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Christine, 1983
Arnie (Keith Gordon) is a bit of a nerd and, despite his friendship with football star Dennis (John Stockwell), a frequent victim of bullying. He also has to deal with overbearing parents who criticize his every move. But things change when he buys and begins to restore an old car named Christine. It seems that Christine has a mind of her own, and anyone who gets between her and Arnie is in grave danger.
I saw this movie on TV many, many years ago and was not a big fan of it. This time around I liked it quite a bit more, mainly because I appreciated the friendship dynamic between Arnie and Dennis.
The strength of the film, overall, is in those relationships. Mainly the friendship between Arnie and Dennis, but also in the relationship between Arnie and Leigh (Alexandra Paul), the pretty new girl at his high school.
Something that the movie does very well is show that Arnie isn't some lost cause outsider. The big tragedy is that Arnie didn't need Christine for things to go well. Leigh agrees to go on several dates with him. Dennis is genuinely his friend. Arnie's skill at fixing cars even endears him to the grumpy man who runs the garage where Arnie keeps and works on Christine. Arnie undoubtedly is very put upon by both the school bullies and his parents, but all of that could have been salvaged with time and care.
Gordon is good as Arnie, transitioning from a shy nerd type to a more confident young man and then to something more deranged. Stockwell is very likable as Dennis, someone who has more social cache than Arnie, but still gets harassed by the bullying gang and gets passed over for a date. Paul is also good as Leigh, who likes Arnie but doesn't like his car and doesn't like the way that he treats her compared to the car.
The Arnie and Dennis friendship was my favorite part of the film, and so it's a shame when Dennis gets sidelined for a huge portion of the film. There's some good character work later in the movie as Dennis and Leigh begin to bond over their concern for Arnie.
I do have to say that I'm not really a car person. Car chases, killer cars---that stuff leaves me a bit cold. While I wouldn't say that I found the sequences of the car killing people silly, they also didn't do much for me.
A decent horror/thriller, but I wish they'd kept the relationships at the foreground.
Christine, 1983
Arnie (Keith Gordon) is a bit of a nerd and, despite his friendship with football star Dennis (John Stockwell), a frequent victim of bullying. He also has to deal with overbearing parents who criticize his every move. But things change when he buys and begins to restore an old car named Christine. It seems that Christine has a mind of her own, and anyone who gets between her and Arnie is in grave danger.
I saw this movie on TV many, many years ago and was not a big fan of it. This time around I liked it quite a bit more, mainly because I appreciated the friendship dynamic between Arnie and Dennis.
The strength of the film, overall, is in those relationships. Mainly the friendship between Arnie and Dennis, but also in the relationship between Arnie and Leigh (Alexandra Paul), the pretty new girl at his high school.
Something that the movie does very well is show that Arnie isn't some lost cause outsider. The big tragedy is that Arnie didn't need Christine for things to go well. Leigh agrees to go on several dates with him. Dennis is genuinely his friend. Arnie's skill at fixing cars even endears him to the grumpy man who runs the garage where Arnie keeps and works on Christine. Arnie undoubtedly is very put upon by both the school bullies and his parents, but all of that could have been salvaged with time and care.
Gordon is good as Arnie, transitioning from a shy nerd type to a more confident young man and then to something more deranged. Stockwell is very likable as Dennis, someone who has more social cache than Arnie, but still gets harassed by the bullying gang and gets passed over for a date. Paul is also good as Leigh, who likes Arnie but doesn't like his car and doesn't like the way that he treats her compared to the car.
The Arnie and Dennis friendship was my favorite part of the film, and so it's a shame when Dennis gets sidelined for a huge portion of the film. There's some good character work later in the movie as Dennis and Leigh begin to bond over their concern for Arnie.
I do have to say that I'm not really a car person. Car chases, killer cars---that stuff leaves me a bit cold. While I wouldn't say that I found the sequences of the car killing people silly, they also didn't do much for me.
A decent horror/thriller, but I wish they'd kept the relationships at the foreground.