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The Waterboys have enlisted Fiona Apple to contribute her distinctive, gritty vocals and sweeping piano to their new song, “Letter from an Unknown Girlfriend.” Stream it below.

The track is taken from their upcoming album, Life, Death & Dennis Hopper, and is written from the perspective of a woman calling out her former abuser. “I used to say/ No man would ever strike me,” Apple sings. “And no man ever did/ ‘Til I met you.”

As the album’s liner notes point out, “‘Letter from an Unknown Girlfriend’ could be addressed to a controlling, abusive partner in any decade, any century.”

This isn’t Apple’s first connection to The Waterboys. In 2019, she covered their 1985 song “The Whole of the Moon” for the finale of Showtime’s acclaimed series The Affair.

Life, Death & Dennis Hopper (pre-order here) is set for release on April 4th via Sun Records. “The arc of [Hopper’s] life...

James Deanis one of the single most iconic movie stars of all time, as he launched his career at the height of the “Golden Age of Hollywood” by adopting a “rebel” persona that was quite attractive to younger viewers, who felt like they had an idol that represented them on screen. Dean only ever starred in three films, but Rebel Without A Cause, East of Eden, and Giant were hailed as instant classics and are still met with praise today for their tremendous influence. Despite the fact that Dean’s life was cut short by a car accident, he’s still remembered as being one of the key figures in cinema’s evolution in the 1950s. An attempt to tell his life story may have gone awry, but Lifeunpacks the legacy of Dean by showing his relationship with the iconic photographer Dennis Stock, who is played in a standout performance by Robert Pattinson.

Quick LinksOriginally, Vin Diesel Wanted to Leave The Fast and the Furious AloneVin Diesel Became a Producer so He Could Have Creative Control

The Fast & Furious (also known as The Fast and the Furious) franchise is one of the largest ongoing franchises of the modern era. Everyone has heard of Fast & Furious and even if they aren't fans, they've probably seen a movie or two. The franchise is Universal Pictures' most successful franchise, with the Jurassic Park/Jurassic World franchise and the Despicable Me franchise not far behind.

When fans think about the Fast & Furious franchise, they likely think of fast cars, cool car chases, monologs about family, and, of course, Vin Diesel. Vin Diesel plays Dominic "Dom" Toretto in almost every Fast & Furious film out there, of which there are many. He even voiced Dom in an animated series called Fast and Furious Spy Racers (2019-2021) and the video game,...

The Academy Awards, more commonly known as the Oscars, is one of the most coveted awards to receive in cinema. Many actors, directors, writers, and cinemaphotographers spend their entire careers seeking one of these awards. Last year, Christopher Nolan finally won his first two Oscars. Despite winning hundreds of awards worldwide throughout his career, Nolan lacked any Academy Award wins until Oppenheimer, which earned Nolan the Oscars for Best Motion Picture of the Year and Best Achievement in Directing. While Nolan can now call himself an Academy Award winner, many of Hollywood's greatest filmmakers cannot make the same claim.

Throughout American film history, many of Hollywood's all-time great directors have gone their whole careers without winning an Academy Award. Some, like Paul Thomas Anderson and Richard Linklater, have received many Oscar nominations but never claimed victory. Others, like Fritz Lang, shockingly never managed to garner a single Academy Award nomination despite making many iconic movies.

Warner Bros. Discovery has partnered with rights firm Cutting Edge Group in a joint venture which will co-own the studio’s catalog of film and TV music from its blockbusters.

As part of the joint venture, Wbd will have creative and operational control of the music rights, while Cutting Edge Group will jointly manage the joint venture. The companies did not disclose the financials involved in the deal but called the creation of the joint venture “one of the largest music deals ever transacted.”

The catalog includes music from the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings franchises, DC Comics movies, as well as TV shows such as Friends, Game of Thrones, The Big Bang Theory, Two and Half Men, Succession and The White Lotus. Additional films and TV series in the scenario include Rebel Without a Cause, The Exorcist, A Star is Born, Blade Runner, Shawshank Redemption, The West Wing,...

At 15, Nicolas Cage got his first job at Fairfax Cinema on Beverly, and the actor couldn’t have been more thrilled about it. While his job boiled down to selling popcorn and tickets, Cage would often stand in the back of the theater and dream about making his transition to the big screen.

Nicolas Cage | Credit: Guillaume Paumier, Cc By 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

During this time, the actor also discovered James Dean’s works, which continue to influence actors and filmmakers to this date, and Cage’s case was no different, as this experience solidified his acting ambitions.

The James Dean film that solidified Nicolas Cage’s acting goals East of Eden | Credit: Warner Bros.

