I mean, at the end of the day, there are only a couple of inches of curb and a few two-dimensional lines on the asphalt keeping these metal death machines from mowing down pedestrians like fragile little blades of grass.
Of course, these two different beasts are worth experiencing for very different reasons. In order to properly explain the changes made to the book, it helps to have some context regarding the original story.
Only this time, the girl would be a creepy old car. This surprisingly honest and poignant take on male friendship with Dennis openly admitting his fraternal love for Arnie to the reader on more than one occasion is the real heart of the story, with Christine being a mere catalyst in what ultimately amounts to a tragedy about losing your loved ones as you grow up. The studio was much more interested in producing what they perceived to be a slasher where the masked killer happened to be a vehicle.
However, the narrative revisions turned the film into a very different experience. Obviously, the biggest difference is in Christine herself, with the cursed car being changed into an inexplicably evil entity rather than a mere tool used by the vengeful spirit of LeBay.
But in general, the film is just way more concerned with the vehicular carnage of it allβsomething that I think makes it way more entertaining than a mere truncated translation of the novel. Sure, the emotional core of the book is more effective, but the film is a lot more thrilling. The idea of Christine already rolling off the assembly line with an urge to kill is also way ahead of its time when you consider that this was way before inanimate horrors like those of the SCP foundation.
