Hopelessly geeky teen nerd Arnie Cunnigham (a terrific performance by Keith Gordon) buys a beat-up junker of a '58 Plymouth Fury named Christine and lovingly restores the car to its former exquisitely pristine glory. Arnie makes a gradual transition from hapless unhip dweeb to ultra-smooth cool dude. Meanwhile, Arnie's nasty tormentors start meeting brutal untimely ends. Is it Arnie or Christine who's behind the killings?
Director John Carpenter, working from a sharp, witty and astute script by Bill Phillips that's based on a Stephen King novel, begins the film as a compelling and perceptive character study of a forlorn misfit individual and slowly develops the movie into a truly chilling full-blown horror picture, with Christine's deadly wrath and Arnie's startling metamorphosis into a bitter sociopath making for a genuinely frightening double act. Moreover, the raw, profane dialogue, vivid high school milieu and credibly messed-up teenage characters all ring true. Better still, the story offers a touching, intriguing and incisive meditation on America's obsessive infatuation with automobiles and the basic adolescent need to fit in, get revenge on everyone who makes your teen years the proverbial living hell, and be a winner instead of a loser. The uniformly strong acting from a top-drawer cast qualifies as another significant asset: John Stockwell as Arnie's affable, charming jock best friend Dennis Guilder, Alexandra Paul as Arnie's sweet, gorgeous girlfriend Leigh Cabot, Robert Prosky as coarse'n'crusty slob garage owner Will Darnell, William Ostrander as vicious bully Buddy Repperton, Christine Belford as Arnie's worried mother Regina, Harry Dean Stanton as laid-back, but diligent Detective Rudolph Junkins, Roberts Blossom as the sleazy eccentric George Lebay who sells Christine to Arnie, and Kelly Preston as vapid bimbo cheerleader Roseanne. Donald M. Morgan's slick, polished cinematography (the image of a flaming Christine chasing a fleeing Buddy down the road is positively breathtaking), a splendidly spooky'n'shivery score by Carpenter and Alan Howarth, and the first-rate vintage 50's golden oldies soundtrack are all likewise on the money. A fine and under-appreciated little gem.
Director John Carpenter, working from a sharp, witty and astute script by Bill Phillips that's based on a Stephen King novel, begins the film as a compelling and perceptive character study of a forlorn misfit individual and slowly develops the movie into a truly chilling full-blown horror picture, with Christine's deadly wrath and Arnie's startling metamorphosis into a bitter sociopath making for a genuinely frightening double act. Moreover, the raw, profane dialogue, vivid high school milieu and credibly messed-up teenage characters all ring true. Better still, the story offers a touching, intriguing and incisive meditation on America's obsessive infatuation with automobiles and the basic adolescent need to fit in, get revenge on everyone who makes your teen years the proverbial living hell, and be a winner instead of a loser. The uniformly strong acting from a top-drawer cast qualifies as another significant asset: John Stockwell as Arnie's affable, charming jock best friend Dennis Guilder, Alexandra Paul as Arnie's sweet, gorgeous girlfriend Leigh Cabot, Robert Prosky as coarse'n'crusty slob garage owner Will Darnell, William Ostrander as vicious bully Buddy Repperton, Christine Belford as Arnie's worried mother Regina, Harry Dean Stanton as laid-back, but diligent Detective Rudolph Junkins, Roberts Blossom as the sleazy eccentric George Lebay who sells Christine to Arnie, and Kelly Preston as vapid bimbo cheerleader Roseanne. Donald M. Morgan's slick, polished cinematography (the image of a flaming Christine chasing a fleeing Buddy down the road is positively breathtaking), a splendidly spooky'n'shivery score by Carpenter and Alan Howarth, and the first-rate vintage 50's golden oldies soundtrack are all likewise on the money. A fine and under-appreciated little gem.