Rebel Without a Cause is a 1955 film, a story about a rebellious teenage boy, and all that is “teenage disillusionment.” Starring the late and great James Dean. This film brought Dean to Star status, for the dramatic and deeply emotional film. Researching trivia on the film I found out some very interesting facts. One being that T-shirt sales soared after Dean sported one throughout the film. Now you know whom to thank for the laid-back classic staple Fashionistos. Another was that throughout the film there is a symbolism of the color red. The three main characters wear the color red all in different ways symbolizing different things. James Dean’s character Jim wears a red jacket, which is a symbol of his rebellious nature. Judy, Jim’s love interest, wears red lipstick which later transitions to pink. The transition represents Judy’s relationship with her Father, exposing the way he makes her feel as if she’s over provocative into an understanding relationship. Plato wears one red sock. Of all the red color symbols in the film this is my favorite. The one red sock represents Plato’s confusion about relationships. These colors pop out at you when watching the film, they also represent the harmony of the characters.
This Fashionisto reminded me of this film. There is something rebellious about red. It is a powerful statement color and the way it is accented really sets the mood of a look. For example the fact that Judy the character from Rebel Without a Cause is wearing the red on her lips is an obvious statement on the topic of sexuality. The color red as you can see from above can have many different kinds of symbolic meaning. This Fashionisto piles on the rebellious nature of the look with a leather jacket. Pairing the leather with the red is classic, which is why it reminded me of this classic film. It is ironic really, a classic iconic look based on the rebellious mood of the look.
Hint: This Fashionisto does classic yet rebellious very well because he plays on the simplicity of the look with statement pieces. He is sporting simple black shoes, jeans, belt and white T- Shirt, with the statement pieces being the red hooded sweatshirt and leather jacket. Feel your inner Dean. Also if you haven’t seen this movie, you need to.
“I don’t want any trouble.” – James Dean as Jim Stark in Rebel Without a Cause
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