Refrigerator recommendations?

It seems that our fridge is on its last knockings since a good amount of food has gone bad over the last week. It's a 40 year old Hotpoint, no idea of the model. What is the best brand of fridge to buy for $400-500? It doesn't need to have a lot of bells and whistles, nor does it need to be a huge fridge, just something that works and won't break every time the wind changes.