Christine (2016 film)

In 1974, Christine Chubbuck, a television reporter in Sarasota, Florida, struggles with stress personally and professionally. While she's cultivating a crush on co-worker George Peter Ryan, her doctor tells her she needs to have an ovary removed, which will decrease the likelihood of her ever conceiving a child. Her boss, Michael wants her to focus less on the human-interest pieces she prefers, and more on crime, which brings in news ratings. The station's owner intends to promote some of the Sarasota team with a move to Baltimore.

Eager to earn the promotion, Christine buys a police scanner hoping to find grittier stories. Though her co-workers praise her work, Michael disapproves. Christine proposes a piece combining documentary and recreation but Michael rejects it, telling Christine her segment will be replaced, resulting in a screaming match. Christine begins to have increasingly negative mood shifts, noticed only by her supportive colleague Jean.

Christine goes to a restaurant with George and they confide personal secrets. George takes Christine to a Transactional Analysis self-help group where Christine reveals she is a virgin but desperately wants a husband and a biological child. George takes Christine to her home and tells her he is being promoted to the Baltimore team. Christine drives to the home of station owner Bob Anderson, faking a flat tire so she can discuss the Baltimore promotions. Anderson reveals George asked for Andrea, the sports anchor, to be transferred with him, which devastates Christine.

Michael gives Christine permission to do another segment and she reads out several minutes of local news. When footage of a crime scene jams and she is asked to stall, she shrugs it off. She announces that the station will be airing a live suicide attempt, pulls out a revolver, and shoots herself in the head. She is taken to the hospital, where she dies.

Jean puts together Christine's news clippings and forms them into a memorial segment before leaving work. Once at home, Jean pulls an ice cream container from the freezer and turns on the television, changing the station from an evening news segment to The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Fighting back inevitable tears, Jean begins to sing along to the theme song and eat her ice cream, a tactic she earlier told Christine she uses as a way of coping with sadness.

• Rebecca Hall as Christine Chubbuck
• Michael C. Hall as George Peter Ryan
• Tracy Letts as Michael Nelson (a fictional version of WXLT-TV owner Bob Nelson)
• Maria Dizzia as Jean Reed
• J. Smith-Cameron as Peg Chubbuck
• John Cullum as Bob Anderson
• Timothy Simons as Steve Turner
• Kim Shaw as Andrea Kirby
• Morgan Spector as Dr. Parsons

Craig Shilowich came up with the idea for Christine after coming across articles online that highlighted Chubbuck's story. He was "instantly fascinated" with it and what drove her to choose death by suicide on television. Shilowich had endured his own struggles with depression while at NYU in the wake of 9/11.^[7] He eventually dropped out of school. "I'd spend days on end walking my room, peeing out of the window, just to not have to deal with anybody," he told The Canadian Press in an interview.^[7] The depression lasted for about seven years and he says it went away the same way it came, with little explanation. He saw his story in Chubbuck's pre-suicide struggle and found himself "trying to piece it together" in a screenplay. He interviewed some of her former newsroom colleagues and read news stories to build what he could with hard facts. The rest was imagined.^[7]

In May 2015, it was announced that Rebecca Hall, Michael C. Hall, Tracy Letts, Maria Dizzia, and J. Smith-Cameron had been cast in the film. Antonio Campos was signed to direct from a screenplay by producer Shilowich. Melody C. Roscher also produced, with Borderline Films' Josh Mond and Sean Durkin as executive producers.^[8]

In December 2015, the first promotional image of Rebecca Hall was released on Indiewire.com.^[9] In January 2016, The Hollywood Reporter released more stills from the film.^[10] The film had its world premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on January 23, 2016.^[6] Shortly after, The Orchard acquired distribution rights to the film.^[11] The film was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2016^[12] and the BFI London Film Festival on October 6, 2016.^[13][14] The film was released on October 14, 2016.^[15] It was released in the United Kingdom on January 27, 2017, with the UK Blu-Ray releasing on February 27, 2017. No Blu-Ray has been announced for the United States; however, a DVD was released February 14, 2017.^[16]