Review of East of Eden (1955) by Daniel T — 15 Mar 2008

John Steinbeck's East of Eden is an American Classic Novel, but I would have to say that the film is much better. It centers on Cal Trask (Dean) who feels he must compete against his brother Aron (Davalos) for the love of their single father, Adam (Massey).

Cal is misunderstood and frustrated individual, who tries very hard to impress his father while trying to relate to his separated mother and getting ahead in life. Now, James Dean is nothing less than magnificent and steals the entire film- no surprise.

Its films like this that shows you why James Dean is iconic and so ahead of his time. His portrayal of Cal Trask is so emotionally powerful and really gives the character more desperate vibe with his actions and tone of his voice.

Since, most of the film was improvised by Dean, I would have to say that this is one of those films where the actor makes the film and not taking away anything from Elia Kazan, but Dean contributes much more to the film with his acting than the directing of the great Kazan.

Another thing that really engaged me into the film was the amazing chemistry between James Dean and Julie Harris which really shows in the "Ferris Wheel" and "Lunch Break" scene. The rest of the cast was great including Jo Van Fleet, who was amazing given such little screen time.

This is without a doubt my favorite out of the "Big Three.".