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Warner Bros. Pictures
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The bad boy from a good family.
After moving to a new town, troublemaking teen Jim Stark is supposed to have a clean slate, although being the new kid in town brings its own problems. While searching for some stability, Stark forms a bond with a disturbed classmate, Plato, and falls for local girl Judy. However, Judy is the girlfriend of neighborhood tough, Buzz. When Buzz violently confronts Jim and challenges him to a drag race, the new kid's real troubles begin.
CinemaSerf
Jun 20, 2026 · via TMDB
"Jim" (James Dean) is a kid with a troubled past whose parents have relocated to give him a bit of a fresh start at his new school. Pretty swiftly, though, he falls in with the wrong crowd - the sort that have flick-knife fights - and it looks like we are in for a repeat performance. Luckily for him, he has also two more benign influences on his new life. One is "Judy" (Natalie Wood) who comes from a decent home and the other is "Plato" (Sal Mineo) whose appreciation of his new friend borders on the acolytic. At home, he isn't neglected or unloved but his mother (Ann Doran) is constantly at him to improve and grow up and so he relies on his weakly doting father (Jim Backus) to fight his corner for him. With "Buzz" (Corey Allen) and his gang continuing to put pressure on him; "Judy" determined to keep him on the straight and narrow and "Plato" causing him to question certain aspects of his own identity and personality, it's a confusing time for a young man who must now find the confidence and the maturity to navigate what is becoming a fairly conflicted scenario. Dean may take top billing - and he does begin to craft his own enduringly charismatic and troubled image well, here, but for me it is Wood who delivers more powerfully with a complex character that has depths to her beyond the slightly soporific gal-next-door that we expect. Better than her, even, is Mineo. His effort nimbly treads on the egg-shells of a character who may or may not have physical designs on his friend, but who is in any case desparate to be noticed, to be valued and to be loved. Does he really just want to be the cool and attractive "Jim" or more than that? As stories of teenage angst go, this is one of the sharpest in terms of dialogue. There's no surfeit of pointless chatter, no expletives, just a tightly knitted character study that oozes a certain toxicity that the three hold together potently.
Filipe Manuel Neto
Mar 14, 2024 · via TMDB
**An iconic, culturally significant film that helped immortalize James Dean.** This is one of those classic films when the theme is teenage rebellion and generational clash. It is undoubtedly good, with a good story and good actors – it is the film that marked James Dean's short career – and continues to be a regular presence in classics cycles and specialty TV channels. The film explores quite well the difficult relationship between parents and their children within the wealthiest families, and the way in which this tension has a decisive influence on the latter's delinquent behavior. Living in homes where there is truly no love, but rather a well-organized routine, and where parental care is limited to material goods and the act of giving things, these young people accumulate a revolt that they need to express through pranks and mischief that parents choose to ignore or consider that they are the consequences of harmful influences. The fact that they are children of rich parents only makes their devilry more elaborate: this is the case of racing with stolen cars. How many angry teenagers with rich dads continue to do similar things? Expertly directed by Nicholas Ray, the film had a high budget that allowed for quality production values. The cinematography is excellent, the sets and costumes couldn't be better (I especially liked Dean's parents' house and the abandoned mansion where part of the final scenes take place) and the cars used are beautiful. James Dean's hair and costume were decisive in youth fashion at that time, and the soundtrack accompanies everything with distinction and discretion. However, what decisively marks this film is the excellent quality of the cast and their work, particularly the excellent performance achieved by James Dean. He is absolutely credible in the role he was given, despite being a little older than his character. The opening scene is worthy of an anthology, but also that fight with razors that takes place near the Griffith Observatory. Natalie Wood is also not far behind: she was then more or less the right age and had the necessary talent, as well as being very beautiful and charismatic. Sal Mineo plays a highly dramatic role, and his participation in this film is one of the highlights of his career. Finally, a note of praise for Jim Backus and Marietta Canty, who made good contributions to the film in slightly less valued roles. A curious note that I just noticed: the three main actors in this film have in common the fact that they died before the age of forty-five, and each had a mysterious and violent death. Everyone knows that James Dean saw his life taken as a result of an unfortunate car accident, a few months after this film was made. However, in 1976, Sal Mineo followed, stabbed to death during a robbery at his home. A few years later, in 1981, it was the turn of Natalie Wood, who drowned in more than strange circumstances, during a yacht trip off the Californian coast.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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YouTube TV
Amazon Video
Apple TV Store
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Fandango At Home
James Dean
Jim Stark
Natalie Wood
Judy
Sal Mineo
John 'Plato' Crawford
Jim Backus
Frank Stark
Ann Doran
Carol Stark
Corey Allen
Buzz Gunderson
William Hopper
Judy's Father
Rochelle Hudson
Judy's Mother
Dennis Hopper
Goon
Edward Platt
Ray Fremick
Steffi Sidney
Mil
Marietta Canty
Crawford Maid
Virginia Brissac
Jim's Grandmother
Ian Wolfe
Dr. Minton
Robert Foulk
Gene
Nick Adams
Chick
Jack Grinnage
Moose
Almira Sessions
Planetarium Teacher (uncredited)
Paul Birch
Police Lieutenant (uncredited)
Dorothy Abbott
Nurse (uncredited)
Jimmy Baird
Beau (uncredited)
Paul Bryar
Desk Sergeant #2 (uncredited)
Chuck Hamilton
Police Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
Chuck Hicks
Ambulance Attendant (uncredited)
Nelson Leigh
Desk Sergeant #1 (uncredited)
David McMahon
Crunch's Father (uncredited)
Peter Miller
Hoodlum (uncredited)
House Peters Jr.
