Christine (Film Review)

1983 Columbia Pictures
Directed by: John Carpenter; Written by: Bill Phillips
Starring: Keith Gordon, John Stockwell, Alexandra Paul, and Robert Prosky
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 110 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 7/10

One time my dad bought this brand-new white GMC truck that broke down after one week. It broke down again a month later. A few months after that, a friend got stuck in the mud, my dad cabled up to them in the GMC, which on paper was easily capable of pulling the other vehicle out, but the GMC started pouring smoke like Old London. "That truck," my mom explained to me, "Is a lemon." If that was a lemon, the 1957 Plymouth Fury from Christine is a rabid tiger.
The titular red Fury was born evil on the line, responsible for at least one death, and maybe some lost fingers on the factory floor. The wicked auto wreaks havoc on the life of its original owner before it finally ends up for sale in a front yard in 1978 suburban California. Enter Arnie and Dennis, a couple of high school buddies out for a drive, when Christine catches Arnie's eye. Arnie might qualify in movie parlance as a "nerd," but he's not a particularly nice one, just awkward and bookish, with extremely overbearing parents who care a bit too much about his future. Dennis has it far easier, a natural athlete and football star who just enjoys hanging out with his pal, Arnie.
Once Christine enters the picture, everything changes. Arnie puts his shop-class skills to use, and before you know it, his glasses are gone and he's slicking his hair back, while driving his mean-looking 50's car around, red jacket matching its red coat of paint. Suddenly, Arnie's got little use for Dennis. In fact, the new girl at school, Leigh, that Dennis has a crush on? Arnie's gonna date her. And as for Arnie's parents? They can like what Arnie does or else!
But something's wrong with this car. Christine makes Dennis uneasy, and Leigh uneasier. Christine seems to be jealous of Dennis and Leigh. She--because to Arnie, his red Plymouth Fury is definitely a "she"--even seems to come alive and pick out songs on the radio, just to negatively communicate with the buddy and girlfriend. Christine gives them the creeps, but Arnie will never hear a negative word about her. She's the love of his life. Arnie is changing...and he has Christine to thank for everything...including his new violent streak.
Yes, Christine, a movie about a car possessed by evil, is strange. It's got one of the most stout horror pedigrees of all-time--"directed by John Carpenter, based on the novel by Stephen King"--and yet, at the end of the day, it is a movie about how an evil car corrupts an awkward, overprotected kid. Christine's best qualities are certainly the inherent qualities of its creators: the King-like fashion that the teens in the film seem dangerous, and always on the verge of possibly hurting each other, as well as the sense of corrupting evil on a previously meek individual. There's also the 50's influence and dark humor, particularly when Christine has the most perfect song choices to display her hatred. From Carpenter, there's the lighting, the way Christine seems to stalk the suburban streets (like an automotive Michael Myers!), and particularly, those great, bizarre shots of Christine "healing" herself after she gets damaged.
These are great qualities, and Christine is a lot of fun because of them. However, it's never quite as fun as a film about an evil car should be. Perhaps, it's just that Carpenter isn't quite comfortable with the lighter tone. Whatever the case, Christine definitely works, and it's got some great moments (particularly the final line), but it feels like there's a classic lurking underneath the tarp here that's never quite revealed.