Rebel Without a Cause

I know you've all probably seen Rebel Without a Cause at least once (and, if not, here's your opportunity to correct that situation). But if you haven't ever seen this Nicholas Ray/James Dean classic in widescreen … trust me, you've never really seen it. It's been 40 years since James Dean essayed his quintessential role in as a troubled American teen and, along with co-stars Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo, established an iconography of adolescence whose potency extends into the present. For the occasion, a new print of the film is in release in CinemaScope and stereo. Nick Ray, who told stories that were "bigger than life" and pulsing with "hot blood," was one of the most dynamic directors of the American screen and his capacity to tell a widescreen story was as articulate as his ability to pinpoint an individual stuck "in a lonely place."