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Vengeance is sweet 16.

In grand operatic style, Brian De Palma brings to life the secret dreams of millions of outcast American teenagers in Stephen King's tale of a gawky Cinderella who ruins everybody's good time at the ball. Carrie (Sissy Spacek), the graceless daughter of a bible-thumping loony (Piper Laurie), puts up with countless indignities at home and at school. Of all the King horror novels that have been transfered to the screen, "Carrie" is the best. ("Christine", another parable about a nerdy high schooler who wreaks havoc, runs a close second). Specek is perfect in the title role; her pale eyes and fragile frame capture all the elements of Carrie's complex personality--the awkward wallflower, the beauty she might have been, and the powerful avenger she ultimately becomes. De Palma's flashy technique looks more and more shopworn as the years go by, but he does know how to orchestrate a vision of hellish vengeance and uncompromising bleakness. He's helped immeasurably by the young Spacek's painfully evocative performance (both she and Laurie got Oscar nominations). It's precisely this kind of acting that brings the house down.