While Hollywood icon James Dean‘s career only spanned five years before his tragic passing, his contribution to cinema remains immense, which influenced a generation of method actors, including Nicolas Cage and Jack Nicholson. Cage,...

“I was sure none of these people at the Actors Studio actually considered me an actor. I was a pretty boy, a real conventional kid who somehow had staggered into this mélange." - Paul Newman, The Extraordinary Life Of An Ordinary Man

For Montgomery Clift, there was Howard Hawks’ Red River...

Timothée Chalamet and the late James Dean are the only men who have earned two Best Actor Oscar nominations before the age of 30, according to film historian Mark Harris (per Bluesky). Chalamet was first nominated for the prestigious acting Academy Award thanks to his work in the coming-of-age romance, Call Me by Your Name (2017), and then he picked up another nod back on Jan. 23 for portraying legendary musician Bob Dylan in the must-see biopic, A Complete Unknown.

Hollywood icon James Dean tragically died at the age of 24 on Sept. 30, 1955, during a head-on collision in the rural California community of Cholame. Dean’s death came less than a month before his unforgettable feature film, Rebel Without a Cause, began its theatrical run in October 1955. The following year, the once up-and-coming phenom was nominated posthumously for his first Best Actor Academy Award thanks to his indelible work in the classic East of Eden,...

Timothée Chalamet, after netting a best actor Oscar nomination for his role in A Complete Unknown on Thursday, has become the youngest multiple best actor nominee since James Dean.

On Thursday, film historian Mark Harris on his Bluesky account noted Chalamet had become the first to nab two best actor nominations from the Academy before turning 30, but only after following Dean.

The Hollywood icon, who died in a car crash in 1955 when he was 24, that same year received an Oscar nomination as the young hero in Elia Kazan’s screen version of John Steinbeck’s novel East of Eden. Dean got a second posthumous nom for 1956’s Giant movie. Dean had been driving in his Porsche Spyder when he got into a head-on collision on a California highway, causing his untimely death.

Dean also died a month before the release of his most memorable movie, Rebel Without a Cause, where he played disaffected,...

All titles below begin streaming for free on February 1 unless otherwise noted.

Originals

Action

Earthquake Underground (2/29)

When a massive earthquake submerges several subway cars underground, a group of misfit passengers band together to get to the surface or die trying.

Vice News Presents: Mass Shooting America (2/7)

An unflinching look at the true scope and scale of gun violence in America, as told by those who’ve experienced it first-hand.

Love You To Death: Mommy’S Missing (2/14)

The case of a missing mother reveals twisted family secrets that leave a trail of flames, arrests, and deaths in their wake.

TMZ No Bs: Miley Cyrus (2/24)

Harvey Levin and his team of TMZ experts discuss Miley Cyrus’ meteoric rise to fame and debate her biggest scandals and successes.

Love You To Death: For Love Or Money (2/28)

The shooting of a beloved Cleveland firefighter leads detectives to uncover a shocking plot for money gone very wrong.

Since James Dean's life was tragically cut short in a car accident when he was only 24 years old, he only ended up starring in three movies. Be that as it may, all three films has left an indelible mark on popular culture. With his narrow eyes and a cigarette dangling from his pursed lips, combined with the tight jeans and white shirts bursting from his wiry frame, Dean quickly created a brooding mystique that always seemed destined for Hollywood infamy.

Dean himself was a Method actor bad boy in the vein of Marlon Brando, though less brutish and more melancholic and sensitive. Beneath his tough-guy exterior, Dean also carried an inner weight that made his performances so achingly vulnerable. He was a handsome, tragic hero with a world-weary maturity who not only captivated 1950s audiences, but generations of moviegoers that followed as well. Let's rank the three movies that made him such a star.

As promised, the Waterboys have shared the first single from their upcoming concept album about the life of actor Dennis Hopper, “Hopper’s on Top (Genius).”

Stationed near the midway point of the epic, 25-track Life, Death and Dennis Hopper, the new song captures the film icon at a pivotal moment in his career, when the actor — after a string of bit parts in classics like Cool Hand Luke and True Grit — found himself behind the camera to direct the landmark 1969 counterculture hit Easy Rider.

Keeping with the spirit of that film classic,...

