Christine (1983)
Christine (1983)
1983 saw horror legends John Carpenter and Stephen King coming together to bring Stephen King's 1983 novel Christine to life. Christine was an interesting film, in that the rights to making the film were obtained before the book was actually published, based on Stephen King's manuscript of the novel, and filming began within days of the books release. Stephen King offered the option to producer Richard Kobritz after his work on the television adaptation of King's 'Salem's Lot, he offered him a choice of Christine or Cujo. John Carpenter took the directorial job as just a "job", and not because he was particularly interested in the project.
Christine tells the story of a high school kid who buys beat up 1958 Plymouth Fury, that happens to be haunted by its original owner, and the car changes him into the mean angry person that the previous owner was, and he falls in love with Christine, and together they rage get revenge on the "shitters of the world". His best friend and his girlfriend fight to save him, and if they can't do that then to destroy Christine for good so that she can't hurt anyone else. But can they succeed in killing something that shouldn't even be alive?
Christine is directed by John Carpenter, with a screenplay by Bill Phillips. The film was distributed by Columbia Pictures in 1983, and though the film received mixed reviews from the critics, it was a box office success financially, grossing $21 million on a $10 million budget, it was however a box office disappointment for the studio, and it didn't do well in the box office rankings. Christine has garnered a cult following, and has become a very recognizable part of our pop-culture with the iconic red and white Plymouth Fury. The red and white colour scheme of the car was a unique custom colourway, because the original 1958 Plymouth Fury was only available in Sandstone White. So anytime you see an image of a red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury, that is Christine, there wasn't a red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury until Stephen King's evil car.
Christine stars Keith Gordon as Arnie Cunningham, John Stockwell plays his best friend Dennis Guilder, Alexandra Paul plays Arnie's girlfriend Leigh Cabot, Robert Prosky plays Will Darnell (The owner of the garage where Arnie stores Christine), Harry Dean Stanton plays Detective Rudy Junkins (who is investigating the deaths linked to Christine), Christine Belford plays Arnie's mother Regina Cunningham, Robert Darnell plays his father Michael Cunningham, Roberts Blossom plays George LeBay (who Arnie purchases the car from), William Ostrander plays "Buddy" Repperton, Steven Tash plays Richie Trelawney, and Malcolm Danare play "Moochie" Welch. The film has a great cast, Keith Gordon is especially impressive, as he transforms from the nerdy Arnie Cunningham in the beginning of the film, to the mean asshole that he becomes as his love for Christine intensifies as the film progresses. Of course it is always great to see Harry Dean Stanton in pretty much anything he ever does, he is such an amazing actor.
If you somehow haven't yet seen Christine, I highly recommend checking it out, it is a classic horror film, that has become an iconic part of our pop-culture. The film features an amazing soundtrack of 1950s rock 'n' roll, and is a critique of America's love of the automobile. Christine has always made me think of the 1979 song Car Trouble by Adam and the Ants, even though they are unrelated, but that critique on people's love for their cars, with the lines "Have you ever stopped to think who's the slave and who's the master? Have you ever had trouble with your automobile?" Christine is a great film through, John Carpenter did an amazing job at bringing Stephen King's amazing novel to life, the film has some great special effects, great music, and a great cast, that mixes new young actors with some great established actors like Harry Dean Stanton, and the real star of the film is the evil car, Christine, which might be one of Stephen King's most recognizable monsters. So if you haven't yet seen this film, do yourself a favour and check it out, this is definitely a must-see film that should be a part of every film collector's library. So if you ever come across a copy of this classic horror film, don't hesitate to pick up a copy.
Christine tells the story of a high school kid who buys beat up 1958 Plymouth Fury, that happens to be haunted by its original owner, and the car changes him into the mean angry person that the previous owner was, and he falls in love with Christine, and together they rage get revenge on the "shitters of the world". His best friend and his girlfriend fight to save him, and if they can't do that then to destroy Christine for good so that she can't hurt anyone else. But can they succeed in killing something that shouldn't even be alive?
Christine stars Keith Gordon as Arnie Cunningham, John Stockwell plays his best friend Dennis Guilder, Alexandra Paul plays Arnie's girlfriend Leigh Cabot, Robert Prosky plays Will Darnell (The owner of the garage where Arnie stores Christine), Harry Dean Stanton plays Detective Rudy Junkins (who is investigating the deaths linked to Christine), Christine Belford plays Arnie's mother Regina Cunningham, Robert Darnell plays his father Michael Cunningham, Roberts Blossom plays George LeBay (who Arnie purchases the car from), William Ostrander plays "Buddy" Repperton, Steven Tash plays Richie Trelawney, and Malcolm Danare play "Moochie" Welch. The film has a great cast, Keith Gordon is especially impressive, as he transforms from the nerdy Arnie Cunningham in the beginning of the film, to the mean asshole that he becomes as his love for Christine intensifies as the film progresses. Of course it is always great to see Harry Dean Stanton in pretty much anything he ever does, he is such an amazing actor.
If you somehow haven't yet seen Christine, I highly recommend checking it out, it is a classic horror film, that has become an iconic part of our pop-culture. The film features an amazing soundtrack of 1950s rock 'n' roll, and is a critique of America's love of the automobile. Christine has always made me think of the 1979 song Car Trouble by Adam and the Ants, even though they are unrelated, but that critique on people's love for their cars, with the lines "Have you ever stopped to think who's the slave and who's the master? Have you ever had trouble with your automobile?" Christine is a great film through, John Carpenter did an amazing job at bringing Stephen King's amazing novel to life, the film has some great special effects, great music, and a great cast, that mixes new young actors with some great established actors like Harry Dean Stanton, and the real star of the film is the evil car, Christine, which might be one of Stephen King's most recognizable monsters. So if you haven't yet seen this film, do yourself a favour and check it out, this is definitely a must-see film that should be a part of every film collector's library. So if you ever come across a copy of this classic horror film, don't hesitate to pick up a copy.
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