New staff publication: Rebel Without a Cause by Glyn Davis

Rebel Without a Cause was published on 13 November by BFI/Bloomsbury, as part of the BFI Film Classics series.

In his study of Nicholas Ray's landmark of post-war American cinema, Prof Glyn Davis foregrounds the concept of rebellion, exploring in detail what it meant to be a rebel in the 1950s, the role that cinema has played in articulating rebellion and providing a haven for rebels, and why James Dean's archetypal depiction of a teenage rebel has endured. Ray's film, Davis argues, has an ambiguous stance on rebellion, depicting both the lure and the terror of rejecting conformity.

To launch the book, Prof Davis will be introducing screenings of Dean's three feature films (East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause, and Giant) at the Filmhouse in Edinburgh in December 2025.