Customer Reviews

September 30, 1955 [VHS]

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This is a story of the impact James Dean's death had a group of college kids. It was filmed in Conway, Arkansas, where, I believe the director and Arkansas native, James Bridges, went to college. It's a pretty good movie and an opportunity to see well known actors Tom Hulce, Lisa Blount, and Dennis Quaid early in their careers.

My favorite thing about it is I feel that it gives you a very vivid, emotional clear view of what it must have been like to be a James Dean fan while he was living and the enormous impact it had on his fans when he died. I also like the general atmosphere of the film.

James Bridges only made eight movies, all of them flawed but fascinating, and September 30, 1955 is as good a place as any to start to penetrate the heart of the mystery. For one thing, it has the feel of an intensely personal, autobiographical film, heavily influenced by Truffaut and Cassavetes, and yet it is filled with unlikely contrivance and coincidence, and the two different modes never coalesce properly--but a remarkable tension builds between them. Just when you're ready to write this one off, a moment of pure cinema drops in from out of nowhere to change your mind. The movie is "high concept" to a degree, since it is all about what happens to Richard Thomas in the hours directly after James Dean's death in 1955. Thomas plays Jimmy J, a sensitive young college student down South and a huge Dean fan. We sometimes forget that when Dean died he had released only one big movie, East of Eden, and the two others that cemented his legend had yet to appear. But he already had a legend, and Jimmy J wants to embody it, to serve it, like a first century Christian in a Cecil de Mille epic of Rome.

He is torn between two girls, the homecoming princess Charlotte, played by Deborah Benson, and the freaky Billie Jean (Lisa Blount, who unfortunately has to perform in the shadow of Susan Tyrell as her mom). His friends include Tom Hulce and Dennis Christopher, both playing straight in this film, or somewhat straight, it's like Jimmy J has two little Platos running with him. And then there's Dennis Quaid! Jimmy J loves James Dean, Tom Hulce loves Richard Thomas, and Dennis just stands around looking gorgeous and glowering.

Bridges' films usually manage to get his leading man down to his underwear and in September 30, 1955 he takes this structural element to extremes, it's almost as though, distraught by Dean's death, Jimmy J can't seem to remember that boys wear pants. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Depends on how you feel about the former "John Boy" trying, through sheer acting concentration, to summon up a single ounce of sexual charisma. The movie uses ("borrows") snatches of Leonard Rosenman's famous Dean theme and sometimes this seems a bit heavyhanded, and yet one forgives this movie almost everything simply because it's so odd and ambitious.

This is a horrible movie it is about a bunch of psycho teenage kids who lose it after James Dean death I mean come on man do yourself a favor don't waste 19.99 $ as I just did it is a BAD movie