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List Price: $26.98 | | Label: Warner Home Video
Salesrank: 6204
Released: May 31, 2005 |
| Our Price: $7.99 |
| Used Price: $8.25 |
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MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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| Features:
AC-3 Closed-captioned Color Dolby Dubbed DVD-Video Special Edition Subtitled Widescreen NTSC | |
Editorial Review:
Based on John Steinbeck's novel and directed by Elia Kazan, East of Eden is the first of three major films that make up James Dean's movie legacy. The 24-year-old idol-to-be plays Cal, a wayward Salinas Valley youth who vies for the affection of his hardened father (Raymond Massey) with his favored brother Aron (Richard Davalos). Playing off the haunting sensitivity of Julie Harris, Dean's performance earned one of the film's four Academy Award nominations.* Among the movie's stellar performances, Jo Van Fleet won the Oscar as Best Supporting Actress.
Description of East of Eden (Two-Disc Special Edition):
East of Eden is an acknowledged classic, and the starring debut of James Dean lifts it to legendary status. John Steinbeck's novel gave director Elia Kazan a perfect Cain-and-Abel showcase for Dean's iconic screen persona, casting the brooding star as Cal, the younger of two brothers vying for the love of their Bible-thumping father (Raymond Massey) in Monterey, California, at the dawn of World War I. Massey is a lettuce farmer, striving for market domination with an ill-fated refrigeration scheme. Having discovered that his presumed-dead mother (Oscar® winner Jo Van Fleet) is a brothel owner in nearby Salinas, Cal convinces her to finance an investment that will restore his father's lost fortune, but neither money nor the tenderness of his brother's fiancée (Julie Harris) can assuage Cal's anguished need for paternal acceptance that comes nearly too late. Kazan's oblique camera angles and Dean's tortured emoting may seem extreme by latter-day standards, but their theatrics make East of Eden a timeless tale of family secrets and hard-won affection. --Jeff Shannon
East of Eden (Two-Disc Special Edition) Reviews:
James Dean is really good in this 
2008-08-06 - James Dean first Movie, EAST OF EDEN, is based on the book, i liked this movie because James Dean gives a really good profomance and its a good story.
Cal and Aaron are twins. there father told them there mother is dead, he also seems to like Aaron better then Cal. Cal is a rebal with everything he does, he finds out his mother is still alive, and all the while trys to make his father accept him...
Wonderful Movie 
2008-07-19 - This is my favorite James Dean movie. It is definitely worth buying. Very highly recommended.
Finally! So excited about this DVD version
2008-07-16 - This is one of the best films ever made by an amazing director and an amazing cast!!
The only thing that really draws from the DVD is the commentary option. The man who comments on the film is HORRIBLE. He is obviously jealous of pretty much all the actors in the cast, especially Jimmy and Julie. Most everything thing he says is critical of them and the film. I wish I could write to someone who can eliminate his commentary and get someone who really knows the film and is not jealous.
Amazing film though!!!!!
One of the Great Films!
2008-04-14 - This is one of the great films. The drama is so stirring I have the most pained look on my face at the end of this film as I try not to cry before I inevitably do. James Dean made three films and all were great but this one is the best. He was truly a great actor and a great loss. The other actors are just as skilled and the director Elia Kazan makes the most out of his actors. This disk contains not just a great print of the film but several terrific special features. The commentary with Richard Schickel is absorbing enough to keep you glued to the television set for another two and half hours. Just a wonderful movie.
Can you look at the truth, just once?
2008-03-08 - East of Eden
This classic film starring James Dean has all sorts of biblical references and parallels. It s a moving journey of Cal, a young man on a quest for truth and some semblance of love.
This narrative unfolds with rich detail, nicely capturing the pre-WWI era in America. Cal is a loner and a rebel. The pieces of his past are slowly unveiled to explain his lost sense of desperation and need. He yearns for his father's acceptance, and is jealous of his brother's relationship with him. Plus there is a secret attraction to his brother's fiance, which adds another level of drama to the story.
Dean dishes out a spectacular performance here. This moody, rebellious character seems to fit him perfectly. I'm anxious to see more of his work.
The dialogue is a bit dated, but it fits the setting which is nearly a century ago. Much of the themes of this film are timeless. I also like how nothing is sugar-coated, it makes the story more realistic. It explores deep into the dark corners of man. The temptations, insecurities, wrongdoings. It's life, the good and the bad.
A true classic, very entertaining and heartfelt.
