James Dean: The First American Teenager (1975)
*** (out of 4)
Dennis Hopper, Maila Nurmi, Carroll Baker, Natalie Wood, Sammy Davis, Jr., Sal Mineo, Jack Larson and Corey Allen are just a few of the people who are interviewed here. This made-for-television documentary takes a look at the quick life of James Dean and the three main films that he made.
For the most part this here is a pretty good documentary on the actor. It's clear that he was a troubled person and several members of those interviewed discuss how even he seems to have been confused by himself. The greatest thing about this documentary is the fact that we get first-hand accounts from people who knew him, dated him and worked with him. THese types of stories are wonderful to hear and especially since a lot of the people are no longer with us.
I would say that the weakest part of this was the fact that there were so many film and television clips. I'm sure in 1975 some of this footage was hard to see but today when all of it is easily available it's rather boring sitting through it here. I'd also argue that using current rock music didn't really help matters. With that said, anyone with interest of Dean should certainly check this out for the interviews.
