Arnold “Arnie” Cunningham ( Keith Gordon ) is an awkward, unpopular teen with only one friend, Dennis Guilder ( John Stockwell ). Arnie’s life begins to change when he buys a used, badly battered red-and-white 1958 Plymouth Fury , named “Christine,” in need of extensive repairs. Arnie begins to restore Christine at a local repair shop and junkyard, Darnell’s Autobody, but as he spends more of his time working on the car, he discards his glasses, dresses more like a 1950s greaser , and develops an arrogant personality. Dennis and Arnie’s new girlfriend, Leigh Cabot ( Alexandra Paul ), discover the car’s previous owner was obsessed with Christine and committed suicide in it by carbon monoxide poisoning.
A group of bullies at school–angry with Arnie after a shop class confrontation results in the lead bully, Buddy Repperton ( William Ostrander ), being expelled–vandalize Christine. Arnie is devastated and determined to repair Christine. As he examines the ruined car, he hears the creaking of metal and notices the engine is now fully restored. Arnie tells the car, “Show me.” Christine flips on its lights and restores itself to showroom quality, then, driving itself, seeks out the vandals. Moochie Wells ( Malcolm Danare ) is targeted first and crushed to death in an alley. Buddy, Richie Trelawney (Steven Tash) and Don Vandenberg ( Stuart Charno ) are then killed: Richie and Don are caught in a gas station explosion (which sets Christine on fire); and Buddy is run over and burned by the flaming car. Darnell ( Robert Prosky ), owner of the garage and junkyard where Arnie restored and keeps his Plymouth Fury, is killed in the garage when he sits in the car and is crushed by the seat adjuster after he saw the burned Christine drive itself into its parking stall.
Items associated with Christine
