Took a break from the mundane.. found old alma-mater stuff.. box in the attic.. came across old DVD collection.. pulled out East of Eden & Giant and relished them over the imperious afternoon.. reminiscent of the days influenced by James dean, the who, Led Zeppelin.. Yell Rebel!.. typical teenager, caught at the crossroads where no one understand you..Coming to the movies..East of Eden, Paul Osborn's adaptation of John Steinbeck's novel of the same name is one of Kazan's (On the Waterfront, A Streetcar Named Desire) richest films and James Dean's first significant role, part of his short but resplendent career and is arguably his best performance. The film aptly depicts the interaction between Dean and his father (played by Raymond Massey) as the quintessential generational conflict. Dean's performance in the film portends his role as Jim Stark in Rebel Without A Cause. Both characters are angst-ridden, protagonists and misunderstood outcasts, desperately craving approval from a father figure. It can also be interpreted as Kazan's updated re-telling of the Biblical story of rival brothers, Cain and Abel and a paradise lost. All characters do justice to the movie. Julie Harris as Abra is great and Jo van Fleet as Kate (Dean's mother in the film) won the Academy award for best actress in a supporting role.
Giant, I remember having watched before in my early teens, has Dean play a supporting role to legendary actors Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson, and standing on his own with remarkable grace and ease. His role in Giant is in quite contrary to his earlier roles as Jim Stark and Cal Trask, typical teenage rebel in his earlier films. Here he plays Jett Rink, an oil rich Texan and his effort is great as he seamlessly portrays both the young energetic and an older version of his character with ease. In one scene, Dean dyed his hair gray and shaved some of it off to give himself a receding hairline. Giant was Dean's last film due to his untimely demise in car crash in 55.
Dean's enduring fame, popularity and iconic status lies on these three films with his death at an early age cementing his legendary status.
