the ringleader who convinces everyone to carry out the terrible prom "stunt," and is the first to push Carrie when she runs up to her for help in the shower scene. It is clear that she hates Carrie for some reason, and has managed to convince everyone that Carrie deserves to be publicly humiliated at every turn (though they're all equally responsible for their actions, of course). This hatred is on full display during the shower scene, where she instigates her peers to jeer and shame Carrie, who is terrified after seeing her hands and legs streaked with blood. Allen recalled that acting out the scene forced her to embrace some ugly emotions:
"To shoot it, I have to say was maybe the most disturbing thing I have ever shot because it's like a gang, it's like a tribe and a ritual or some kind of horrible thing. We did work ourselves into this frenzied state... [I] did start to feel like I hated her and all of those feelings that you're supposed to be feeling as a character, but I remember shaking. It was very disturbing."
The shower scene is meant to make us feel deeply uncomfortable, as it depicts how Carrie's source of shock and bodily discomfort is ridiculed and painted as embarrassing, instead of being normalized and accepted. Even sympathetic gym teacher Miss Collins (Rita Desjardin) slaps Carrie out of frustration; adults participate in Carrie's ostracization just as much as the teens. Later, when the pig's blood stains Carrie red, it is no longer a source of shame, but a symbol of rage and revenge – no matter the cost.