Christine (1983)

Easily the most popular entry in the "killer car" microgenre, Christine centers upon an awkward, dweeby teenage boy who is gradually corrupted by an evil spirit found inside the vintage automobile that gives the film its name. Directed by John Carpenter as the Stephen King source novel was being prepared for publication, Christine received mixed reviews, earned modest success at the box office, and quickly became a perennial on late night cable and at video rental stores. Few would proclaim Christine to be a peerless classic or even the best thing produced by its creative team, but it has nonetheless hung around in the public consciousness in the decades since its release and, as it goes with any reasonably successful horror movie, it has a remake and/or sequel in development as of this writing. Ryan is joined by Rachel for a discussion of this ode to hot cars, greased-back hair, classic rock n' roll, and vehicular slaughter. Discussion topics include status symbols, icons of Americana, boomer nostalgia, how the rules don't apply to Stephen King, and (naturally) how car culture is tied to concepts of masculinity.