THE DANMAN CAN

Rebel Without A Cause (1955) is a perfect Hollywood time capsule of teenage angst, confusion, and rebellion against the 1950s nuclear family. Iconic, influential, powerful, emotional, magical. Nicholas Ray Feature Films Ranked

Giant   (1956), based on  Edna Ferber 's 1952 novel, is an epic film that contains a lot of big ideas about topics like racism, misogyny, modernization, and capitalism but it never quite explores any in a fully satisfactory manner. The film feels antiquated by 2022 standards but I'm sure in its day it felt like a slap in the face to the old school "values" of Texas. It still manages to feel intimate—despite its expansive Western landscapes—focusing on the life, family, and associates of cattle rancher Jordan "Bick" Benedict Jr. ( Rock Hudson ). Leslie ( Elizabeth Taylor ) becomes Bick's wife early on in the film and  James Dean  (who was tragically killed in a car accident before the film was released) plays the foil, Bick's neighbor Jett Rink (love that name), who through luck (and spite) manages to become rich when striking oil on his small piece of land. Much of the film plays out like a classic 1930s or '40s family drama so there is a certain...

I had seen Giant (1956) once before, over 15 years ago, and I didn't remember much about it at all. In that sense, this viewing was like watching it for the first time. I have to say that it feels antiquated for a 2020 viewing. But I'm sure in its day it felt like a slap in the face to the old school "values" of Texas. Giant , based on Edna Ferber 's 1952 novel, is an epic film that contains a lot of big ideas about topics like racism, misogyny, modernization, and capitalism, but it never quite explores any in a fully satisfactory manner. It still manages to feel intimate—despite its expansive Western landscapes—focusing on the life, family, and associates of cattle rancher Jordan "Bick" Benedict Jr. ( Rock Hudson ). Leslie ( Elizabeth Taylor ) becomes Bick's wife early on in the film and James Dean (who was tragically killed in a car accident before the film was released) plays the foil, Bick's neighbor, Jett Rink (love that name), who thro...