James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young

Although "James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young" is a very poorly rated film on IMDB, I chose to watch it anyway because it turns out to be Robert Mitchum's last film...even though, sadly, he's only a bit player in this movie.

The film is about the final couple of years in James Dean's life. In particular, it focuses on his relationship with actress Pier Angeli, but also in the short time after this to his untimely death. A few bigger name stars appear in the film (Mike Connors, Robert Mitchum and Connie Stevens) but most of the film rests on Casper Van Dien as Dean.

So is it any good? Well, the casting was iffy. The actors chosen to play Dean and Angeli were pretty good matches to the actual people. Mike Connors looked absolutely nothing like the head of Warner Brothers, Jack Warner. I assume they simply could get Connors so they stuck him in this role....same with Mitchum.

How about the rest of the film? Well, the story is reasonably close to the truth this portion of the lives of Angeli and Dean, though the film never mentions or alludes to Dean's being bisexual (see IMDB trivia for more on this) and this does seem like a big omission. The acting is okay...perhaps a bit too brooding as I had a hard time believing Dean was always this way in real life. Perhaps he was an obnoxious and whiny guy as you see in much of the movie....but if that wasn't him, then the film is a bit of a disservice to his memory. I just don't know about this, though the character being THAT broody and hard to like made the film a bit tough to continue watching. Overall, a film that die-hard fans of Dean will enjoy...others, perhaps, might just wanna skip this one.

This despite its title is a love story rather than a biopic of James Dean . The film starts with a voice over from Pier Angeli and the first 40 minutes revolves around her romance with James Dean which is a severe disappointment if you`re watching this expecting to learn much about the legend that was James Dean . The only bits that rise above mediocre is when the film ignores the love story and concentrates on Dean`s career , his fireworks with the Hollywood film makers , and his explanation on " Group dynamics " to a young gang leader . But that`s not enough to save the film from being a waste of time . And I`d just like to add my voice to the chorus that if it wasn`t for the inclusion of a few swear words I would have staked my life that this was a TVM . It contains all the production values and flaws that TVMs are infamous for

I bought this movie because I love James Dean and think Casper Van Dien is cool too. When I watched this movie, I was disappointed that it was more of a cheesy fictional story that depicted Dean as a real jerk. Yes some of those things happened but I felt that Casper wasn't James Dean, that he was some misc. character. I hated Casper's acting. What was up with the eyebrows?! James Dean never acted like that. This movie is truely a disgrace to the James Dean legacy. If you guys really want to watch an awesomely acted James Dean recreation movie, watch James Dean starring James Franco. Its the best one I've seen next to the real thing.

Try as he may Casper Van Dien could not overcome the bad casting as James Dean in James Dean: Race With Destiny. I'm not sure anyone could have played the part and not be criticized as Dean has become such an iconic figure for America's young.

He does his best, but the guy who played such an All American hero as John Rico in Starship Troopers and made a terrifically hunky screen Tarzan is just too white bread for the part of James Dean. Van Dien just does not suggest a rebel persona that would be so essential to playing Dean. Maybe the late River Phoenix or Leonardo DiCaprio might have done justice to the role, but they themselves have some rather fixed images.

The story line is about roughly the last year of Dean's 24 year time on earth. We meet him first making East of Eden and driving folks like Jack Warner and director Elia Kazan crazy with his driving. When not successful in wooing Pier Angeli, Dean courts other women like an up and coming Ursula Andress and spends his time racing his motorcycle or his automobile.

If we're to believe this, all might have gone well for Dean and Angeli had they been able to settle down and marry. Sad to say though Dean could not overcome the handicap of not being Italian. Pier Angeli and her sister Marisa Pavan were dominated by their mother in the same way as Jean Harlow was, as Natalie Wood was. Diane Ladd plays the domineering mother and she's got a husband picked out for Pier in the person of singer Vic Damone. Jimmy's willing to become the best Catholic ever, but can't change his ancestry.

Of course one big flaw in this film is that it completely ignores James Dean's other sexual side. It's been reported in any number of places that Dean had a gay side to him. That might have been more of a problem than not being Italian.

Casper Van Dien's wife at the time, Carrie Mitchum plays Pier Angeli. She is the granddaughter of that other screen icon Robert Mitchum and the Van Diens got Mitchum to play a couple of scenes as director George Stevens of Giant. In a few months Mitchum would be no longer with us and it's horrifying to see the ravages of lung cancer in him.

Though I think Casper Van Dien was miscast as James Dean, I'm not sure even the alternatives I mentioned could have stood up to the criticism leveled at this film. James Dean still looms large in our collective conscious, maybe too large.

I bought this movie because I have enjoyed the few films that Casper Van Dien has made. He does a credible job of portraying James Dean. Details of his Hollywood life came out that I had not known at the time of Dean's life (i.e. his relationships with Pier Angeli and Ursula Andress). What proved most discouraging were the "terrible" Italian accents (particularly from an accomplished actress like Diane Ladd) and from the Mitchum girl. I also found the background music uneven and sometimes so loud the dialog was muted. What might have been a good film came off as pretty amateurish.