Jim Backus began his acting career in the 1940s, lending his voice to myriad radio dramas and animated shorts. He was a recognizable staple in Hollywood throughout the 1950s and 1960s, having appeared in films like "Rebel Without a Cause," "The Naked Hills," "Man of a Thousand Faces," "Zotz!," "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World," and dozens of others. Also throughout the same period, Backus voiced the whimsically aged Mister Magoo in many, many cartoons. In addition, he headlined his own sitcom, "The Jim Backus Show," and appeared on "The Untouchables." He was capable of dramatic work, comedic work, and everything in between. By the time Backus played Thurston Howell III on Sherwood Schwartz's 1964 sitcom "Gilligan's Island," he was a massive star, deeply entrenched in Hollywood. Backus was certainly the biggest celebrity on the series and his involvement even led to some major last-minute rewrites.

"Gilligan's Island," however,...

The Waterboys will return in 2025 with a new album revolving around the life of legendary actor Dennis Hopper, with an impressive guest list — including Bruce Springsteen and Fiona Apple — helping the long-running U.K. rockers along the musical journey.

Life, Death and Dennis Hopper, due out April 4th via the band’s new label Sun Records, is an ambitious 25-track “song cycle” that charts not only the late actor’s life story but also the past 75 years of Western pop culture.

“The arc of his life was the story of our times,...

When you're making a movie, you can only control so much. You can meticulously plan your shots; you can account for every dollar of your budget in advance; you can hire all the best people to make sure each department completes its mission at the highest caliber. The world is random and full of tragedy, however, and sometimes, film productions have to deal with shocking, unexpected loss. When an actor dies while still in production on a movie, that can send a production reeling.

It's happened many times in the past. For example, James Dean had just finished shooting "Giant" when he died in a car crash, only 24 years old. Because his part still required a significant amount of Adr, his "Rebel Without a Cause" co-star Nick Adams dubbed over many of his lines.

Sometimes, movies don't recover. However, these days — especially thanks to the advent of CGI and other...

Many of Hollywood's most famous and admired actors cut their teeth on cheesy horror movies before ever becoming household names. One especially under-the-radar example is Viggo Mortensen's early role in Prison (1987). More than a decade before earning international stardom as Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the future Oscar nominee portrayed an unassuming but heroic convict who discovers that his prison is being haunted by a vengeful spirit. Despite its 40% Rotten Tomatoes score, this film deserves a second chance, as it features some truly heart-pounding scares, a foreboding atmosphere, and even some disturbingly relevant social commentary.

Before He Was Aragorn, Viggo Mortensen Was in 'Prison'

The film centers on the doomed re-opening of the Wyoming State Penitentiary after having been closed for over two decades. Shortly after the first inmates arrive, the angry spirit of an executed prisoner from years past begins gruesomely murdering several prisoners and guards.

Home to some of the best series ever made, Max is no stranger to showcasing quality television shows. While Dune: Prophecy and House of the Dragon might be done for the time being, the streaming service has plenty of worthwhile shows scheduled for release next month. Whether viewers want to laugh or cry, they’re likely to find something on the platform.

With lots of animated shows slated for release, adults and children alike will have various options to choose from. The forthcoming series might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but for those looking for something new to explore, they’ll certainly find it on Max. No matter what curious viewers are in the mood for, the streaming platform has them covered.

'Reframed: Next Gen Narratives' (Season 1) Stream on January 1

A unique series, Reframed: Next Gen Narratives adapts six classic movies, each with a different filmmaker, and provides...

Taylor Dearden, Patrick Marron Ball, and Noah Wyle in ‘The Pitt’ (Photograph by Max/Warrick Page)

Max is kicking off the new year with the series premiere of The Pitt, a medical drama that puts ER star Noah Wyle back in scrubs and playing the chief attendant in Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital’s emergency room. Max’s January 2025 lineup also includes the season five premiere of the critically acclaimed, comic book-inspired animated series Harley Quinn, and the series debut of Isadora Moon, based on the bestselling book series.

Season 23 of Real Time with Bill Maher and the premieres of A24’s The Front Room, Look Into My Eyes, and A Different Man stream on Max in January.

Max January 2025 Lineup

January 1

5 Things with Kate Bolduan (CNN)

A Star is Born (1937)

Act of Valor (2012)

All Elite Wrestling: 2019 PPV Events (5 Episodes) (2024)

All Elite Wrestling: Collision 2024 (5 Episodes), Season 2

All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite 2019 (12 Episodes...

The teen movie genre has taken on many forms over the years. From James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause to the glory days of John Hughes, many hits have resonated with teen audiences and continue to do so even after entering adulthood. Not every film has aged well, and even fewer have been perfect, but many still hold true to any teen and add something of value.

