Review of Rebel Without a Cause (1955) by Therese K — 04 Jun 2010

Although the premise here is a somewhat familiar one of a young man going through the confused, angst filled high school years, this has been singled out as one of the most descriptive films on the subject.

We are quickly thrusted into social outcast Jim's (James Dean in his most iconic role) messed up world, as he is introduced in a jailhouse as a rebellious teen caught for public drunkenness. The scene is pretty drawn out but it illustrates just what kind of misshapen life Jim has, with his disobedience to authority and his parent's incessant bickering that seems to push him even further away. After his hysterics are put to rest, Jim then concedes to better behave himself, and vows to stay out of trouble with a fresh start at a new school.

It doesn't take long for trouble to brew, however, as he is unkindly accepted by a local gang and their leader Buzz after causing a stir at a school field trip to the planetarium. After a scuffle between the two, Jim and his new, equally outcast friend Plato, agree to meet up later for a game of chicken with Buzz and his gang. This gives Jim a chance to prove himself and to gain some respect in order to fit in, but things unfortunately get worse, and he finds himself in more trouble than ever. While dodging his parents and his newly acquired rivals, Jim tries to sort out his inner problems, and along the way meets a love interest in Judy, who seems to have her own skeletons in the closet.

On the surface this is just a movie about teenagers having trouble fitting in, but it digs under deeply and examines the causes for this. The main core of characters are Jim, Judy, and Plato, and what seems to link all three is their unstable home life. Their shaky upbringing has sabotaged and further confused all of them, in an already awkward time. Together they try to lean on each other for genuine solace, but by the end, it's shown how the damage already done can lead to disaster.

As a whole, there is a mix of elements consisting of tragedy and coming-of-age, but it doesn't merit being labeled as just one. The message could have hit harder, but I best view this as a mosaic of trouble teenage life, so it has an artistic value, which is nice to have to go along with a pretty entertaining screenplay.

The most glaring weaknesses are the often unrealistic emotion after traumatic events, and a conclusion which seems to suddenly turn it's focus away from the main character Jim. These are pretty noticeable problems for me, so I can't rate it 5 stars, but that doesn't mean it's not a very good movie overall.