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186 reviews in total

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70 out of 79 people found the following review useful:
Keith Gordan and John Stockwell shine in this classic horror movie, 14 November 2003

Author: Kristine (kristinedrama14@msn.com) from Chicago, Illinois

Ah, do I remember the day that I saw Christine, which is disturbing since I was only 6 years old, but my sister said "Do you wanna watch Christine?" and I was confused, my name is Kristine, but she told me about this little horror movie and thanks to her I couldn't go near our family car for a few months. This is a movie that has always stayed with me and still scares the heck out of me when I watch it in the dark. Who knew that even before taking a driver's ed class that cars could scare me? But this isn't just any ordinary car, this is a killer car! This is a car with ghosts in it and you wouldn't like them if you make them angry or try to take their owner away. Christine is the car that you definitely don't wanna mess with, otherwise you may have to face those bright lights and loud rock and roll music, what happens next, you may not wanna know.

Arnie Cunningham, a typical high school nerd with only one friend, a childhood companion named Dennis Guilder, a popular jock. Arnie's life begins to change when he discovers Christine, a red 1958 Plymouth Fury in serious need of repair. Arnie begins to restore Christine to her original beauty, but as he spends more and more of his time repairing her, those in his life notice that he is changing as well. Formerly shy, Arnie develops a cocky arrogance. Dennis, as well as Arnie's new girlfriend Leigh, discover that the car has a deadly past. The previous owner, Roland LeBay, became consumed with Christine and he paid for it with his life. Leigh and Dennis try to save Arnie from a similar fate. They realize that the only way to save Arnie is by destroying Christine. Christine, however, isn't ready to give up Arnie without a fight.

Christine is a classic horror movie that for me will always deliver on the good scares. I still have a hard time watching it. I think the scariest scene for me will always be the last scene where Leigh and Dennis face off with Christine and you see that Arnie just completely gone. I'm honestly shocked that Keith Gordon didn't continue on with his acting career, he just blew me away as Arnie, reading the book I couldn't picture anybody else. He's absolutely incredible. John Stockwell also pulls in a good solid performance as well. This is one of the rare horror movies that is over all very enjoyable and if it doesn't scare you, I still think you will like it, it has a great story and a very good cast and crew. I highly recommend that you see this movie if you get the chance, it's a classic.

8/10

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55 out of 68 people found the following review useful:
how could it be better?, 8 January 2005

Author: Benoit Ferriere from Liège, Belgique

Let's face it. Christine is far from the best novels of King, especially this creepy dead former owner, sitting on the backseats, and teasing Arnie.

Carpenter chose not to put this character into the movie. What a great choice. Which other movie has shown a true love between a human and a machine ever since? I mean, a film with no ridiculous situations and tired old gags. None.

Big John created a weird teenage movie, with a great cast (Keith Gordon has never been better) and a hypercool soundtrack. One of a kind you won't easily forget!

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46 out of 52 people found the following review useful:
One slick killing machine., 16 May 2000

Author: Michael O'Keefe from Muskogee OK

John Carpenter adapts Stephen King's novel with skillful precision. A high school kid becomes obsessive in his feelings for a very strange car he has bought. The car is given the name Christine and repays her owner's adoration by "taking care of" his enemies.

It is fun watching Keith Gordon, owner of Christine, go from wimp to self proclaimed stud. Also in the cast are: John Stockwell, Alexandra Paul, Harry Dean Stanton and David Spielberg.

It is super cool watching Christine repair her damaged parts. This is an underrated movie that deserves a repeat viewing.

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29 out of 30 people found the following review useful:
Gotta love it, 2 August 2003

Author: Roboby (Roboby@msn.com) from U.S of A

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I had read the book and loved it, so therefor I was reluctant to see the movie. I didn't want to see the big screen dishonor the book in any way. But, as it happens, I loved it! A lot of people would say "This is a horror, it's supposed to be scary!!" And a lot of people are right in this regard, it wasn't very scary at all. At least to me. But...the way Arnie turns from such a geek to a cool, tough, bad-ass was pretty awesome. Also I liked the depth of all the characers relationships with one another. It definately stirred some serious emotions when Buddy and his goons tore up Christine. Most of all though, I think the car herself was what made the movie as good as it is. Just the style and freshness of the '58 Plymouth Fury kicked ass. If you're reading reviews (like this one) trying to decide if you even want to see it, I say go for it. What have you got to lose, after all? The hour and a half you would be spending trying to find a review for a movie you decide to see, you could have already watched Christine. That's my advice.

