A queer screen legend. An American literary giant. A spellbinding film.
Welcome to Screen Gems, our weekend dive into queer and queer-adjacent titles of the past that deserve a watch or a re-watch.Folks, there’s a reason James Dean has become a cultural icon: he was a damn good actor.
Yes, Dean had some of the best looks in movie history. He also came to embody the angst of the early Baby Boomer generation thanks to his neurotic performances in Rebel Without a Cause and East of Eden.The latter scored Dean his first Oscar nomination, awarded following his tragic death in an auto accident.
The story, taken from John Steinbeck’s novel, follows the rivalry between two brothers in a California town. Caleb (Dean) and Aron (Richard Davalos) compete for their father, Adam’s (Raymond Massey) affections.
Aron devotes himself to Christianity, while Caleb focuses more on building a career as a farmer, especially after Adam loses a fortune in a business blunder.