Officer at Police Station (uncredited)
Nicholas Ray
Man in Last Shot (uncredited)
Dick Wessel
Planetarium Guide (uncredited)
Robert B. Williams
Ed (uncredited)
Ralph Moratz
Boy at Planetarium (uncredited)
Ernest Haller
Director of Photography
Bill Hickman
Stunts
Carey Loftin
Stunts
Paul Baxley
Stunts
Don Alvarado
Assistant Director
Nicholas Ray
Director
Leonard Rosenman
Original Music Composer
Stewart Stern
Screenplay
Nicholas Ray
Story
Wifey Redux
The Harness
The Way Things Go
Échappé
Why Won't You Dance?
Vestige
One Heart Broken Into Song
Sir Arne's Treasure
Una nit a Casa Blanca
Luckey Quarter
Headlock
Fireflies at El Mozote
Forrest Gump
Once Upon a Time in America
Gladiator
8½
Tokyo Story
Metropolis
La Dolce Vita
American Beauty
The 400 Blows
Step Back
Youthful
Chickenshit
Patty Is Such a Girly Name
Love, Simon
Rope
A Bronx Tale
Fargo
Dances with Wolves
Dancer in the Dark
Donnie Darko
Stand by Me
Rio Bravo
Aparajito
Big Fish
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul
Magnolia
The Breakfast Club
Knockin' on Heaven's Door
The Celebration
Shottas
I Don't Want to Go Back Alone
October Sky
A Little Princess
Billy Elliot
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Giant
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
10 Things I Hate About You
Boogie Nights
Harold and Maude
Spartacus
Menace II Society
In Cold Blood
Breaking the Waves
East of Eden
The Man Who Would Be King
Au Revoir les Enfants
Custody
Bečička
All About Lily Chou-Chou
Y Tu Mamá También
The Experiment
Being John Malkovich
Live and Become
The Big Blue
Distant Lights
Kes
The Man in the Moon
Cairn
Lost in Translation
Konec cesty
Dirty Dancing
Finding Neverland
Dazed and Confused
The Fisher King
Pickpocket
We Shall Overcome
Chemical Hearts
REM
Little Women
Leaving Las Vegas
Driving Miss Daisy
West Side Story
Maria Full of Grace
The Patriot
Mädchen in Uniform
Fresh
The Duellists
The Man with the Golden Arm
Snow Cake
8 Mile
Open Hearts
Little Children
The Virgin Suicides
Lorenzo's Oil
Before the Fall
Flywheel
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Dreamer: Inspired By a True Story
Easy Rider
Monsieur Ibrahim
Man of Marble
Man of Iron
Rumble Fish
Ronia: The Robber's Daughter
A River Runs Through It
Shanghai Express
Man Push Cart
The Man Who Never Was
The Secret Life of Happy People
Thank You, Eve
White Berry
Panter čeká v 17,30
Summer House
Broken Flowers
Irina Palm
Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams
Paradise Now
The Beat That My Heart Skipped
Benny's Video
In the Bedroom
Dark Horse
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
The Most Beautiful Wife
Salvador (Puig Antich)
Sink the Bismarck!