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35 out of 42 people found the following review useful:
When Complusion Leads To Obsession, 7 April 2005

Author: James Bourke (Canadianbacon1971@hotmail.co.uk) from United Kingdom

Remember when you were young and movies where your only friend? Well such is a case in point when it comes to John Carpenter's "Christine" Now as a rule, and a longstanding one at that, I could never read a Stephen King novel but i could always find time to watch an adaptation of the same, if and when it either came to video as was the thing before the wonders of DVD or if it arrived at the local cinema.

My personal highlights from the Stephen King Oeuvre are "Silver Bullet" if only to see the likes of Gary Busey and Everitt McGill ham it up beyond the call of duty. Stanley Kubrick's version of "The Shining" complete with a knockout performance from the maestro of barnstorming himself Mr Jack Nicholson, as we already know there have been so many translations from page to screen of everything and anything the king of horror writing has penned some good, some not so good.

However, when it comes to "Christine" it was pitch perfect in every way, shape and form. Directed by John Carpenter, who has been hit and miss down through the years. A wonderful array of golden oldie classics playing throughout the movie itself, a truly wonderful script written by Bill Phillips, containing many a gem which still lingers in the mind even to this day.

Which leads me finally to the actors, casting down to a tee, and as i said ably assisted by a good script, well drawn characters, of course from the mind of Stephen King, but brought to vivid life by the likes of Robert Prosky who appears as the junkyard owner Will Darnell, a true standout in the whole movie. Why even Roberts Blossom, think all the way back to Bob Clarks's take on Ed Gein "Deranged" the man still lends a sense of deadly menace to his character, even though his role is primarily a cameo role but in fairness quite pivotal in terms of progressing the story.

However, those two being character parts, we need to see the story unfolds. We begin in prologue fashion, as we see upon fade in, superimposed, the year is 1957, We see a car assembly line, all the new cars are being overseen and given the once over by the foreman, from a distance we get our first glance of how beautiful and intoxicating "Christine" the car is to look at.

Of course that illusion is soon shattered when firstly a foreman shatters his hand, then one of the workers decides to take a little rest and relaxation in the front seat, all the while smoking his cigar, when ash from the cigar drops onto the plastic covering, so it begins, and the true nature of "Christine is revealed.

Flash forward to present day and we see Arnie Cunningham the nerdish lead character played with aplomb by Keith Gordon, who would later go on to direct the really excellent "The Chocolate War" as well as many more. However when it comes to acting, Keith Gordon would never better what he had done prior to this or even after.

We have all at one point, either been or have known someone like Arnie Cunningham, perennial book worm, not exactly a ladies man, but when he catches first glimpse of the wreck that will forever alter his very being, It is at that point we see that compulsion leads to obsession when Arnie falls under the spell of that 1958 Plymouth Fury.

Watch as Arnie emerges from his shell, argues with his parents, something that he would never have done or even finds his first and last girlfriend. All this achieved upon the influence and presence of what would appear to be a car, but for teenager Arnie, it represents his first steps towards independence, but underneath the surface of it all we already know the motive and inevitable end.

With wonderful turns by William Ostrader as chief bully Buddy Reperton and Malcolm Danare as Moochie, along with John Stockwell as Arnie's only friend Dennis and Alexandra Paul long before she donned the lifeguard bikini for Baywatch as Arnie's suffering girlfriend Lee.

Watch and be amazed, time has not taken it's toll on John Carpenter's finest hour.

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31 out of 37 people found the following review useful:
Don't Mess With Christine!, 20 December 2005

Author: ccthemovieman-1 from United States

I'm not particularly a fan of horror movies and I couldn't fix an ailing automobile if my life depended on it so the workings of cars don't fascinate me.....but this movie fascinated me. The '58 Plymouth Fury, alias "Christine," is absolutely gorgeous. What a piece of machinery!

This is a horror story but there are no ghosts or monsters nor is there any gore. A car is the star of the film, a very jealous and vengeful one at that. Man, that sounds silly but, if you're reading this you have probably watched the movie so no sense going into details. It's hard to describe the story in a paragraph without it sounding stupid....but it's not. Maybe the quickest way to explain it is that it is about a car that is alive, like a human, and you mess with it, you pay!

It is definitely one creepy, well-made, unique and always-entertaining film.

The car is a lot better than any of the people, sad to say. No, I didn't like any of the kids in this film (high schoolers who all look 30 years old!) and the language is a little too rough in spots, but that can be filtered out.

The car, the '50s music, the unique story, the satisfying revenge angle all make this very watchable.

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30 out of 36 people found the following review useful:
A Movie Any True Car Lover Can Appreciate, 1 February 2005

Author: VALGAL69au from Australia

There are no words that can truly describe the power and passion of Christine.

Anyone who owns an older car will be able to associate with the obsession that takes over nerdish Arnie's life when he restores Christine, the beautiful Plymouth Fury.

John Carpenter's excellent directing brings the car to life to such a point where as you're watching, you become so entranced that you forget she isn't alive.

