Christine (1983) ****

Of the few films I've seen in the "killer vehicle" genre—those being Christine (1983), Duel (1971) (review), and The Car (1977)—John Carpenter's take on Stephen King's novel of the same year is my favorite. It has endlessly quotable, perfectly high schoolian dialogue, impressive car f/x, an excellent and eerie Carpenter/Howarth score, and an awesomely unhinged central performance by Keith Gordon, as nerd Arnie Cunningham—who loves his '58 Plymouth Fury more than anything (or anyone) else and isn't going to take any more shit from the shitters of the world. Plus there's the added bonus of Harry Dean Stanton (only present in a few scenes, but memorable nonetheless).

You can find my John Carpenter Films Ranked list here.

You can find my Stephen King Feature & Television Film Adaptations Ranked list here.

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