One of the meanest gags imaginable backfires on a high school class who will never again get the chance to pick on "Carrie".

There are going to be some younger viewers of this film that won't be able to get past how dated this looks or the surprising way that the teachers, specifically Miss Collins (Betty Buckley), slaps some of her students around. There are also some who will recoil at the extreme bullying portrayed or maybe even the copious amounts of full-frontal nudity on display throughout.

But "Carrie" is filled with wonderful directorial choices and great moments. The way that Carrie (Sissy Spacek) stands up to her lunatic mother, played way, way over-the-top by Piper Laurie. The touching moments of Carrie becoming a beauty and the way that Senior Class stud Tommy (William Katt) ends up falling for her. John Travolta, Nancy Allen and P.J. Soles are mischievous but clearly misguided teens that you also get all kinds of chances to loathe.

The use of split screen is amazing and when Carrie, covered in pig's blood, glares insanely from the stage with flames leaping behind her...it's nightmarish stuff. Also checkout the amazing extended shot of Tommy and Carrie dancing at the prom. The camera is closely zoomed in on them and then spins in a 360, around and around, over and over, faster and faster. It's very disorienting and in addition, a not too subtle hint that things are about to spin horribly out of control.

There is a strange sense of humor that runs through this movie. John Travolta plays the role of Billy as a complete idiot. His girl Chris, the clearest teen antagonist, is slapped numerous times by him, but she has him wrapped around her little finger. When Billy jumps into a pen to bludgeon a pig, it's so ridiculous it's funny. And the religious ravings of Carrie's mother are so wide-eyed crazy and boisterous, they come off as a parody of preachers most of the time. There's also a moment when a red Pontiac Firebird skids and veers off the road, only to roll over and erupt into flames as a Chevy Chevelle. It makes me laugh at the thriftiness employed on that shot.

I usually over-analyze endings and the finale of "Carrie" packs a wallop. And while the face-off between Carrie and her Mother is satisfying, the tortured screams of lone survivor Sue (Amy Irving) wraps up a nightmare that's even more cruel than the way Carrie was treated. And what's even more terrible is that Sue's curse was her reward for attempting to help Carrie.

"Carrie" is an emotionally affecting film that really engages you in the plight of Carrie and then repulses you with her extreme form of vengeance.