East of Eden (1955)

Please don't spend money on this.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

I went into this film last night with high hopes, leading only to disappointment. This is my first film I've seen with James Dean, and I think this was the first disappointment. I've always been confused about the significance of "method acting", because every time I see it, it's too obvious. I see exactly what they're doing, and it's really not convincing. It's more melodramatic and campy regardless, and it really showed with Dean in this picture. The over the top acting took me out of the picture, and I felt that I never really got back in. I felt like everyone was a stranger to me, and that we never got to know them.Also, the story had many points of interest, that went no where, or was wrapped up too quickly to be satisfying. For instance, I liked the dynamic of the beans market, and Cal trying to get this investment going, but, it sort of just... happened. Also there's a scene where the other brother is clearly against the war, and thinks it's immoral, but there's no real reason or explanation as to why. I guess it's just supposed to be accepted since he's a good kid? But then later he's upset, and decides to just join the military anyways, so he just gets upset, and is okay with killing now? This movie suffered from both sides of the story. I felt it was too short for the story that could have been better fleshed out, but too long for the one it told. It felt constantly dragged out, which could have been resolved with a longer runtime. Overall the story isn't as interesting as I'd hoped, and the acting from Dean was too obvious and campy. Perhaps it's worth watching if you like seeing James or if it's been on your list for a while, otherwise, there are better movies to waste time with.

James Dean died in September 1955, leaving behind him mystery, legacy… and eternal youth. Indeed, we'd never know what was eating that spirit torn between the tumultuous torments of young age and the realm of coming adulthood, but we know though that the tragically abrupt end to his lightning way to success turned, Dean into an instant icon. He'd be to youth what Marilyn Monroe was to glamour, John Wayne to Western and Hitchcock to thrills.His first film, "East of Eden", moves in the same circle than "Rebel Without a Cause" but in the polar side. If Jim Stark in "Rebel" faced the emasculation of his father and drove his own self like a racing car that would ultimately crash into the wall of reality, Cal Trask's father doesn't quite lack authority but perhaps something more life-impacting: love. Cal Trask is like the counterpart of Jim Stark, the rebellion is the tool for the former, the end for the latter, and both are directed toward the father… or the authority figure. And are you surprised that the two names' anagrams are exactly the same? It's never about Stark or Trask, but about James Dean.Dean inhabited his roles because they inhabited his life already. Dean had lost his mother at the age of nine and had no connection whatsoever with his father who worked in Los Angeles while he grew up in Indiana. In an especially poignant moment, facing the disapproval of his father, and the rejection of his gift, Cal tries to embrace him but his hands can barely reach his father's neck. It's physically painful to watch, but it gives us enough time to measure the desperation in Cal, facing the incapability to reach his father Adam, a farm-owner who didn't only plant lettuce in his grounds but also the seeds of his younger son's jealousy. He's played by the towering Raymond Massey.Adam is a stiff man, who loves both God and his son Aron (Richard Cavados) but can't duplicate that feeling toward Cal. It is left open to interpretation whether Cal grew these awkward mannerisms and emotional secrecy from the lack of paternal love or whether Adam seemed to favor Aron because of his odd behavior. But there are two certitudes; Adam could only love Cal if he was like Aron. Interestingly, Massey didn't get along with Dean who kept on teasing him and improvising his lines, the clash between the old-school and the new generation drove an interesting feud that Kazan expertly exploited for the film. Cal couldn't be like Aron even if he tried, just like Dean.But the awkwardness of Dean finally pays off in the terrifyingly poignant third act, in "Rebel" Dean incarnated a son who killed the father (symbolically) not to disappoint himself, in "Eden", it's the very fear of disappointment that drove Cal for most of the film, and many so-called rebellious kids where fearing disappointment like plague and only became rebels by rebelling from their own ties, once they realized the efforts would be fruitless. There is some Freudian parricide so to speak in "East of Eden", but the original 1952 novel, by John Steinbeck, is also a retelling of the story of Abel and Cain, it's also a brother's story with a rivalry caused by women. Starting with the most significant one: he Cal and Aron's mother, who fled from Adam's virtuous grip in Salinas and went to the 'east of Eden', in Monterey, a fishing port where she lead a successful brothel. She's played by Jo Van Fleet.Obviously, Cal inherited that 'dark side' from Kate, but when she finally tells her story, we start to see goodness in her, or at least, attenuating circumstances, and through a mirror effect, in Cal too. And the well-meaning Adam becomes a Biblical tyrant who tried to mold everyone under his own vision of family, to the point of lying to his son Aron and telling her that she went to heaven. The other female player is Aron's fiancée Abra (Julie Harris). She's a respectful and optimist girl who had her deal of troubles in the past, enough to be able to see goodness in Cal when he tries to please his gather and jealousy in Aron's when he suspects some ill behavior from his brother. Abra could have cemented the family, but there are just too many conflicts to expect a happy ending.Basically, envy, wrath, jealousy run in the family, and create many hellish situations paved by the best intentions, even the only money Cal can earn for his father will be deemed as dirty and unholy and will provoke the breakdown we all expected. Indeed, watching "East of Eden" is like knowing a ticking bomb will soon explode and the anticipation of a family meltdown is magnificently conveyed by the nervous, awkward but electrifying performance of James Dean. Elia Kazan contributed to cinema in many ways, but besides Brando who changed the face of acting, Dean was his best gift to the world. Dean was a newcomer, an unknown face, but when Kazan saw him and had a few exchanges, he knew Dean had Cal in him, he knew his life experience created that odd concoction of delicacy, shyness and rebellion.Many critics found his acting weird, difficult to enjoy or too mimicking his then-idol Brando. But there's a lightness of being in Dean I can't find in the steaming passion of Brando, Dean still tries to fit in his environment, conveying an ahead-of-its-time brilliant embodiment of vulnerability, something new but that holds up very well today, and that Academy members were clairvoyant enough to notice, and give Dean the first posthumous nomination of Oscar history.Unfortunately, "East of Eden" was the only film he could see released, by the time the two others came, he was history, and a legend.

