East of Eden

The film ends on a flagrant miscalculation which typifies Kazan at his worst.

It's far from a dull movie, but it's certainly a very strange one; it's an enshrinement of the mixed-up kid.

John Steinbeck's painful biblical allegory -- Genesis replayed in Monterey, California, circa 1917 -- is more palatable on the screen, thanks to the down-to-earth performances of James Dean as Cal/Cain and Richard Davalos as Aron/Abel.

It's a film of great performances, atmospheric photography, and a sure sense of period and place.

Not only one of Kazan's richest films and Dean's first significant role, it is also arguably the actor's best performance.

A classic of its time.

After testing various performers (including a newcomer named Paul Newman), Elia Kazan went with the unknown James Dean, a move that immediately yielded dividends.

The film is set in 1917 but Dean feels completely modern and contemporary, a boy not quite comfortable in his body.

Jimmy Dean, as they called him, will stand the test of time due to his powerful on-screen presence because once a star is born on celluloid, they live on forever.

True to what made Dean the iconic symbol of that era's youth, his troubling and intricate performance as Cal Trask is ripe with the disaffected emotions that made him controversial to the old guard and beloved by the younger generation of his day.