While some actors have gone out on a high note with extremely memorable final films, there are other performers whose final roles may surprise viewers. Whether they passed away or retired, it’s always sad to say goodbye to icons of Hollywood, although sometimes their final roles were overshadowed by other work in their acclaimed careers. In some cases, a late-career performance was so popular that many viewers wrongly think it was their final swansong, or other times, a lackluster final movie tarnished an actor's legacy so much that it was best just forgotten about entirely.

Even though some of these actors’ final movies weren’t their most memorable or acclaimed, it’s important to note that a great Hollywood career is based on the cumulative works of a performer, and no actor should be judged on their last performance alone. With this in mind, it’s also essential to...

Over the course of several decades, Jim Backus starred in more than 100 films and dozens of TV shows. During that time, the man displayed a unique range that saw him portray the ineffectual patriarch of the Stark family in "Rebel Without a Cause" and voice the beloved cartoon character Mr. Magoo from 1949 to 1989. But Backus' also gained fame by playing another millionaire: the elitist Thurston Howell III in "Gilligan's Island."

The actor was there from the very beginning, when his "Gilligan's Island" casting as Howell caused last-minute rewrites. Backus stuck around for all three seasons of the CBS sitcom before then voicing the character for the animated spinoffs "Gilligan's Planet" and "The New Adventures of Gilligan." But he also reprised the role in live-action for all three TV movies: "The Castaways on Gilligan's Island," "Rescue From Gilligan's Island," and, "The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island."

Sadly, his appearance in the...

Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group has struck a deal with Cj Enm, the backer of Bong Joon Ho’s Oscar-winning “Parasite” and Celine Song’s acclaimed “Past Lives,” to develop, finance and distribute English-language and Korean-language remakes of each studio’s films.

Through the new agreement, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group will take the lead on English-language remakes of Cj Enm’s library, while Cj Enm will spearhead Korean-language adaptations of Warner Bros. films.

Each studio will be responsible for the development and productive of their respective remakes, though the other company will provide input on creative decisions like the project’s writer, director, producer, cast and budget. Warner Bros. Pictures will serve as distributor globally on all films, with the exception of Cj Enm handling the rollout of its remakes in South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia and Turkey.

“Miky Lee, Cj vice chairwoman, and the team at Cj Enm have...

It's hard to think of a sitcom that typecast its actors more severely than "Gilligan's Island." Even though it only aired for three seasons, the slapstick comedy series about seven castaways marooned on a desert island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean proved inescapable professionally for its entire ensemble.

This was partly due to the albatross of syndication. After its cancellation, "Gilligan's Island" quickly became a favorite with undiscriminating couch potatoes, who got off on the show's laughably simple formula, inane gags, and colorful locale. They loved watching Bob Denver's blundering Gilligan repeatedly sabotage every single effort to get off the island, Ginger doing just about anything, and the Howells somehow living in the lap of bamboo luxury.

The show's enduring popularity was understandably bad news for the future endeavors of its younger performers, particularly Denver, Tina Louise, and Dawn Wells, all three of whom lacked a strong enough pre-...

A new movie is in development that will take an in-depth look at a hidden chapter from iconic actor James Dean’s life. The biopic, tentatively called “Surviving James Dean,” focuses on Dean’s college years and his previously undisclosed romantic involvement with his male roommate.

The film is based on the 2006 memoir “Surviving James Dean” by William Bast. According to the book, Bast and Dean met as 19-year-olds attending the University of California, Los Angeles’ theater program. They developed a close friendship that eventually turned romantic. Guy Guido acquired the rights to Bast’s story and plans to both write and direct the upcoming movie.

Guido has enjoyed Dean’s acting and has studied his life for over 20 years. He saw value in exploring Dean and Bast’s relationship, which Hollywood had tried to cover up. The biopic will depict how their romance evolved from their freshman year of...

A new biopic about James Dean is now in development. Dean was an actor who had a short but notable career in the 1950s. During this short-lived career, he starred in films such as East of Eden and Rebel Without A Cause. The actor was extremely popular for a short time in this era, but his career abruptly ended when he tragically passed away in a car crash in 1955. He was only 24 years old.

Now, The Hollywood Reporter has announced that a James Dean biopic is in the works. The biopic will explore Dean's personal life, documenting a time when he was in college. The film will be based on the 2006 memoir Surviving James Dean by William Bast, wherein Bast chronicles his close friendship and later romantic relationship with the famous actor. The rights for Bast's memoir have been acquired by writer-director Guy Guido, who will work on the film.

James Dean's life is getting the big screen treatment, and the project has officially found its director. With the right person set to helm the film, the quest is underway to secure producers and the appropriate actors to play Dean and other key figures in the life of the young actor, who tragically died at the age of 24.

