Product Details

• Actors: Corey Allen, Jim Backus, Tom Bernard, Virginia Brissac, Marietta Canty
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: June 5, 1997
• Run Time: 111 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (125 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6302685141
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #39,335 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When people think of James Dean, they probably think first of the troubled teen from Rebel Without a Cause: nervous, volatile, soulful, a kid lost in a world that does not understand him. Made between his only other starring roles, in East of Eden and Giant, Rebel sums up the jangly, alienated image of Dean, but also happens to be one of the key films of the 1950s. Director Nicholas Ray takes a strikingly sympathetic look at the teenagers standing outside the white-picket-fence '50s dream of America: juvenile delinquent (that's what they called them then) Jim Stark (Dean), fast girl Judy (Natalie Wood), lost boy Plato (Sal Mineo), slick hot-rodder Buzz (Corey Allen). At the time, it was unusual for a movie to endorse the point of view of teenagers, but Ray and screenwriter Stewart Stern captured the youthful angst that was erupting at the same time in rock & roll. Dean is heartbreaking, following the method acting style of Marlon Brando but staking out a nakedly emotional honesty of his own. Going too fast, in every way, he was killed in a car crash on September 30, 1955, a month before Rebel opened. He was no longer an actor, but an icon, and Rebel is a lasting monument. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Almost 50 and Still a Significant Tale, February 13, 2003

By	L. Shirley "Laurie's Boomer Views" (fountain valley, ca United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Rebel Without a Cause (Single Disc Edition) (DVD)

This review refers to the Warner Bros DVD release of "Rebel Without a Cause"......

After nearly 50 years from it's release in 1955, this is a film that still truley embodies the feelings of teenage angst.The three teens that this story revolves around are played powerfully by James Dean, Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo.It's not just about how the kids deal with the problems that life hands them but about the parents as well.

Jim Stark(Dean) is the newcomer to the neighborhood. The family is always moving around seemingly due to Jim's inability to stay out of trouble. The parents(Jim Backus/Ann Doran) may be at the core of Jim's problems.There's a great scene at the police station, where the parents are arguing(as usual) over what's right for the boy and Jim sums up the whole event by crying out, as only James Dean could do.."You're tearing me apart".

Judy(Wood),very cool and part of 'The in-crowd" comes from what seems to be a typical middle-class family, but underneath there are problems galore.At 16, Judy longs for the affection her father(William Hopper) gave her as a little girl, but he seems to be confused by her impending womanhood and pushes her away both emotionally and phyically. Judy does whatever she can to gain her father's attention.

Perhaps the most deeply troubled of all is John "Plato" Crawford(Mineo) who comes from a well off family but they are never around to care for him or about him. He is cared for by his well meaning housekeeper/nurse played brillantly by Marietta Canty.

Trouble once again finds Jim on his very first day of school, which erupts in a knife fight that is so beautifully acted and directed it takes on the look of an exquiste dance,and ends with a tragic car race.The parents seem to be of no help in the dilemna. Jim, Judy and Plato find each other in their loneliness and form a makeshift family of their own, that also is beset with some devastating results.

Beautifully directed by Nicholas Ray(Johnny Gutiar/The Flying Leathernecks), watching this film again was like finding a buried treasure in a time capsule. It is a story, that will always have meaning as although the times(and types of problems) may change, people really don't.These young brillant actors had an on screen chemistry and charisma that is unsurpassed. I also want to make mention of Edward Platt, who played the empathetic Juvenile Officer, Corey Allen as "Buzz"(Dean's rival), and also look for Dennis Hopper in an early role as one of "The kids".

Warner Brothers has done a superb transfer of this 48 year old film. It has been restored, looks brand new, and is presented in the original widescreen. The sound was also terrific in the remastered Dolby Digital 5.1. There are some excellent special features to peruse. Behind the scene documentaries which were actually filmed around the time of the making of "Rebel" enables us to see interviews with the stars. There is one with James Dean not only talking about the film, but advising young people to "Drive Safely"! You will also see the screen tests and learn where that toy monkey came from in the opening scene.