In 1917, Monterey is a rough and tumble place. Cal Trask (James Dean)lives in the quiet neighboring farming community in the Salinas Valley. He doesn't get along with his father Adam (Raymond Massey). His brother Aron is the more liked especially by their father. He found out that his mother isn't dead but just left their family. He finds out that his mother is Kate (Jo Van Fleet) who runs a brothel in Monterey. He's a tortured soul who hates both his mother and his father but he's constantly trying to impress his father. Aron's girlfriend Abra (Julie Harris) grows more and more attracted to him. His father loses a lot of money when he tried to ship lettuce with ice on the train. He aims to recover the lost by growing beans for the war but he needs $5k which he borrows from a reluctant Kate.It's a massive performance from James Dean. He's all emotions and no reservation. He's throwing everything into his character. There is an undirected energy about him as he flail away for his father's approval. I try and can only envision a bland unremakeable film without James Dean. He makes this movie unique and he's not overpowered by the scale of this Steinbeck novel.

Growing up, I always heard the name James Dean linked to his performance in Rebel Without a Cause. It's more well known than East of Eden, but after watching both films, I can honestly say that Dean's performance in Eden is a more powerful performance. From the first moment Dean appears on screen, it's impossible to take your eyes off of him. Dean gives an amazing, layered performance as Cal Trask, a son looking for answers about the supposed death of his mother and longing for the approval of his father. In East of Eden, Dean is the original "Emo". He's brooding, angry, sad and haunting; sometimes all in the same scene. East of Eden is basically a tale of good versus evil. Cal being the evil and his brother Aron being the good. The parallels to the Bible's Caine and Abel are obviously apparent. Sibling rivalry in film is endlessly entertaining for me. Both of my parents have a sibling of the same sex. They often tell me (and my twin sister) about some of the struggles of growing up with a sibling of the same gender. East of Eden is also a beautifully shot film. There are a few scenes where the camera is tilted and off kilter. It helps to add a sense of discomfort and disorientation. My favorite scene is the one where Dean is on a swing and is having a conversation with his father. Dean only replies to his father while in the foreground. Also, the gentle swaying of the camera adds to the building tension. Probably my favorite shot from the film is where Cal has just left his brother with his mother, and stands out in the hallway. He casts a demented shadow on the floor that grows larger as he begins walking. Just good stuff. Without giving too much away, the most memorable scene is when Cal tries to give his father the money. The scene is so sad and chilling. Anybody who has ever been denied appreciation for an accomplishment from a parent, will probably be brought to tears. In the end, I think East of Eden has kind of gotten overshadowed by Rebel Without a Cause. Kind of like how Cal gets overshadowed by his brother. A pure must see classic indeed.