Per The Hollywood Reporter, writer and director Guy Guido has secured the rights to the 2006 memoir Surviving James Dean and has tasked himself with writing and directing the feature. Based on the work of the late author William Bast, Surviving James Dean is an insightful look into the author's five-year relationship with the Rebel Without a Cause actor, including how they met at UCLA, engaged in a relationship with the same woman, and had their own sexual relationship. Dean ultimately died five years after meeting Bast in a tragic accident at...

Late actor James Dean has been one of the most noted pop culture icons in Hollywood history. The actor was known for his roles in Rebel Without A Cause, Giant, and East of Eden, two of which were released posthumously. The actor became a symbol of rebellion and masculinity for a whole new generation after his untimely death at the age of 24.

One of the biggest mysteries surrounding Dean was his sexuality. Many have speculated that he was gay or even bisexual. Several biographers have made the claim, including some claiming that he and Marlon Brando had a s*xual relationship. However, one statement from an old interview with Dean can put all the rumors to rest.

James Dean’s Statement From An Old Interview Squashes Gay Rumors James Dean in Rebel Without A Cause | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures

When James Dean became the symbol of masculinity for a whole new generation,...

The moniker of 'icon' is bandied about pretty readily in Hollywood these days, but when it comes to James Dean, the star of Giant, East Of Eden, and Rebel Without A Cause who tragically died at just 24 years of age in 1955, it's one that's well deserved. And as our cultural fascination with the actor continues to endure, so too do new works based on his life. Now, per THR's reporting, it looks like the latest is set to be Surviving James Dean, a movie from writer-director Guy Guido based on William Bast's eponymous 2006 memoir.

Bast's second book about Dean having already been his close friend's first biographer way back in 1956, Surviving James Dean offers a more personal insight into the duo's relationship. Bast's book chronicles the two men's evolving bond as they went from UCLA roommates to close friends to lovers, their romantic ties kept quiet at the...

The offer couldn’t even be refused because it was never made. But though Paramount passed him over for the role of Sonny Corleone in the “The Godfather” in favor of James Caan, Robert De Niro’s audition for the doomed eldest Corleone son is something that still impresses Francis Ford Coppola to this day.

“He had an unforgettable audition for Sonny Corleone, that, uh, was so in advance of what I even could imagine because he really nailed that kind of a guy,” Coppola said at a Q&a before the New York premiere of “Megalopolis” September 23. Seated beside him were De Niro and Spike Lee with moderating duties performed by New York Film Festival artistic director Dennis Lim.

Earlier this summer, Coppola actually shared clips of that audition footage and remarked that he had offered De Niro, then an unknown, the part of Paulie Gatto in the film...

Akira is not only famous in the anime and manga sphere but also pop-culture in general. Critics and movie directors alike refer to Akira as one of the greatest and most influential films of the past 30 years. So it’s no wonder fans discredited Stephen Spielberg and George Lucas for turning the film down because it wouldn’t suit western audiences.

According to Manga Entertainment co-creator Andy Frain, Akira shaped modern sci-fi as people know it today. Films like Midnight Special, Looper, The Matrix, Chronicle, Inception, and even the TV show Stranger Things, all borrowed thematically and stylistically from Akira. In fact, two of those five movies even feature a child with destructive telekinetic powers as one of the main plot points.

Keanu Reeves in The Matrix | Credits: Warner Bros.

On the other hand, the creator of Akira admitted that he used not only Japanese media but also Hollywood movies...

In his latest podcast/interview, host and screenwriter Stuart Wright talks to filmmakers Toby Poser & John Adams about their 3rd horror movie Where the Devil Roams and “3 Films That Have Impacted Everything In Your Adult Life,” which includes:

Toby Poser’s choices:

Bad News Bears (1976) Rebel Without A Cause (1955) Jaws (1975)

John Adams’ choices:

Barry Lyndon (1975) Phantasm (1979) First Blood (1982)

“3 Films That Have Impacted Everything In Your Adult Life” is about those films that made you fall in love with film. The guest selects their trio of movies and we talk for 5 minutes, against the clock. When the alarm goes off for five minutes we move on to the next film.

Where the Devil Roams is available to watch now on Tubi.

Powered by RedCircle...

According to tradition, debutante balls are designed to introduce young ladies to polite society. But in Australian comedy star Rebel Wilson’s rowdy directorial debut, “The Deb,” there isn’t really anything that resembles “polite society.” Wilson’s characters run the gamut from uncouth to in-your-face offensive — none more than the tacky small-town beautician Wilson embodies in a brash, John Waters-esque musical satire, situated where overzealous progressive values meet old-school pageantry at its most patriarchal.

