Robert Altman got his first feature directing gig co-directing this documentary about James Dean. We begin with his upbringing in Indiana as the narrator interviews Dean’s friends and family. Then we move on to college in California where he discovers his love of acting. Dean then takes off to New York where he briefly studies at the Actors Studio before heading back to Hollywood. He soon skyrockets to stardom with roles in East of Eden and Rebel Without a Cause, but his career comes to a tragic end when he dies in an automobile accident.
The documentary purports to use a new technique called “Photo Motion” that supposedly incorporates still photographs in with the narrative. From the first scene, it’s obvious that this so-called “technique” is nothing more than slow zoom-ins and outs on old pictures. That’s just the first of many disappointments you’ll find throughout the movie.
The James Dean Story stops short of being a Mondo style documentary. The scenes recreating Dean’s romance with Pier Angeli (who isn’t named, but it’s pretty obvious who it’s supposed to be) look as though they are heading in that direction, but it just winds up being more like filler than anything. (The recreation of his crash is brief and there are only two photos of the wreck.) Had the film given us something in even mildly bad taste, it would’ve been, at the very least, memorable. (It’s no Wild Wild World of Jayne Mansfield; I’ll tell you that.)
Honestly, there’s nothing here that’s all that enlightening or revealing. The interview segments with the people that supposedly knew Dean don’t really offer very much insight into his character. (One guy goes through Dean’s mail. Big whoop.) If anything, this just crystalizes what an elusive figure he was. If you saw this at the time of its original release, you may have been satisfied with a glossed over trip down memory lane. Sadly, the movie only skims the surface of his life and never fully explores what made Dean tick.
Co-director George W. George was the son of Rube Goldberg.
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