Rage: Carrie 2, The

Village Voice Amy Taubin

A smart, realist drama -- I wouldn't be surprised if this one winds up on my 10-best list for '99.

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

Does what good horror movies do: It taps into the baser emotions.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Emily Bergl plays the misfit heroine -- pale Goth grrrl Rachel Lang -- with a nicely sulky empathy, equal parts hurt and hope.

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

Dares to take a different tack, taking its young people seriously in a more realistic context. If ever there was a director ready to graduate from genre films, it surely is Shea. [12 March, 1999, Calendar, p.F-6]

Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector

Even as you're wincing at what you thought was misguided earnestness, it's being subverted by filmmakers who've turned many of the genre's weaknesses into tiny triumphs.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Keith Phipps

Better than an opportunistic sequel has any right to be, but still pretty flawed.

The New York Times Anita Gates

Uninspired Update, Unintentional Laughs.

USA Today Susan Wloszczyna

The original was a Midol moment, this is a Prozac exercise. [12 March 1999, Life, p.8E]

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Carrie is back and she's all the rage.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

It's not a cheap rip-off -- it's a credible sequel to a horror classic, and a sad reminder that some things never change.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

I have never been a fan of the original Carrie, but, despite the different slant offered by The Rage, there's not enough new material here for me to like the sequel any better.

Salon.com Mary Elizabeth Williams

The surprise of the movie is that it actually does have a talented director and star. It doesn't begin to make up for the low quality of the story or the numerous other unfortunate elements, but it does suggest little flashes of something that, with more thought, might actually have been somewhat interesting.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The original "Carrie'' worked because it was a skillful teenage drama grafted onto a horror ending. Also, of course, because De Palma and his star, Sissy Spacek, made the story convincing. The Rage: Carrie 2 is more like a shadow.

Variety Dennis Harvey

As generic in every aspect as Brian De Palma's original was inventive.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Ray Conlogue

It's possible to insult even a teenager's intelligence.

Chicago Tribune John Petrakis

The sequel is about nothing more profound than an awkward teenager's desire for a really cute boyfriend. [12 March 1999, Friday, p.N]

Newsweek B.J. Sigesmund

It's just a standard, mediocre horror flick that wants to be taken seriously. The creators missed the point entirely: even teenagers know that there's no audience for this type of film anymore.

San Francisco Examiner Walter Addiego

Maybe there's a real use for Carrie 2 after all. Stand it up against the original, and you have a pretty good lesson in what's happened to the movies in the last couple of decades.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

Only reason to watch this: the grisly reward Irving receives for being in this picture.

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

Toils in high school hell and doesn't even manage to come up with one good shock.

LA Weekly Chuck Wilson

A truly dreadful sequel.