It’s unfortunate that the film’s Toronto Film Festival closing-night premiere is overshadowed by legal disputes between Wilson and three of her producers, since “The Deb” delivers where it counts. The project pokes fun at all parties while rewriting the codes of teenage romance for the 21st century. Right out of the gate, it’s “Hairspray” meets “High School Musical,” as the elaborately choreographed, radio-inappropriate opening number, “Fml,” sets the tone for all that follows.

Some sitcom actors only ever get one really great role, but Jim Backus had several. The actor, who played wealthy Wall Street regular Thurston Howell III on the popular castaway series "Gilligan's Island," had already made a name for himself by the show's premiere in 1964. He'd appeared regularly on the radio before TV was the dominant media of the time, and voiced the nearly blind cartoon character Mr. Magoo beginning in 1949. Backus also played a key role in Nicholas Ray's 1955 teen movie "Rebel Without A Cause," portraying the father who falls short when James Dean's angsty antihero Jim Stark needs him.

A few years before "Gilligan's Island," Backus even got his own show, aptly named "The Jim Backus Show" in the style of the time. In the Backus-led series, which was also called "Hot Off the Wire," the actor played a man named Mike O'Toole, who was attempting...

A John Steinbeck novel and classic James Dean film, East Of Eden is set for a Netflix TV adaptation starring Florence Pugh and Christopher Abbot.

James Dean famously only made three films, one of them being a film adaptation of East Of Eden. The original novel was by John Steinbeck, that giant of American literature, and his transplanting of the Adam, Eve, Cain and Abel Biblical tale into a sprawling early 20th Century Californian epic remains a wonderful read.

The 1955 film was responsible for building James Dean’s status as a Hollywood legend, a status that would be forever confirmed by his death the same year, shortly before the release of Rebel Without A Cause. Steinbeck’s book covers a significantly longer period than the 1955 film, so much in fact that it would take a TV series to do it justice. Rejoice then, because that’s exactly what we’re getting.

It’s hard to believe, but the concept of the teenager is younger than film as a medium. According to historians, American culture first began thinking of the period between 13 to 19 as a specific bridge between childhood and adulthood in the 1940s, in part due to marketing executives looking to define people in that age range as a new demographic. And shortly afterwards, that demographic became ubiquitous on TV and films.

The first teen films began popping up in earnest during the 1950s, with landmark titles like “The Wild One,” “Blackboard Jungle,” and the enduringly iconic “Rebel Without a Cause.” Each film featured a bonafide screen legend — Marlon Brando in “The Wild One,” Sidney Poitier in “Blackboard Jungle,” and James Dean in his most iconic role in “Rebel Without a Cause” — and established films that took the emotional turmoil of teen life seriously as a vibrant subgenre. Since then, teens...

The Longest Day boasts one of the most iconic war movie ensembles ever assembled, rivaling even modern blockbusters like Saving Private Ryan. Featuring a star-studded cast with international talent, this 1962 film captures the intensity and historical significance of the D-Day landings. The camaraderie and talent displayed in The Longest Day's cast is a cinematic achievement that may never be replicated in today's film industry.

John Wayne's classic war movie The Longest Day still has one of the most war movie ensembles ever assembled. The Longest Day is often considered one of the greatest war movies about D-Day ever made and is right up there with other World War II classics such as Saving Private Ryan (1998). At 2 hours and 58 minutes long, The Longest Day offers a phenomenal depiction of the infamous D-Day landings at Normandy on June 6, 1944, a day that will always be remembered in American history.

While The...

All together now: “If you want to send a message, use Western Union.”

So goes the oft quoted maxim of producer Sam Goldwyn, speaking not in malapropism mode but properly enunciating a straightforward commandment for Hollywood filmmakers: keep your personal politics off screen and remember that the public comes to the motion picture theater for entertainment not lectures. Goldwyn’s rule was a guiding principle throughout the classical Hollywood era.*

The sentiment behind the saying is making a comeback. After being whiplashed by critics who’ve persistently linked box office disappointments to liberal political messaging, the success of the relatively talking points-free Twisters, A Quiet Place: Day One and Deadpool & Wolverine has revived the ancient wisdom.

Of course, Hollywood cinema has always telegraphed messages — often most effectively when it was unaware of sending them. In promoting the benefits of postwar capitalist democracy, no flag-waving lecture from an on-screen patriot...

