Everything you need to know about the famous movie of 1950s

Famous movie of 1950s: Rebel Without a Cause

Rebel Without a Cause is a motion picture about alienated youth in suburban America based on Stewart Stern's screenplay adaptation of 'The Blind Run,' a 1944 story by Dr. Robert M. Lindner. Released in 1955, this box-office hit film starred James Dean as Jim Stark and inspired a string of films about disenfranchised youth. Jim’s parents affect love for the boy but their words have no basis in real emotion. Unloved, Jim gets into trouble all the time, and his parents deal with his problems by moving to another town. Jim experiences further rejection in school when he tries to befriend a girl, Judy (played by Natalie Wood), and the gang of toughs she runs with. After a tragic incident involving Jim’s initiation into the gang, he flees to an abandoned mansion with Judy and another friend Plato (Sal Mineo), who carries a gun. At the time of the film’s release, parents were generally appalled at what they perceived as a morose, death-obsessed film that promoted violence against adults. Teenagers loved it, and actor Dean became an idol to millions.

Director

Nicholas Ray

Cast

James Dean (Jim Stark)
Natalie Wood (Judy)
Sal Mineo (Plato)
Jim Backus (Jim's father)
Ann Doran (Jim's mother)
Corey Allen (Buzz)
William Hopper (Judy's father)
Rochelle Hudson (Judy's mother)
Virginia Brissac (Jim's grandma)
Nick Adams (Moose)
Jack Simmons (Cookie)
Dennis Hopper (Goon)
Marietta Canty (Plato's maid)
Jack Grinnage (Chick)
Beverly Long (Helen)
Steffi Sidney (Mil)
Frank Mazzola (Crunch)
Tom Bernard ( Harry)
Clifford Morris (Cliff)
Ian Wolfe (Lecturer)
Edward Platt (Ray)
Robert Foulk (Gene)
Jimmy Baird (Beau)
Dick Wessel (Guide)
Nelson Leigh (Sergeant)
Dorothy Abbott (Nurse)
Louise Lane ( Police officer)
House Peters (Police officer)
Gus Schilling (Attendant)
Bruce Noonan (Monitor)
Almira Sessions (Old lady teacher)
Peter Miller (Hoodlum)
Paul Bryar (Desk sergeant)
Paul Birch (Police chief)
Robert B. Williams (Moose's father Ed)
David McMahon (Crunch's father)

Awards

Selected for Registry by the National Film Preservation Board (1990)

Trivia

Actors James Dean and Corey Allen used real switchblades in their knife-fight scene together. They protected themselves by wearing chain mail under their vests.

Quotes

Jim Stark (regarding adults): “Nobody talks to children.” Judy: “No, they just tell them.”