User Reviews

Try as he may Casper Van Dien could not overcome the bad casting as James Dean in James Dean: Race With Destiny. I'm not sure anyone could have played the part and not be criticized as Dean has become such an iconic figure for America's young.

He does his best, but the guy who played such an All American hero as John Rico in Starship Troopers and made a terrifically hunky screen Tarzan is just too white bread for the part of James Dean. Van Dien just does not suggest a rebel persona that would be so essential to playing Dean. Maybe the late River Phoenix or Leonardo DiCaprio might have done justice to the role, but they themselves have some rather fixed images.

The story line is about roughly the last year of Dean's 24 year time on earth. We meet him first making East of Eden and driving folks like Jack Warner and director Elia Kazan crazy with his driving. When not successful in wooing Pier Angeli, Dean courts other women like an up and coming Ursula Andress and spends his time racing his motorcycle or his automobile.

If we're to believe this, all might have gone well for Dean and Angeli had they been able to settle down and marry. Sad to say though Dean could not overcome the handicap of not being Italian. Pier Angeli and her sister Marisa Pavan were dominated by their mother in the same way as Jean Harlow was, as Natalie Wood was. Diane Ladd plays the domineering mother and she's got a husband picked out for Pier in the person of singer Vic Damone. Jimmy's willing to become the best Catholic ever, but can't change his ancestry.

Of course one big flaw in this film is that it completely ignores James Dean's other sexual side. It's been reported in any number of places that Dean had a gay side to him. That might have been more of a problem than not being Italian.

Casper Van Dien's wife at the time, Carrie Mitchum plays Pier Angeli. She is the granddaughter of that other screen icon Robert Mitchum and the Van Diens got Mitchum to play a couple of scenes as director George Stevens of Giant. In a few months Mitchum would be no longer with us and it's horrifying to see the ravages of lung cancer in him.

Though I think Casper Van Dien was miscast as James Dean, I'm not sure even the alternatives I mentioned could have stood up to the criticism leveled at this film. James Dean still looms large in our collective conscious, maybe too large.

Although "James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young" is a very poorly rated film on IMDB, I chose to watch it anyway because it turns out to be Robert Mitchum's last film...even though, sadly, he's only a bit player in this movie.

The film is about the final couple of years in James Dean's life. In particular, it focuses on his relationship with actress Pier Angeli, but also in the short time after this to his untimely death. A few bigger name stars appear in the film (Mike Connors, Robert Mitchum and Connie Stevens) but most of the film rests on Casper Van Dien as Dean.

So is it any good? Well, the casting was iffy. The actors chosen to play Dean and Angeli were pretty good matches to the actual people. Mike Connors looked absolutely nothing like the head of Warner Brothers, Jack Warner. I assume they simply could get Connors so they stuck him in this role....same with Mitchum.

How about the rest of the film? Well, the story is reasonably close to the truth this portion of the lives of Angeli and Dean, though the film never mentions or alludes to Dean's being bisexual (see IMDB trivia for more on this) and this does seem like a big omission. The acting is okay...perhaps a bit too brooding as I had a hard time believing Dean was always this way in real life. Perhaps he was an obnoxious and whiny guy as you see in much of the movie....but if that wasn't him, then the film is a bit of a disservice to his memory. I just don't know about this, though the character being THAT broody and hard to like made the film a bit tough to continue watching. Overall, a film that die-hard fans of Dean will enjoy...others, perhaps, might just wanna skip this one.

I'd like to say first that the makers of this film and Casper Van Dien have no idea who James Dean is. All they know is that he was an actor that was madly in love with Pier Angeli and drove fast. This movie is pathetic. The direction is terrible, the writing is horrible, the music is annoying, and the acting is horrendous. This movie is not about James Dean, so don't be fooled. It's about some idiot that dresses like and calls himself James Dean. Instead of getting James Dean you get a guy that sounds like a whiny little kid and who constantly gets speeding tickets. Seriously, Casper Van Dien cannot act for his life. If someone had a gun to his head and said act like James Dean, he'd be dead as soon as he opened his mouth. If I were Casper I'd be too ashamed to even look at myself in the mirror. That guy is really pathetic and should be ashamed of himself. Whoever thought it was a good idea to make this movie or to even get Casper Van Dien to play James Dean, is a moron. Everyone who made this movie should be shot. I don't even know if you'd call it a movie. It's like the whole thing is one big practical joke. The whole time I was watching this movie I was shocked at how bad it was. It would be a joke to even compare this movie to the James Franco movie about James Dean. All I'm going to say is see the Franco movie. See that great movie and see James Dean's movies. But avoid this trash. This movie is just so pathetic it's not even funny.

James Dean: Race With Destiny (a.k.a James Dean: Live Fast, Die Young) is a terrible movie that disgraces a screen legend. The production values are painfully low, and coupled with the shoddy acting, the resulting feel is that you're watching a soap opera. And a bad one, at that.

Why anyone though Casper Van Dien could play James Dean evades me. He was fine in "Sleepy Hollow," and other films, but this is clearly not a role for him. To make matters worse, his performance is terrible. The film portrays Dean as a rude buffoon. Although I have seen "Rebel Without A Cause," I don't know much about Dean himself, but I've often heard he was actually quite shy. If this is in fact the case, the film severely misrepresents him.

