10 Horror Movies That Stick The Landing

Everybody knows about the prom scene in Carrie, even if they haven't seen the film or read the book, but non-viewers might be surprised to learn that the story doesn't end there.

After enacting revenge on her school, young Carrie White (Sissy Spacek in the 1976 Brian de Palma movie) returns home to her tyrannical mother. Margaret White (Piper Laurie) pushes her daughter's buttons for the last time and Carrie lashes out at her, too, impaling her with knives before destroying their family home, a move that kills them both.

The great thing about Carrie's character is that, despite all the mayhem she unleashes and the people she kills, she isn't an out-and-out villain. She's been pushed to this behaviour by those around her, especially her mother, which makes it both fitting and tragic that her final act is to take Margaret down with her. 

Like all of Stephen King's best work, there's more to Carrie than just fire, blood, and magical powers. It's a complicated story about nature vs. nurture in young children and the fallout of bad parenting. It is also about fire, blood, and magical powers, but those aren't its only qualities.