Underplayed Gems

James Dean (2001)

James Dean poster
Directed by
Mark Rydell
Genre
biographical film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 32m
Rated
PG
Rating
6.8 of 10 from 115 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

This TV biopic follows James Dean's journey from an unknown struggling actor to a famous Hollywood star in the 1950s. It shows his early life in New York and his rapid rise to fame before his death.

dramaticearnestevocativebittersweetreflectiveabsorbingrestrained

What happens

James Dean is a 2001 American made-for-television biographical drama film based on the life of the American actor James Dean. James Franco plays the title role under the direction of Mark Rydell, who chronicles Dean's rise from a struggling actor to an A-list movie star in 1950s Hollywood. The film's supporting roles included Michael Moriarty, Valentina Cervi, Enrico Colantoni, and Edward Herrmann. The biopic began development at Warner Bros. in the early 1990s. At one point, Michael Mann was contracted to direct with Leonardo DiCaprio starring in the lead role. After Mann's departure, Des McAnuff, Dennis Hopper, and Milčo Mančevski were considered for the director's chair. Rydell was hired as director in 1996, but the film continued to languish in development hell. Warner Bros. then decided to produce James Dean as a TV movie for Turner Network Television (TNT); both Warner Bros. and TNT were owned by Time Warner. Franco was cast as Dean in May 2000 after a search that resulted in 500 auditions. Franco researched his role to closely portray Dean. James Dean was shown on TNT in the United States on August 5, 2001, receiving generally positive reviews from critics and widespread acclaim for Franco's performance. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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