Review of Rebel Without a Cause (1955) by Jacob M — 01 Jul 2013

Hollywood has often experienced an actor who is viewed as a great actor but tragedy strikes too early. James Dean is one of these actors. After only three films, James Dean was killed in a car accident at the age of 24. His second film, Rebel Without a Cause, is his most famous.

In Rebel Without a Cause, we meet teenager Jim Stark (James Dean), who constantly gets into trouble, causing his family to move from town to town to get him away from trouble. In the town he goes to in the film, he attempts to fit in with the school kids, even attempting to impress troubled girl Judy (Natalie Wood), who has bad relations with her father. However, Judy's boyfriend Buzz (Corey Allen) and his gang challenge him to a "Chickey Run" and calling him a chicken, causing Jim to rethink about his not getting into trouble plan.

Other stars who appear in this classic film includes Sal Mineo as Jim's teenage friend Plato, Jim Backus as Jim's father, Ann Doran as Jim's mother, and Edward Platt as Ray the social worker.

This was my introduction to James Dean, being his most famous film, and I must say, I'm very impressed with Dean's performance. People today accuse Dean of being whiny in this film, but I believe that the so-called whininess has to do with the character and not James Dean in general. What makes Dean's performance work in this film is how believable it is for him to play a teenager. It causes me, and hopefully, everybody else who doesn't complain, to feel for the character and root for him. Although the character gets into a lot of trouble, I like that he ends up becoming the hero in the end, in a climatic sequence where he has to deal with a crazy Sal Mineo.

Speaking of Sal Mineo, who earned an Oscar nomination for his role, I thought he was also impressive in the role. Natalie Wood, who was the other actor to earn a nomination, was not only attractive and beautiful for the part, but was just as phenomenal as James Dean. I'm surprised that James Dean did not get an Oscar nomination for his role. It might be that the Oscar didn't nominate people who were already dead, but if Heath Ledger won an Oscar for playing the Joker in The Dark Knight after his tragic death, then certainly James Dean should have gotten at least a nomination.

For a film that was released in the 1950's, the cinematography is phenomenal. Some scenes were filmed in Los Angeles, making many of the scenes look very realistic. The film is also shot in Cinemascope, the widescreen process at the time, and that helps make the film look great. The score is also a highlight in the film. I enjoy hearing scores with unique sounds in them, and this is one of them.

Despite the tragic loss of James Dean, his performance here makes up for it, making Rebel Without a Cause a powerful film. Dean may be a rebel without a cause, but I'm the critic with a cause, to recommend this film or not, and I say that this film is highly recommended for everyone.