I picked up the new Special Edition DVD of John Carpenter's CHRISTINE recently and was very pleased with it. I have always been a fan of the film ever since I caught it theatrically and never understood why it isn't considered one of the better (if not the best) Stephen King adaptations.
Three new featurettes are included on the disc. The featurettes (totaling almost an hour worth of interviews) are fantastic, the main one interviewing the likes of Carpenter, producer Richard Kobritz, screenwriter Bill Phillips, Keith Gordon, John Stockwell and Alexandra Paul. Kobritz outlines the path from initial contact with King to the finished film, while Phillips mentions some changes made when adapting the book. The funniest anecdote is Phillips relaying how some critics were upset by the amount of cursing in the film, but that furor subsided when SCARFACE came out a week later!
Perhaps the biggest bonus is 20 deleted/alternate scenes, running almost a half hour. These are in great shape and really fun to watch. Two scenes (Harry Dean Stanton inteviewing Gordon for a second time, Gordon confronting Stockwell & Paul at a burger joint) should have been left in the final film (in my opinion) as they add more to Arnie's character and motivation. Finally, there is an audio commentary with Carpenter and Gordon. Both men reminisce on what a fun shoot it was. Hearing Gordon, who has become quite an accomplished director himself, say that he learned the art of filmmaking from both Carpenter and De Palma is great to learn. Gordon also mentions how he still uses Arnie's shoulder bag to carry his director's notes & scripts while shooting.
Anyone else pick this up?
Not yet. I have all the Carpenters out save Dark Star, which I've never seen, Village of the Damned & Memoirs of Invisible Man, which I don't like, and Starman, cuz I keep meaning to import the British version with the commentary.
Christine, I wasn't crazy about on first viewing, but I was a HUGE fan of the book and was disappointed with all the deletions and so forth. I could really relate to that book as a fifteen year old, and I think it clouded my judgement of the film. I always end up watching a half hour here and there when it shows up on TV, so I probably will give it another chance.
My biggest memory of when I saw the film (in Times Square) was that my dad fell asleep while it was playing! He's a huge film fan and likes Carpenter a lot, so I think I may have subconsciously affected my perception of the film -- how good could it be if pops passed out!
I'm not a CHRISTINE lover either, even though it does have some nice performances in it. But the book has so many great moments that are not in Carpenter's film; for instance, the death of the Robert Prosky character, which is so imaginative, violent, exciting (and perhaps unfilmable) in the novel, is a huge letdown.
Sounds like a good disc to get. I ended up selling my BIG TROUBLE set as the film no longer holds up that well for me personally (I find it a little dated these days), but I've always liked the darker Carpenter titles so I will get CHRISTINE eventually.
The Special Edition of STARMAN can also be bought through Australian e-tailers. Depending on the dollar (ours isn't great) it could well be cheaper than the UK disc.