This was the first of three Stephen King adaptations to hit the screen in 1983, with the others being "The Dead Zone" and "Christine". It's a respectful - if not completely faithful - version of the story that captures a lot of its visceral power.
It actually takes its time to get started (unlike a lot of modern movies where the aim is clearly to have things happen as fast as possible) and gives us all too human and thus easily relatable characters to follow before and during their horrible ordeal in a Maine dooryard.
Dee Wallace is wonderful in this as Donna Trenton, a young mother who's had vague unpleasant thoughts about growing old and bored as a homemaker in the small Maine town of Castle Rock. She has an affair (with her real-life husband Christopher Stone playing the lover) that she comes to regret, while her husband Vic's (Daniel Hugh-Kelly) business is threatened by a health scare involving one of the products that it's advertised. Eventually Donna and little son Tad (Danny Pintauro) find themselves stranded by a malfunctioning car on the property of local mechanic Joe Camber (Ed Lauter). And there Cujo strikes. Cujo was a good hearted St. Bernard dog who contracted rabies after being bitten on the nose by a rabid bat, and now the dog is a killer. With nowhere to go, Donna has a hard time making it through the subsequent siege by the dog.
Once "Cujo" kicks into gear, it's a hell of a film, with plenty of nerve jangling thrills and intense action scenes. The animal action (supervised by Karl Lewis Miller) is first rate and the several St. Bernards playing the part of Cujo are all impressive. The cinematography (by Jan de Bont) and camera-work are exemplary; note the handling of an early scene in Tad's bedroom and a later one inside the car. The makeup is very well done also. You really feel the heat and discomfort experienced by Donna and Tad, and feel like you're trapped inside that car with them.
In addition to Wallaces' award-caliber performance, the rest of the cast is excellent right down the line. Young Pintauro proves to be a very good screamer.
"Cujo" is one of those movies that definitely takes you on a ride, complete with many hills and valleys along the way. And, in the end, it does have something to say about how sometimes the fears we create for ourselves can't hold a candle to a true life-or-death situation.
Eight out of 10.
It actually takes its time to get started (unlike a lot of modern movies where the aim is clearly to have things happen as fast as possible) and gives us all too human and thus easily relatable characters to follow before and during their horrible ordeal in a Maine dooryard.
Dee Wallace is wonderful in this as Donna Trenton, a young mother who's had vague unpleasant thoughts about growing old and bored as a homemaker in the small Maine town of Castle Rock. She has an affair (with her real-life husband Christopher Stone playing the lover) that she comes to regret, while her husband Vic's (Daniel Hugh-Kelly) business is threatened by a health scare involving one of the products that it's advertised. Eventually Donna and little son Tad (Danny Pintauro) find themselves stranded by a malfunctioning car on the property of local mechanic Joe Camber (Ed Lauter). And there Cujo strikes. Cujo was a good hearted St. Bernard dog who contracted rabies after being bitten on the nose by a rabid bat, and now the dog is a killer. With nowhere to go, Donna has a hard time making it through the subsequent siege by the dog.
Once "Cujo" kicks into gear, it's a hell of a film, with plenty of nerve jangling thrills and intense action scenes. The animal action (supervised by Karl Lewis Miller) is first rate and the several St. Bernards playing the part of Cujo are all impressive. The cinematography (by Jan de Bont) and camera-work are exemplary; note the handling of an early scene in Tad's bedroom and a later one inside the car. The makeup is very well done also. You really feel the heat and discomfort experienced by Donna and Tad, and feel like you're trapped inside that car with them.
In addition to Wallaces' award-caliber performance, the rest of the cast is excellent right down the line. Young Pintauro proves to be a very good screamer.
"Cujo" is one of those movies that definitely takes you on a ride, complete with many hills and valleys along the way. And, in the end, it does have something to say about how sometimes the fears we create for ourselves can't hold a candle to a true life-or-death situation.
Eight out of 10.