Natalie Wood was the former child actress who racked up three Oscar nominations before she was 25, Wood’s life ended in a tragedy that often overshadows her movie career. Yet many of her titles remain classics, so let’s take a look back at 15 of her greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1938 in San Francisco, Wood snagged her first starring role when she was just nine years old in the holiday classic “Miracle on 34th Street” (1947), playing a precocious girl who tugs on Santa Claus’ beard. She earned her first Oscar nomination when she was 17 for the juvenile delinquent drama “Rebel Without a Cause” (Best Supporting Actress in 1955), which made an icon out of James Dean, who died before its release. Wood added two more Best Actress bids to her resume with the romantic melodramas “Splendor in the Grass” (1961) and “Love with the Proper Stranger” (1963).

Though she never won an Academy Award,...

Ever since his breakthrough feature Shotgun Stories, Jeff Nichols has been a filmmaker interested in authentic depictions of the human condition. Whether it's the brutal coming-of-age story of Mud, the intimate historical romance of Loving, the subversive superhero mythology of Midnight Special, or the disaster themes of Take Shelter, Nichols is able to take extraordinary premises and ground them in legitimate emotional stakes. Nichols latest feature, The Bikeriders, is a rip-roaring throwback to classic fight the system films like Easy Rider and Rebel Without a Cause, focusing on a defiant motorcycle group in the 1960s. Although it's a film that shows the extent of Nichols imagination, The Bikeriders was loosely inspired by real accounts of the 1960s.

Editor’s note: this list was originally published in May 2024. It has since been updated in honor of Father’s Day.

Every family relationship is fertile material for any film, but none have been pillaged quite as extensively as the father/son dynamic. Blame the patriarchy, perhaps, for centering the male experience far more extensively in fiction, resulting in films where daughters and mothers tend to fall by the wayside in favor of drama between the men of the family.

Still, filmmakers and their work respond to the imperfect culture we all live in, and the relationship between a father and son can act as a vehicle to explore powerful ideas on screen. Familial expectations, pressures to uphold legacies, and the emotional repression that often defines heterosexual male relationships inform many of cinema’s greatest father stories, which can frequently be boiled down to the (somewhat reductive) label of “daddy issue” dramas.

Will You Be My Ride or Die?: Chevrollier Ramps Up the Chaos in Portrait of Sons & Missing Fathers

Exploring themes of rebellion, shame, and unresolved anguish, La Pampa (aka Block Pass) delves into the profound challenges of articulating inner turmoil. This setup resembles Rebel Without a Cause, but with dirt bikes as the chosen mode of death-defying delinquency with daddy and in-the-closet issues to boot. Actors Sayyid El Alami and Amaury Foucher embody blood-brother dynamics in Antoine Chevrollier’s stagey, coming-of-age drama feature debut and while the film excels at portraying teenagers navigating an adult world, it sometimes fetiches the turmoil and silly wrong turns that the collective make.…...

Jim Backus' first major acting gig was playing a snotty millionaire named Dexter Hayes on the 1940 radio serial "Society Girl." This was to kick off a decades-long career in radio, film, and television, wherein Backus invented multiple indelible characters that remain a part of the pop fabric to this very day. He appeared on "The Jack Benny Program" and even briefly had his own TV show, "The Jim Backus Show" in 1957. He famously played the voice of Mr. Magoo from 1949 until his death in 1989, and starred in "Rebel Without a Cause." He was adept at playing clueless weirdos and self-absorbed egotists, although he had a great deal of comedic range. Be sure to listen to his hit comedy single "Delicious!" sometime. He elicits laughter without saying anything. I could list more credits, but we'd be here all day; Backus starred in over 100 films and shorts, and several dozen TV shows.

On Friday nights, IndieWire After Dark takes a feature-length beat to honor fringe cinema in the streaming age.

First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.

Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.

The Pitch: Discovering the Power of a Dick… Ahead of Its Time

Non-monogamy became a common topic of conversation this spring as Luca Guadagnino’s “Challengers” made any mention of pro tennis the conversational equivalent of a three-way sex invite.

On dating apps, searches for “open relationships” continued to rise in popularity just as reality television embraced multi-partnered dynamics through shows like Peacock’s “Couple to Throuple.” Even in 2024, polyamory isn’t outright “mainstream” by any stretch of the imagination(s). But as far as contemporary relationships are concerned, the “three’s...

Dennis Hopper was the Oscar-nominated performer who experienced many ups-and-downs throughout his career, with his off-screen antics often overshadowing his onscreen talent. Yet many of his movies have stood the test of time. Let’s take a look back at 15 of Hopper’s greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1936, Hopper made his movie debut at the age of 19 in “Rebel Without a Cause” (1955), where he became fast friends with James Dean. He had an even bigger role in “Giant” (1956), which would be Dean’s last film before his untimely death in 1955. Hopper struggled for several years trying to find his voice, making small appearances in such films as “Cool Hand Luke” (1967) and “True Grit”(1969).

