Rebel Without a Cause

Rebel Without a Cause is a 1955 American coming-of-age romantic drama film about emotionally confused suburban, middle-class teenagers. Filmed in the then recently introduced CinemaScope format and directed by Nicholas Ray, it offered both social commentary and an alternative to previous films depicting delinquents in urban slum environments. The film stars James Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Jim Backus, Ann Doran, Corey Allen and William Hopper. Dennis Hopper made his debut in a brief role as a goon. The film was an attempt to portray the moral decay of American youth, critique parental style, and explore the differences and conflicts between generations. In this film's case, it was the Interbellum Generation vs the Silent Generation. The title was adopted from psychiatrist Robert M. Lindner's 1944 book, Rebel Without a Cause: The Hypnoanalysis of a Criminal Psychopath. The film itself does not make any references to Lindner's book in any way. Warner Bros. released the film on October 27, 1955, nearly a month after Dean's death in a car accident on September 30, 1955. Over the years, the film has achieved landmark status for the performance of Dean, fresh from his Oscar-nominated role in East of Eden, in his most celebrated role. This was the only film of Dean's in which he received top billing. In 1990, Rebel Without a Cause was added to the Library of Congress's National Film Registry as being deemed "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant". Plot