What's the AFI Project, you ask? For more information, or if you just enjoy my bemused ramblings, read here:http://www.spout.com/blogs/pippin06/archive/2008/3/1/25756.aspx
Rebel Without a Cause is on the following AFI list:
The Original Top 100 (#59)
What I love about this AFI Project is that I get to see films I’ve always heard about and never actually had the chance to see. Rebel Without a Cause has the distinction of being James Dean’s last film, and while I’m not familiar with his overall body of work, I’d always heard tidbits about this film because of the notoriety attached to his untimely passing as well as about the genuineness and sincerity of his performance. It was the latter element above all else that intrigued me about the film, which I watched instantly on Netflix.
Jimmy Stark (Dean) and his family move to their new California town because it seems Jimmy can’t stop getting into trouble, and his parents’ solution has traditionally been to move away each time Jimmy stumbles. Brimming with rage at parents who cannot understand his frustration with their own constant bickering and a tendency to enable him with anything he wants, Jimmy engages in underage drinking only to spend one of his first nights in town at the local police station, where an understanding officer/social worker offers a sympathetic ear and a few words of advice. Determined to begin in his new home on a better foot, his plans go awry when he encounters girl-next-door yet rebellious Judy (Natalie Wood), who yearns for the love of her pathologically repressed (yes, I stole this description) father and seeks his attention by running with a shady crowd. Jimmy sees her first in the police station, after she ran away from home, and attempts to make small talk as they walk to school, but she initially shuns him in favor of her hoodlum boyfriend. Late to a subsequent field trip to the planetarium, Jimmy finds himself the unwitting target of Judy’s friends’ obvious malaise. Meanwhile, a shy, friendless boy named Plato (Sal Mineo), tormented by a crippling abandonment complex, sees a father figure in Jimmy and latches onto his confidence even as he attempts to protect him from the machinations of Judy’s crowd. When a knife fight, in which Jimmy refuses to back down, morphs into a game of vehicular chicken and the death of Judy’s boyfriend resulting from the plummet from a high seashore cliff, Jimmy, Judy, and Plato find solace in each other even as the adult world threatens to bear down on them, leading to disastrous emotional and physical consequences for the trio.
The magic of this film centers on two primary concepts: the very real, very organic performances of the three lead actors, and the visceral and frank depiction of adolescent frustrations during a decade when repression was preferable to open emotion. Technically, this film did not boast any cinematic breakthrough not already employed in other contemporary films. I think the AFI earmarked this film for greatness, at least and only on its original list, because of the sheer guts of the thing.
Dean’s performance held me completely enrapt throughout the film’s entire two hours. Obviously, he was not only a pretty face. His connection to his character was so complete and so unwavering that it was difficult not to command a similar connection to the viewer. I don’t know much about Mr. Dean’s life outside of film, but I have to think that some echoes of the frustration and rage of the Jimmy character rang true for him, thereby eliciting a truly otherworldly display of emotion that serves as the precursor for all teen dramas and comedy-dramas to follow. Judd Nelson and other members of the brat pack – at least - owe much to this film and to James Dean.
Similarly, Sal Mineo as the sweetly innocent and yet clearly disturbed Plato offered an equally gutsy performance. I think that in more modern times, his performance or his character motivation could be interpreted as having some underlying homosexuality also informing his character’s attachment to the Jimmy character, but Plato’s many layers were explored to heartbreaking effect by another young actor who died too soon. In fact, it’s tragic how all three of these lead actors seemed cursed to die young, either before or not long after the release of this film. The eerie connection makes the haunting quality of each of the three actors’ performances and the frank and important story being told much more resonant and unforgettable.
For that reason, I sort of loved this movie. James Dean was a marvelously handsome man, but I can also imagine the kinds of ripples a story and film of this kind created during the decade of white picket fences, pearl necklaces, Father Knows Best, and tidy aprons. This thought renders the film a classic for me in every sense of the word. Unfortunately, the AFI did not see it this way completely, failing to rank it on its Revised list (Nashville, newly added to the Revised list, replaced it).
In fairness, the film did have some slight pacing issues, particularly as the Plato character unhinged, and it became a pendulum swing from slow to fast paced and back again while the authorities and his friends sought him out, but the pacing issues were minor. As a result, I can’t say the film was perfectly entertaining, and, therefore, I feel the film merits a rank of 8.5, between minor flaws/very good and perfectly entertaining. As to the test, I’m not sure how I feel about repeatedly watching it. I probably won’t purchase it (the subject of the test, after all), but I can see myself pausing to watch it again on cable, like on Turner Classic Movies or something. At any rate, anyone who enjoys teen or adolescent dramas or similar films should check out Rebel Without a Cause – the original teen drama. Even if one is not a fan of such films, watching this one could provide a chance to watch a pioneering, satisfying story unfold around some great performances.