Geeky student Arnie Cunningham falls for Christine, a rusty 1958 Plymouth Fury, and becomes obsessed with restoring the classic automobile to her former glory. As the car changes, so does Arnie, whose newfound confidence turns to arrogance behind the wheel of his exotic beauty. Arnie's girlfriend Leigh and best friend Dennis reach out to him, only to be met by a Fury like no other.
Off the page, a 1958 Plymouth is no more scary than the St Bernard which romped through Cujo.
– ,
Time Out,
9 Feb 2006
rotten:
Only a moderately engrossing film.
– Janet Maslin,
New York Times,
20 May 2003
fresh:
This is the kind of movie where you walk out with a silly grin, get in your car, and lay rubber halfway down the Eisenhower.
– Roger Ebert,
Chicago Sun-Times,
23 Oct 2004
rotten:
Carpenter's thematic self-consciousness can't entirely overcome a shaky dramatic structure that sacrifices character logic to increasingly meaningless thrills.
– Dave Kehr,
Chicago Reader,
24 Sep 2007
rotten:
This deja vu premise [from the novel by Stephen King] combined with the crazed vehicle format, makes Christine appear pretty shop-worn.