The actors are well chosen for the roles they play, and give excellent performances. This, accompanied by excellent photography, special effects, timing and musical score make Christine a definite must-see movie.

Please Note: The Australian TV edit cuts out some of the best scenes, so this movie is best seen on DVD or video.

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14 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
One of the Best Teen Angst Love Stories of the 80s., 16 November 2004

Author: ChrisSimpson from USA

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

*Possible Spoilers*

I hope John Carpenter appreciates what he did with this film. I saw the film before I read the book, and I must say I liked the film better. Stephen Kings books usually have the same "why" behind the "what", and Christine was no different. However, John Carpenter took all of the "why" element found in the book out and made it a love story between a nerdy teen Arnie Cunningham(Keith Gordon) and a run down car named Christine, which I believe added some substance and improved the story in ways King never imagined.

Watching Arnie's transition from nerd to almost greaser is a tense and creepy process, with a huge nod going to Gordon. Carpenter makes the atmosphere with his directing, and the mood is always somber with one of my Favorite Carpenter Scores. While movies like The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles were showing one side of the coin, Christine showed the other. What most look at as a "killer car" movie is really much deeper and in my opinion the subtext shows a side of the teen years that most would be more likely to remember. This is a under-rated movie that shows more about isolation and life in high school than anything that happened in Shermer, Illinois.

Check it out!

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Hell hath no fury like a Fury scorned..., 14 April 2006

Author: Jonny_Numb from Hellfudge, Pennsylvania

For my Smart Money, "Christine" is one of John Carpenter's most underrated efforts (up there with "Assault on Precinct 13"), and also one of his most effective. Even though its modest look and relative restraint in gore came as a result of "The Thing"'s box-office failure the previous year, and Carpenter has all but admitted his heart wasn't in the project, it ultimately turned out VERY well (if this is an effort from a sleepwalking Carpenter, he's better than most directors when they're awake). As someone who was knocked out by Rob Bottin's intricately gruesome FX work in "The Thing," but left cold by the shallow characters, "Christine" fills in the gaps of suspense and human story with ease. In retrospect, some of the absurd plot elements ("a haunted car," as Carpenter constantly reiterates) lends the film an odd humor that doesn't detract from things (and indeed, it was Stephen King's own infatuation with cars and rock music that inspired this story of obsession). Scenes are composed with great skill by Carpenter (making wonderful use of the widescreen image), and there are many striking images sprinkled throughout (the most incredible being the flaming Christine speeding after a villain). The excellent cast gives their all in making a potential B-movie premise glow with A-list polish: Keith Gordon's Arnie (the painfully square high-school senior who buys the titular vehicle), John Stockwell's Dennis (the resourceful jock and best friend), Alexandra Paul's Leigh (the earthy girlfriend who sparks Christine's jealousy), and Harry Dean Stanton's Junkins (the snooping P.I.) provide this tale with a lot of propulsive force. In a sense, "Christine" is a nice even ground between the zaniness of "Escape from New York" and the FX extremes of "The Thing," and exemplifies Carpenter's range as a director. A very underrated effort that is very much worth your time.

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10 out of 15 people found the following review useful:
Christine: She's a Killer, 14 January 2005

Author: Anduril-4 from United Kingdom

This is a magnificent movie on the theme of Demonic Possession.

John Carpenter actually IMPROVES on Stephen King's horror story, wherein the car is driven by the ghost of a Vietnam vet. For Carpenter, Christine (a murderously beautiful '58 Plymouth Fury) is a sentient machine, an incarnation of the spirit of the Fifties - complete with a car radio which will only tune to Rock'n'Roll music - great music!

Arnie Cunningham is an insecure but oddly gifted and sensitive kid who is gradually possessed by the car he loves - and actually thinks he can own.

The scenes where Christine comes to life are utterly believable -- you will be awestruck by the perfection of the seemingly impossible.

Anyone crazy enough to attack Christine has a terrible awakening coming. The scenes where the - Furious - car hunts people down are absolutely terrifying -- and completely believable.

Ever since I saw "Christine" in 1983, my surroundings have resonated with eerie sharp metallic "clicks" just like those in "Christine." Others have noticed them too, and they can be tape-recorded (unlike hallucinations!). COGNITIVE HEALTH WARNING!!!

"Christine" is one of the all-time great movies. Better than sex!

Our gratitude goes to John Carpenter for his integrity. The crew wrecked 17 priceless Plymouth Furies in making the film (Christine is in fact a re-badged Plymouth Belvedere, I'm told).

Tony Hollick (who usually drives a shadow silver-Gray 1987 Ford Capri 2.8i Injection Special named "Tru" (after "Tru Calling").

www.Agora.demon.co.UK

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