The State I Am In
Tough Enough
Paid in Full
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Only Clouds Move the Stars
Hoard
Anna and the King
He Got Game
Sleepless in Seattle
Lucas
Short Sharp Shock
Nowhere
A Friend of Mine
The Spirit of St. Louis
House of Usher
Little Wing
We Own the Night
Parenthood
The Renegades
Reinventing Marvin
2 or 3 Things I Know About Him
The Party
Elephant Boy
Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
Alias
Edge of Seventeen
Emma's Bliss
Paranoid Park
Golden Door
Bambi II
The Secret Heart
Age 13
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle
Sarah Plays a Werewolf
Carbide
Italian for Beginners
The Party 2
Johnny Handsome
September 11
Alice Júnior
The Box
Crazy
Hearth Fires
Brother in Every Inch
Love in Thoughts
Las Horas Contigo
Unexpected Journey
Shed Skin Papa
Kidulthood
Fat Girl
Purampokku Engira Podhuvudamai
Gemma Bovery
Pacifiction
A Tale of Love and Desire
The Elementary Particles
White Water Summer
The Ballad of Seven Hanged Men
Skellig
My Life Without Me
The Kautokeino Rebellion
Two Weeks
Cocoon
The Damned Don't Cry
Human Nature
Shoppen
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Diggers
The Slingshot
Georgia Rule
Cobain
Oliver's Universe
The Curiosity of Chance
Nobody Will Laugh
The French Kissers
Two Queens and One Consort
Boogie
SommerHundeSöhne
Ursula
The Nameless
Light of Day
How to Deal
Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn
No Hard Feelings
Berlin is in Germany
Red Island
The Hunt for Eagle One
Eleven Men Out
Home Alone da Riber
The Adventures of Pinocchio
My Life as a Comedian
Agnes Joy
A Real Young Girl
The Next Best Thing
Crossroads
Battling for Baby
The Exit Room
Memoria
My Sweet Prince
The Cricket
Iron & Blood: The Legend of Taras Bulba
The Swan
36 Fillette
The Bug Killer
Ocaso
A Time for Witches
Chasing Wonders
Melissa P.
Ivin A.
The Wild McCullochs
Kid Terminator
Living at 100 Miles an Hour
First Position.
How I Learned to Fly
West Michigan
Valley of a Thousand Hills
Pomsta
Cocoon
War Baby
Love Child
The Graffiti of Mr. Tupaia
Tree House
Bare-assed Japan
Help Wanted
Vinterdag 1914
Jasnovidec
Young, Fragile
Bianka Braselli, dáma s dvěma hlavami
Greta
Entertain The Thought
Boy in the Corner
The Prince of Love
She Never Had A Home For Me
Ski-Doo
Babie leto, čas smútku
Shut Eye
Scuba
The Bee-Eaters
Only the Devil Hates Water
Stigma, Style
Intimacy
Friends of Luke
Away Out
Eva
Piecht
No Right Way
Maryam's Report
Frick!
Vera
Bobby Beauty Parlour
Finger Guns
Naangal
Body Boy
All That Glitters
Die Seelenwandler - Das geheime Schicksal
TORO
Unmasking
Rainy Blue
New Ways
Sake Of The Song
Squeaky Shoes That Chase Lost Souls
The 12 Inch Pianist
Dead Wednesday
Restare
The Things They Left Behind
Casey Makes A Mixtape
Shadow Dance
King of Games
Willa
Mildlife
Derailed
Dog Days
The Things We Carry
BOYS
Talvez Amanhã.
Trans. Caos. Comédia.
Rocketship
Where Is The Cat's Tail?
Untitled
Untitled
American History X
Palmer
The Hate U Give
To Kill a Mockingbird
Charm City Kings
Sarah's Oil
Stand by Me
Straight Outta Compton
Short Term 12
The Color Purple
Magnolia
Gigi & Nate
Boyz n the Hood
The Fabelmans
East of Eden
Richard Jewell
Mr. Church
The Unforgivable
Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story
Dog Pound
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner
The Public Enemy
Bird
Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl
The Outsiders
This Boy's Life
The Short History of the Long Road
What Maisie Knew
A Taste of Honey
The Glass Castle
Boy A
Over the Edge
My Own Private Idaho
The Road
The Darkest Minds
Boy Erased
Enemy Mine
Out of the Blue
Hard Miles
The Wanderers
Kids
Siberian Education
We Die Young
I Am David
South Central
Bravetown
Adopt a Highway
Thirteen
The Crush
Unconditional
Rocks
The Giver
Imperial Dreams
Luckiest Girl Alive
Dear Zoe
Skin
Dad
Biker Boyz
Mammal
Changing Lanes
American Pastoral
Where the Day Takes You
Ginger & Rosa
The Glass House
The True Adventures of Wolfboy
Georgetown
Hellion
Grandview, U.S.A.
God's Pocket
Oct 26, 1955
New York City, New York
Oct 27, 1955
Dec 1, 2005
Limited rerelease
Sep 23, 2018
Fathom Events 2 day re-release
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In Search of History: The Night Tulsa Burned
1999
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2017
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Battle your watched movies head-to-head
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Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
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2008 · 14 wins
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1978 · 13 wins
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2000 · 12 wins
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1981 · 11 wins
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