In the 20th century, one of the easiest ways for people to become immortal came in the form of early, premature death. At least, that was the case with celebrities who became legends sometimes simply by dying before showing all their potential. One of the best-known examples is, of course, James Dean. He died at the age of 24 and had only three major roles, but those three roles were enough for him to become one of the most recognisable Hollywood icons. Perhaps his cult status came from the simple fact that his image of rebel youth remained untarnished by age, and universally appealing for all future generations. That may be true, but also few people should forget that Dean was one of the greatest actors of his time, if not one of the greatest actors who ever worked in Hollywood.

His talent is displayed in his first major film, East of Eden, a 1955 drama directed by Elia Kazan. The plot of this film, based on the novel by John Steinbeck, is set in California during World War One. Adam Trask (played by Raymond Massey) is a ranch owner in the Salinas Valley, a righteous and noble man whose respect in the community is undiminished even after a disastrous business venture. Everyone around Adam seems to be happy except his son Cal (played by James Dean), a troubled young man who was always jealous of the love and attention his brother Aron (played by Richard Davalos) received from his father. His jealousy was recently inflamed by his feelings towards Aron's girlfriend Abra (played by Julie Harris), as well as by the frustrating discovery of his estranged mother Kate (played by Jo Van Fleet), owner of a brothel in a nearby town.

In Cal's mind, the only way to earn the love and respect of his father lies in a business venture that would compensate for his father's recent losses. His scheme, which includes borrowing money from his mother and investing in beans—a business made lucrative by the war—is successful, but it actually causes a chain of events with tragic consequences.

I never read Steinbeck's novel, but a long time ago I watched the 1981 four-hour mini-series based on it. That series, naturally, covered much more territory than Kazan's cinematic version, and, consequently, anyone who watches the latter can't help noticing the lack of many interesting subplots, situations and characters. Compared with the television version, the 1955 script by Paul Osborn looks barren and simplistic, and the story sometimes has biblical elements that are too obvious. On the other hand, despite that, East of Eden still has strong dramatic potential, and director Kazan uses that by assembling a terrific cast which gave memorable performances.

The only one awarded an Oscar for this film was Jo Van Fleet as Kate, and her performance, although good, didn't deserve it, at least not compared with the underrated role by Julie Harris. Harris, who would later be remembered most for her role in the 1963 version of The Haunting, was perfect for the role of Abra; she portrays her as a plain-looking yet attractive all-American girl, the only person who can find understanding for the troubled Cal, since deep under her righteous surface she shares his frustrations. But the real star of this film is, naturally, James Dean. He was simply perfect to play this part, because the troubled, neurotic Cal in many ways resembles the misfit, rebellious 1950s youth in America—a generation whose icon Dean later became. Dean used method acting to the full extent (with Kazan deliberately making him drunk during the shooting of one scene), and although, especially in the beginning, his mannerisms could slide into overacting, in the end it rewards our patience with a strong emotional impact.

Since he had such a good cast, Kazan probably thought that he shouldn't bother much with the visual details. East of Eden looks plain in all scenes that don't feature actors, and even some that do aren't best directed. The idea to symbolise conflict and twisted states of mind through unusual camera angles was already used by other directors and here it gives an impression of artificiality that was quite unnecessary for this film. On the other hand, Kazan in this film used the opportunity to comment on some darker sides of American society. East of Eden is one of the rare films that deals with anti-German chauvinist hysteria that erupted in the USA immediately after the American entry into WW1. Although apocryphal in the context of this film, this subplot would be quite interesting for anyone still troubled by the way the USA treated its Japanese citizens in the next world war, as well as for those who are still undecided about Kazan's own role during the McCarthy era.

But I doubt that many would watch East of Eden with such heavy thoughts on their mind. James Dean is still the main reason why we should enjoy this very good example of 1950s cinema.

RATING: 7/10 (+++)

(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.movies.reviews on December 17th 1999)

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Movie URL: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/220-east-of-eden
Critic: AA