He burst onto the scene with the counterculture phenomenon “Easy Rider” (1969), which he also directed and co-wrote (with co-star Peter Fonda and Terry Southern). The story of two bikers (Hopper and Fonda) traveling across...

For as long as “teenager” has been a demographic, there have been stories about teens breaking free from the status quo. While a lot of the modern great teen rebellion media is confined to the world of TV — where shows like “Euphoria” attract constant buzz — the archetypal troubled teen story remains 1955’s “Rebel Without a Cause.” Starring James Dean in unquestionably his defining role, a rebellious teen struggling with his demons in L.A., Nicholas Ray’s film spoke to young people at the time with its story of high schoolers struggling with, and going against, the social pressures that bring them down. Over the years it became a touchstone because its themes and its honesty transcends generations.

As the teen film has evolved and morphed as a genre, there’s always been room for stories of iconoclastic youth who don’t fit in with the status quo. Oftentimes, these...

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) has linked up with Fandango to add 30 classic films from the TCM catalog to the ticketing service’s streaming platform, Fandango at Home, as Deadline reports. All 30 films are available for purchase or rental now, and select films will be available to stream for free, rotating on a weekly basis.

Including iconic flicks like Rebel Without a Cause, The Dirty Dozen, and Cool Hand Luke, the first round of free movies is set to arrive later this week, with the promotion extending through May.

The new partnership arrives ahead of the 15th anniversary of the TCM Classic Film Festival, which is set to take place from April 18th to April 21st. As part of the initiative, Fandango is a presenting sponsor for the upcoming event.

“We are thrilled to join forces with Turner Classic Movies to provide fans access to beloved classic films, some for free for the first time,...

VOD streaming outlet Fandango at Home, formerly known as Vudu, has set a new partnership with Turner Classic Movies.

In addition to offering TCM titles available for rental or purchase on demand, the new digital storefront will allow viewers to watch a rotation of 30 titles available for free through the end of May. The first batch of films will arrive later this week, with the storefront’s free offerings then refreshed each week.

The free streaming initiative is tied to the 15th anniversary of the TCM Classic Film Festival. During this year’s edition, which runs April 18 to 21, Fandango at Home is setting up a “living room” promotional space at the Tcl Chinese on Hollywood Boulevard.

The 30 free films have all screened at the TCM festival over the years. Drawn from TCM’s collection of Warner Bros, MGM and Rko films, the list includes Cool Hand Luke, The Dirty Dozen,...

10 years before he recapitulated the outlaw legend of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, Arthur Penn made his directorial debut with a film about another famous outlaw. Paul Newman plays Billy the Kid in The Left Handed Gun (1957), a tragic Western whose vision of the Wild West is oriented around the dissonance between self and image, and which examines that dissonance with languid melodrama. A classical Western through and through, The Left Handed Gun combines those frontier sensibilities with those of a '50s teen melodrama. Think James Deen in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) but with a six-shooter and a cowboy hat. Before Sam Peckinpah's Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973), Penn renders the story of Billy as a disaffected youth, whose temperamental excess leads to an endless cycle of violence and a cult of celebrity that even he can't stomach.

Rebel Without a Cause offers a raw look at teenage rebellion & societal pressures, urging viewers to reflect on the struggles faced by young people. The film's tragic ending highlights the consequences of fear, misunderstanding, and the need for a compassionate understanding of youth. James Dean's portrayal of Jim Stark, marked by vulnerability & emotion, resonates with the film's themes of youthful disillusionment & fragility.

Directed by Nicholas Ray and released in 1955, Rebel Without a Cause captures the essence of teenage angst and disillusionment in post-war America. Starring the iconic James Dean, Natalie Wood, and Sal Mineo, it tells the story of Jim Stark (Dean), a troubled youth struggling to find his place in a society he sees as hypocritical and devoid of meaning. The film delves deep into themes of identity, familial dysfunction, and the desperate search for belonging, making it resonate with audiences then and now.

Its portrayal of teenage rebellion and angst was groundbreaking,...

Nicholas Ray was an influential American director active between the late 1940s and early '70s. His most famous movies are the brooding dramas Bigger than Life and Rebel Without a Cause, the latter widely considered the defining performance by James Dean. Aesthetically, Ray made bold use of color and frenetic, radical editing. In terms of themes, he frequently engaged with outsider characters and the constraints of society. This is reflected in his personal and professional life. For example, he was fiercely independent and notorious for clashing with the studios.