Rebel without a cause is a drama focusing on a group of rebellious American teenagers. The film features James Dean who was on the rise to stardom before his untimely death aged 24 in 1955. The storyline focuses on a troubled teenager named Jim. The film is directed by Nicholas Ray and was nominated for 3 oscars in 1956.
The film begins by introducing Jim in a drunken state lying on a littered street clutching a toy monkey. This is quite amusing for the audience and makes them wonder how he got there and what he's been up to. Unfortunately, you don't actually find out what he was doing before he found the toy monkey, however that wouldn't be relevant to the plot, as the important following scene that takes place in the police station is vital to the plot.
The film begins by introducing Jim in a drunken state lying on a littered street clutching a toy monkey. This is quite amusing for the audience and makes them wonder how he got there and what he's been up to. Unfortunately, you don't actually find out what he was doing before he found the toy monkey, however that wouldn't be relevant to the plot, as the important following scene that takes place in the police station is vital to the plot.
In the scene where Jim is taken into the police station, specific camera angles and used throughout the scene to ensure that Jim, Judy and Plato are all in the same shot to foreshadow that all three of them will soon be involved with each other. I think this is really clever as I didn't notice it at first. The three characters are all in each others shots, so for example in the top left image, when Judy is being questioned, you can see Plato in the background. It's also interesting how Judy is dressed in red, which could be suggestive that she's trouble/ going to get into trouble. Another thing interesting about the way Judy is dressed is that her clothing isn't that much different to her mother's. She's dressed in quite a formal grown up way throughout the film, which could be hinting that she's trying to be like her mother so her dad will love her in the same way he loves her mother.
The scene above uses intriguing camera angles to help exaggerate the dysfunctional relationship that Jim has with his parents. His father is too soft and doesn't stand up for himself, and his mother is very harsh and uses Jim to get out of her problems. In the scene above they're having an argument after Jim returns from the "Chickie run" where one of his classmates died. You can see throughout the scene that the camera angle is tilted to one side and makes the scene lopsided, which is showing Jim's relationship with his parents. It's also interesting in this scene the way they are all placed on the stairs. His mother is in the highest position as she feels she has the most power over the family and she seems to get her own way. Jim's father is at the bottom because he is really soft and never wants to upset Jim and often doesn't tell him how things are so that he can let Jim make his mind up for himself. Jim is in the middle, as he is stuck between both of them and doesn't know which of his parents to turn to for advice, because they'll both be pretty useless to him.
The film has a very rich and vibrant colour palette which is similar to Wes Anderson films in a way, as the colours are quite natural and yellowy. However the colours in Rebel Without A Cause are a lot brighter and shinier than Wes Anderson films. I like how both Jim and Judy have worn red in the film- although Judy just wore it at the beginning, it still helps to make this vibrant colour palette come to life.
You can clearly see a difference between Rebel Without A Cause which was made in 1955 and Casablanca which was made 13 years earlier. With Rebel Without A Cause, there is a greater sense of realism- granted you can tell that it has been made in a studio. however it is a lot more relaxed than Casablanca. Casablanca is really quite stiff and you can instantly tell it's been filmed on a set rather than on location. The few scenes which take place outside are very false and unrealistic. Contrasting slightly to this, Rebel Without A Cause has a slightly more real feeling to its outside scenes, particularly the "chicken" scene where they are racing the stolen cars. The inside scenes are a little more staged like in the observatory.
The film has a very rich and vibrant colour palette which is similar to Wes Anderson films in a way, as the colours are quite natural and yellowy. However the colours in Rebel Without A Cause are a lot brighter and shinier than Wes Anderson films. I like how both Jim and Judy have worn red in the film- although Judy just wore it at the beginning, it still helps to make this vibrant colour palette come to life.
You can clearly see a difference between Rebel Without A Cause which was made in 1955 and Casablanca which was made 13 years earlier. With Rebel Without A Cause, there is a greater sense of realism- granted you can tell that it has been made in a studio. however it is a lot more relaxed than Casablanca. Casablanca is really quite stiff and you can instantly tell it's been filmed on a set rather than on location. The few scenes which take place outside are very false and unrealistic. Contrasting slightly to this, Rebel Without A Cause has a slightly more real feeling to its outside scenes, particularly the "chicken" scene where they are racing the stolen cars. The inside scenes are a little more staged like in the observatory.