LIFE: James Dean without the charisma

Dane DeHaan and Rovert Pattinson in LIFE
Dane DeHaan and Robert Pattinson in LIFE

In 1955, James Dean wasn’t yet an icon.  East of Eden was in the can but hadn’t been released, and Dean was trying to get cast in Rebel Without a Cause.   To the extent he was known in popular culture, it was as Pier Angeli’s red carpet date at movie premieres.  The free-lance photographer Dennis Stock was convinced that Dean was fascinating, and Stock followed Dean around New York and to Dean’s Indiana home town.  The resulting photos in LIFE magazine (one is below) were indeed iconic, and the film LIFE follows the two men in this episode.

LIFE is moderately interesting because Dean was such a character. And it’s an interesting time in cinema and we get glimpses of Angeli (Alessandra Mastronardi), Nicholas Ray, Natalie Wood, Julie Harris, Elia Kazan and Lee Strasberg.  Ben Kingsley has a fun turn as Jack Warner, a mogul who has dealt with many a temperamental artist and is more than a match for any of them.

The problem with LIFE is that it’s about one of the most charismatic actors in film history.  Dane DeHaan captures Dean’s mannerisms very well, and we see Dean as interesting, charming, insecure, infuriating, bratty and striving.  But we don’t see him suck all of the oxygen out of the room.  We don’t experience Dean’s charisma.

Now I am a big fan of Dane DeHaan, who was absolutely brilliant in Kill Your Darlings.  He’s a fine, fearless and promising actor and a real original.  It’s not his fault that he’s not James Dean.

Robert Pattinson plays James Stock, and his stoniness sure doesn’t help.  I still don’t understand why Twilight fans find him to be so dreamy.  Kelly McCreary of Grey’s Anatomy plays Eartha Kitt, the one character whose dazzling persona pierces this otherwise bland movie.

LIFE is available to stream from Amazon Video, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

Dennis Stock photo of James Dean
Dennis Stock photo of James Dean

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