I watched Rebel Without a Cause last night and I think it has got to be one of the weirdest movies I’ve ever seen. As I was watching it, I was thinking, “This is a terrible movie! Why is this movie so well known, loved, and respected?” And yet, today, I can’t stop thinking about it and how strange it was. James Dean was, I admit, fascinating. He reminded me a lot of Brad Pitt. Sam Mineo played an interesting character – and he reminded me of Ralph Macchio. (Are we just regurgitating film stars?) Oh, and by the way, the homosexual innuendos were not that innuendoish.
The movie was weird from the very beginning (although I did like the opening with James Dean and the monkey). But in the police station – the weird questioning by the cops. The cops acting as counselors. The policeman taking Dean into the other room.
And, the questioning of Sam Mineo! “Why’d you shoot those puppies?” “Where’d you get the gun?” And he’s at school the next day?
Natalie Wood – and her father? How weird was that? And, Wood’s face is like putty – during the scene where she’s being questioned by the police, I felt like I could reach out and move her features around.
Overall, the movie was painfully slow paced and the dialogue was so awkward. And, everything happened in one day? Wood’s boyfriend just died in a horrible accident and now she’s in love with Dean? Her boyfriend – whom she seemed to like (and, it looked as if she was going to jump off the cliff after him) - was just killed! What happened to a mourning period?
Oh, and totally weird – Dean’s parents’ smile at the end? What was up with that?
AND, that guy walking into the planetarium as the credits are rolling. Isn’t that a crime scene? Didn’t a boy just get shot by police on those steps? And he’s just walking past the police cars, up the walk, up the steps…time to go to work.
The whole movie was so effing weird!
Puzzle #28 was better than #27. I was happy to see the tried and true clues/answers “Canadian gas brand,” ESSO, “Island of Napoleon’s exile,” ELBA, and “Sea eagle,” ERNE. TRICE showed up again as an answer – the clue was “Instant.” I learned this in Puzzle #14.
There were a few clues I just couldn’t figure out. They were:
43 across, “Opposite of ja,” NEIN.
47 across, “Mythical being with horns.” SATYR. WikiP tells me that they are almost identical to fauns – half goat and half man. WikiP says, “In mythology (satyrs) are often associated with sex drive and vase-painters often portrayed them with perpetual erections.” Those vase painters.
26 down, “North Carolina’s ____ University.” ELON.
27 down, “Swings around.” SLUES. MW tells me that slue is a variant of slough. And, a variant of slew. Slew, as a transitive verb, means “1. to turn (as a telescope or a ship’s spar) about a fixed point that is usually the axis, 2. To cause to skid.” As an intransitive verb, it means “1. To turn, twist, or swing about, 2. Skid.”
37 down, “Inter ____.” ALIA. Apparently inter alia means “among other things.”
41 down, “Theater intermission.” ENTRACTE. WikiP tells me that “entr’acte is French for ‘between the acts.’”
Errors:
51 across, “Gives the gas,” REVS UP. I had revs it.
53 down, “Ignored, as a bridge suit.” UNBID. I had inbid.
54 down, “Hurdles for H.S. juniors.” PSATS. I had TSATS.
Answers I got, but don’t really know are:
1 across, “British rule in India.” RAJ. WikiP says “British Raj primarily refers to the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947.”
49 across, “Playing card dot.” PIP. There’s Gladys Knight and the Pips. There’s PIP Printing. The third entry for pip in MW says, “one of the dots used on dice and dominoes to indicate numerical value.”
9 down, “____ Sea, which is really a lake.” ARAL. It’s that huge lake in Kazakhstan that is shrinking and you can see old ships just sitting on the ground.
34 down, “Comin’ ____ the Rye.” THRO. Comin’ Thro the Rye is a Scottish poem/song written by Robert Burns.
I don’t know, I feel like #28 had some pretty obscure clues and answers.
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