Nicholas Ray’s 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause is a globally recognised landmark of post-war American cinema. The film follows twenty-four hours in the life of troubled teen Jim Stark (James Dean), the new boy in town, who becomes drawn into a maelstrom of shifting social allegiances, emotional turmoil, and violence. Rebel tackled head-on the thorny political issue of juvenile delinquency from the perspective of the adolescents, contributed to the genesis of the teen movie, and was pivotal in bringing The Method acting style to wider audiences. Dean’s nuanced and dextrous performance as the film’s lead character was paramount in establishing the actor’s iconicity. Davis examines the significant contributions to Rebel Without a Cause made by an array of cast and crew members: from screenwriter Stewart Stern to composer Leonard Rosenman, from production designer Malcolm Bert to costume designer Moss Mabry, from lead actors such as Dean and Mineo to secondary players such as Marietta Canty and Edward Platt. Highlighting the film’s shifting critical reception, he unpacks its legacy and the reasons that it continues to resonate with contemporary audiences.
