Carrie remake is brilliant, but its ending is a national disgrace

Stephen King once confessed he never warmed to Carrie White, the telekinetic teenager of his debut novel. I beg to differ with the Master of the Macabre: I adore her. The raw prose, the simmering tension, the cruelty of Brian De Palma's film, even the bombastic spectacle of the Chloë Grace Moretz remake. So when Mike Flanagan, the king of the horror mini-series, announced his own reimagining, I was giddier than a schoolboy on the last day of term.

After watching all eight episodes, I am afraid this dance ends in bloodstained disaster. But let us start at the beginning.

Flanagan drags Carrie White (Summer H. Howell) from the showers of the 1970s into the 2020s, reimagining her as a homeschooled recluse forced into high school after her father's death, much to the chagrin of her domineering mother Margaret (Samantha Sloyan). The meek and awkward Carrie becomes a target for bullies led by the alpha mean girl Chris Hargensen (Alison Thornton). When Carrie discovers her telekinetic powers, everything changes.

It is the same plot you know and love, reenvisioned through a 21st-century lens. Flanagan takes creative liberties, and some work brilliantly. His Carrie is far nicer than King's pitiable but unlikable lead, who branded her bullies 'whores'. Flanagan softens her unpleasant traits, making her someone you can stand to watch for eight episodes while highlighting the tragedy of her fall. Howell is magnificent, bestowing Carrie with a soft sadness and rage that is rather wonderful.

Over the course of the series, I realised the wisdom in Flanagan's choice. Both Carrie and Chris become monsters through abuse, bullying, neglect, humiliation and the influence of parents. The only difference is that Chris's superpower is not telekinesis; it is an understanding of Instagram hashtags. This is a fascinating point: no one is born a cruel bully or a murderous psychopath; we are born innocent, and circumstances beyond our control make us bad people.

But here is the rub. Flanagan makes a huge mistake in the final episode that spoils his point. He does something to Carrie that completely defangs her and undermines the tragedy of her transformation into a prom queen-shaped tornado that lays waste to her town. I was infuriated. Up until that point, I had loved the show. That last episode was spoiled for me.

This is a real shame because I loved everything else. Sloyan's unhinged take on Margaret was fantastic; the supporting cast, with Matthew Lillard as MVP, was superb; the show looked brilliant. There is a slightly X-Men subplot I did not appreciate, and a distinct feeling the show is building a shared universe, but that is forgivable. It is just that damned ending.

There is a grim irony in Flanagan falling at the final hurdle. King is well known for his terrible endings. Perhaps Flanagan really is the perfect person to bring Stephen's twisted tales to life.

All eight episodes of Carrie premiere exclusively on Prime Video from October 7.