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Cujo

Play trailer Poster for Cujo R 1983 1h 33m Horror Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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60% Tomatometer 45 Reviews 46% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
In this tale of a killer canine, man's best friend turns into his worst enemy. When sweet St. Bernard Cujo is bitten by a bat, he starts behaving oddly and becomes very aggressive. As Cujo morphs into a dangerous beast, he goes on a rampage in a small town. Stay-at-home mom Donna (Dee Wallace) gets caught in Cujo's crosshairs on a fateful errand with her son, Tad (Danny Pintauro). Stuck in their tiny car, Donna and Tad have a frightening showdown with the crazed animal.
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Cujo

Cujo

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Critics Consensus

Cujo is artless work punctuated with moments of high canine gore and one wild Dee Wallace performance.

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Critics Reviews

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Adam Nayman The Ringer The movie is as nasty and single-minded as Cujo himself: It's simple, and it works. Sep 5, 2019 Full Review Gary Arnold Washington Post "Cujo" no doubt presented fewer difficulties for a novelist than it does for a movie director. Oct 4, 2017 Full Review Variety Staff Variety A dull, uneventful entry in the horror genre. Mar 26, 2009 Full Review James Kendrick Q Network Film Desk The raw performances by Danny Pintauro and Dee Wallace are key here, as they effectively embody abject terror and desperation, respectively. Rated: 3/4 Dec 18, 2023 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Director Lewis Teague does what he can in an attempt to maximize tension, but there’s only so much he can do with such a limited setting and such a sparse story. Rated: 2.5/4 Nov 8, 2023 Full Review Erick Estrada Cinegarage A truly absurd film that never found the conductor thread of its story... transporting the facts from the novel wasn't enough. [Full review in Spanish] Apr 12, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Andrew K I really did not like this movie at all, and in all honesty, its mostly because of the source material (the book from King). When I think of good horror, I think of a story where either a likeable, or relatable charecter gets in trouble, on the verge of death, friends dieing infront of them, and all that. The problem is Danna is none of those things. Danna is not likeable at all, in fact I can't think of a single reason to want to root for her. Almost as soon as we are introduced to her, we are shown that she is a cheater, and after that, she isnt really given any redeeming qualities, she's just there until its time for her to drive to Joe's Place, which then we are treated to a classic, "indecisive protagonist for the hell of it" horror protagonist. I could not care less when she was getting bitten and attacked on the verge of death, why should I? There was no reason for me to apart from the kid crying there I also feel like the movie could have ended alot sooner Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 10/19/25 Full Review Julian C. I think having a rabid dog as the main villain in a movie is so different, especially since dogs are nicknamed “a man’s best friend.” Cujo in this movie looks gnarly with him being covered in mucus and blood. You also get a good performance from Dee Wallace as the lead role. But on the other hand, the movie doesn’t pace very well and focuses on subplots that doesn’t add anything to the main plot. Overall, Cujo is an under appreciated Stephen King adaptation that I love to come back to. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/15/25 Full Review Blu B It's exactly what you'd think it would be. Just borderline B-Movie creature feature cheese. It's not bad though half decently made all around. The problem really is in the first half. We spend such a large amount of time just showing the normal everday lives of the family, Cujo's owners, and Cujo where it really never comes into play any which way. It's slow, jumps aorund between everyone, and you'd think the husband would be the main character or have a large part in it. In a way it feels like he's gonna be the main character but he supirisingly ends up being barely in it. You could almost cut the entire first half and just keep the Cujo parts and nothing would really be lost. The second half is the actual horror movie and it's entertaining enough. The premise is extremely simple and there is value in that. It does feel like stuff just happens sometimes though and doesn't follow the smoothest flow. The mailman feels pointless especially. Cujo is a cool villian though. Props for being able to make a dog into a noteworthy villian. That's arguably this films biggest accomplishment. The kills aren't that memorable though and I wish they were done better but this doesn't have that high a body count suprisingly. This reminds me of Halloween (1978) where it's trying to take ordinary characters in everyday life and set it up for a slow burn and horror in the second. Catch is that was directed way better, had a smoother script, and even with the cheesy acting it still executed way better overall. Anyone who is a die hard fan of any actors in this, King fans, creature features, or the directormay want to check this out. Most aren't missing much though. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 10/13/25 Full Review RedApple A Dee Wallace seamlessly embodies her character, but the film overall falls short in terms of horror and suspense. Stephen King's novel masterfully delves into the psychologies of each character individually, whereas the film lacks depth in portraying the characters' motivations or fails to depict them effectively. Nevertheless, it remains worth watching. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/28/25 Full Review Tj A. Cujo failed to live up to its book counterpart. While still a good adaptation, it misses crucial story moments from the book while being stale and uninteresting at times. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/20/25 Full Review BRENDEN J Cujo was a great classic horror film that scared me but in a good way! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/02/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Cujo

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Cujo

Cujo: Official Clip - Breathe! Cujo: Official Clip - Breathe! 2:13 Cujo: Official Clip - Cujo Won't Hurt Him Cujo: Official Clip - Cujo Won't Hurt Him 2:13 Cujo: Official Clip - Get Back in That Barn, Damn You Cujo: Official Clip - Get Back in That Barn, Damn You 2:05 Cujo: Official Clip - You're Rabid! Cujo: Official Clip - You're Rabid! 2:13 Cujo: Official Clip - What's the Matter? Cujo: Official Clip - What's the Matter? 2:03 Cujo: Official Clip - It's Just a Doggie Cujo: Official Clip - It's Just a Doggie 2:13 Cujo: Official Clip - A Bat Bites Cujo Cujo: Official Clip - A Bat Bites Cujo 1:56 Cujo: Official Clip - Donna Is Bitten Cujo: Official Clip - Donna Is Bitten 2:09 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis In this tale of a killer canine, man's best friend turns into his worst enemy. When sweet St. Bernard Cujo is bitten by a bat, he starts behaving oddly and becomes very aggressive. As Cujo morphs into a dangerous beast, he goes on a rampage in a small town. Stay-at-home mom Donna (Dee Wallace) gets caught in Cujo's crosshairs on a fateful errand with her son, Tad (Danny Pintauro). Stuck in their tiny car, Donna and Tad have a frightening showdown with the crazed animal.
Director
Lewis Teague
Producer
Daniel H. Blatt, Robert Singer
Screenwriter
Stephen King, Don Carlos Dunaway, Lauren Currier
Distributor
Artisan Entertainment, Warner Home Vídeo, Republic Pictures, Warner Bros.
Production Co
TAFT Entertainment
Rating
R
Genre
Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 3, 1983, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 1, 2016
Runtime
1h 33m
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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