Rebel Without a Cause

Cast: James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Corey Allen,  and Dennis Hopper

Director: Nicholas Ray

Synopsis: James Dean stars in one of the most famous and influential movies of all time.The movie follows Jimmy Stark (Dean) who always seems to get into fights which forces his parents to relocate the family. This time, Jimmy promises his parents that he will not get in anymore trouble, and try to makes some friends. But, when Jimmy falls for the girl next door, Judy (Natalie Wood), and catches the eye of  local bully Buzz (Corey Allen), trouble ensues.

Rebel Without a Cause is a cinematic classic. The movie begins the night before the first day of school. Jimmy is drunk and passed out on the road and is brought in by the police. He is questioned by a caring social worker named Ray, who plays an important part later in the movie. During this scene, while Jimmy’s parents are yelling at each others for whom to blame and how to handle the dilemma, he shouts his famous words: “You’re tearing me apart!” At the police station, he meets his new friend, John “Plato” Crawford (Sal Mineo).

This movie is not just a great movie because of how it flows and who stars in it, it is a great film because people can relate to it. While the movie industry tries to picture families as happy and fun, this movie depicts families as they are: riddled with imperfection. Jimmy’s mother is strong and assertive while the father is emasculated and distant. This movie deals a lot with the main characters’ parents – not just Jimmy’s. Judy does not receive any love from her father, he even calls her a “slut.” Plato’s father is completely out of the picture and his mother is always away for work. Plato grows attached to Jimmy and views him as a father-figure, wanting Jimmy to teach him how to fish and to hang out.

This movie runs for 111 minutes which is a reasonable length. The whole movie takes place over 24 hours from the night at the police station to the night at the observatory. Some moments of the movie felt slow, especially after the game of chicken when Judy and Jimmy were talking to each other about their futures. The movie did skip most of the school day, only showing the first period in the observatory and the argument with Buzz and his goons in the parking lots.

In conclusion, while this movie is more than 60 years old, it is still one of the best movies out there and is worth a couple hours of your time.