If it's a film you already know you love, you will love the DVD. If you haven't seen it, whether you are a teen or an adult, you will be moved by this story and it's a must have for your classic DVD collection.

Thanks and enjoy.....Laurie

35 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why?...Because... End of Discussion...., February 4, 2004

By	Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rebel Without a Cause (Single Disc Edition) (DVD)

Released soon after James Dean's death, in the same year in which East of Eden also appeared, this film immediately attracted and rewarded great interest and has continued to do so. Part of its appeal is explained by the fact that Dean died instantaneously in a violent car crash, Natalie Wood drowned, Sal Mineo was stabbed to death, and Nick Adams overdosed on prescription drugs. Their premature deaths enrich even more the poignancy of their roles as teenage rebels "without a cause." Actually, much of their behavior is explained by their unhappiness in their dysfunctional families. Jim Stark (Dean) feels smothered by his parents who move from one town to another, hoping that he will finally "find himself." Judy (Wood) desperately needs love from a father (William Hopper) who is unwilling and/or unable to provide it. Plato (Mineo) seems to have no contact whatsoever with his parents. Meanwhile, Judy eagerly agrees to be gang leader Buzz Gunderson's "trophy girlfriend." After his death, she shifts her attention to Jim. They and Plato briefly become a "family of three," in one scene in an abandoned mansion even pretending (albeit satirically) to be father, mother, and son. (FYI, the set in which this scene was shot is alleged to have appeared earlier in Sunset Boulevard as Norma Desmond's mansion.) All of the film's action occurs within a 24-hour time period, beginning in a police station and ending with police also involved because....

Nicholas Ray directed Rebel Without a Cause and also co-authored the script. Working with an exceptionally talented cast, he succeeded so well with evoking great performances from that cast that Dean, Wood, and Mineo have since become icons for teenage malaise. They brood, they pout, they withdraw, they whine, they whimper, while feeling totally misunderstood by adults. They especially resent their parents' inability to "get it" even without knowing what that "it" is.

I saw this film again recently, again impressed by the quality of the acting but, probably inevitably, much of the film now seems dated to me even as it retains much of its innocence. Some scenes remain quite vivid, such as when Judy stands proudly out in the field, bathed in automobile headlights, before "officially" starting the "Chickie Run" contest; also when Jim urges his Mitty-like father (Jim Backus) to stand up to his (Mr. Stark's) badger-like wife (Rochelle Hudson). It is probably not realistic to expect young people in relatively comfortable circumstances to have a "cause" except to be accepted, respected, and loved on their own terms. This is a "classic" of sorts. When seeing it now, I have the feeling that I have opened a time capsule from 1955 and the film is among the items contained in it.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I fell in love with Natalie Wood...., January 12, 2008

By	D. Scott "PUXMIN" (CO USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rebel Without a Cause (Two-Disc Special Edition) (DVD)

I agree this movie was a great talent launch for Dean, Salminio,and especially Natalie Wood. Most reviewerers see this as a great movie "Vehicle" for Dean and Salminio. Natalie Wood takes a "back seat" view in this movie...She will for ever be my most favortite movie star of all time. Its interesting that all three had a short, violent death...Dean in his famous car wreck, Salminio Stabed, still in his early years, and Natalie a mysterious drowning which details were never fully disclosed...fell in the water, Drowned...end of story. But after this movie she went on to make wounderful movies..Her emotional talent range was fantastic! Natalie and Elizabeth Taylor, whom had a close reseblance, I heard, their identy was often confused by vieweres in that era. Of course Taylors..wild public life, placed HER in the main spotlight. But next time you see this movie try to see the emotion and depth that Natalie put into it. They didnt have "Ensemble Catagorie" for the Academy Awards back then, but they shure had my vote....I didnt get into the details of this movie because if you havent seen it, the reviews are a plenty.... Just wanted to share my view on Nataile Wood, sort bright flame to soon extinguished.