The script is also poor, complete with ridiculous stereotypes such as Pier Angeli's mother saying "bonjourno," and "gratzi" every 25 seconds, as though the viewer needs to be reassured that she's Italian. There are also visual blunders. In the opening sequence, Dean is in the middle of a race, and happens to be sporting a modern racing helmet, instead of a 1950s one. Things like that might have been excusable if the overall production was better, but it isn't.

Instead of suffering through this terrible affair, check out "James Dean," starring James Franco. That film is great in its own right, but it's downright genius compared to this waste of time.

Being a fan of James Dean and his films I jumped at the chance to see this film. I was aware going in that it had a low budget and mostly unknown cast. But I thought the allure of Dean and the era of film making would be interesting enough to not require expensive sets or name actors. Long story short, I was wrong. Sometimes the most important part missing is a lack of capable direction.

Casper Van Dien does what he can with a badly written script. No set pieces are explored anything further than a two shot exchange. The scene where Van Dien playing 'Dean' meets with the leader of a local gang is an example. What could have been an interesting look at Dean's preparation for his role in Rebel Without A Cause becomes a clumsy exchange between the two actors. The dialogue feels awkward and unrehearsed.

All supporting actors bring nothing to their roles. Diane Ladd uses every Italian cliché she can think of. Carrie Mitchum as Pier Angeli is tolerable but forgettable. And sadly this is Robert Mitchum's final role playing Giant director George Stevens.

One thing that really annoyed me was the lack of accuracy regarding the clothing. Aside from looking at a distance like the 50's, up close it didn't hold up to closer viewing. Van Dien could have been playing any L.A. 20 something in dressed down clothes. His attire was just cheap, generic clothing cobbled together to look simple. Only "Rebel's" red windbreaker was replicated for the movie.

On a positive note Casper Van Dien did an excellent job replicating a now infamous Dean clip warning drivers about the dangers of speeding. It's possibly the best scene in the film. It was the first time I was able to literally sit up take notice of Van Dien's acting. I wonder what preparation he did for the role. And secondly the final scene is very well shot. I wouldn't be surprised if that's where a lot of the planning and budget went. It was well directed, acted and shot.

All in all though this film still only gets a 3.3/10. You're better off watching "James Dean" with James Franco. A far better telling of Dean's life and legacy.

Hi, Everyone,

Pier Angeli's memory is not tarnished by this soap opera cheeseball of a movie. Everyone else seems to be fair game. Mike Connors is good as Jack Warner but it is not a great enough part for him to be offered a spin off series.

Casper fails to connect as James Dean. His closest portrayal of the 1950s screen legend is when Casper recreates the public service TV spot James Dean did for safe driving. That is done in black and white with someone who does not look, sound or act at all like Gig Young who was the actor in the announcement with James Dean.

Poor, poor casting throughout. The guy who plays Vic Damone is probably more suited for some part in a Hulk Hogan gladiator arena scene than trying to pass himself off as Vic. Vic Damone was a classy singer who happened to fall in love with the same girl James Dean was dating. He was not an ox.

Bob Mitchum does a good job trying to play the part of George Stevens. He was about 80 playing a man about 50. They don't have makeup even in Hollywood that can fix that. Good try. Failed. Next.

Casey Kasem? Yeah. Get me Casey and Connie Stevens. Let's really try to get some names. Is Weird Al available? Connie and Casey try to do their roles, but they have no meat to chew on. The guy who plays Sal Mineo should team up with the Vic Damone guy and apply for that Hulk Hogan epic. Sal he ain't.

The music is so bad it is embarrassing. They try to play songs with words that someone wrote for the scene or the movie. The lyrical content of the songs is clichéd to the utmost. If they wanted words, why not hire Chuck Berry or The Eagles or someone who can write meaningful product. The director should have watched some movies where the music was a part of the film. Movies like A Summer Place, Picnic, Jailhouse Rock, High Noon or the TV series Dragnet.

The writing is trite. The scenes are unbelievable.

OK... one reasonably good scene is where the accident takes place. I have seen photos of the accident. The car that is used as the Turnipseed car seems accurate. I give the accident scene an 8. It could have been a nine if they had not shown Casper in the car. Even as a corpse he fails to capture James Dean's character.

Tom Willett

This despite its title is a love story rather than a biopic of James Dean . The film starts with a voice over from Pier Angeli and the first 40 minutes revolves around her romance with James Dean which is a severe disappointment if you`re watching this expecting to learn much about the legend that was James Dean . The only bits that rise above mediocre is when the film ignores the love story and concentrates on Dean`s career , his fireworks with the Hollywood film makers , and his explanation on " Group dynamics " to a young gang leader . But that`s not enough to save the film from being a waste of time . And I`d just like to add my voice to the chorus that if it wasn`t for the inclusion of a few swear words I would have staked my life that this was a TVM . It contains all the production values and flaws that TVMs are infamous for

Just shoot me now and get it over with. From the second this movie started, I hated it. Awwwww. An attempt at a dramatic sihlouette backlit by the sun. AWWWWW. And as the James Dean they chose an Anit-Dean. Van Dien seemed to mimick facial expressions Dean used in his films. STOP ALREADY! Stop imitating his facial expressions, you dope, and get into his philosphy. Become the character, screw the director, screw yourself. All that matters is that character. The worst part about it, they took real events from Dean's life(which you think would make it more authentic) and managed to make them seem like they were written for a tv movie. How pathetic is that. The movie is choppy and stale. There's no emotion, no heart, no soul. And what was up with Van Dien saying 20 ways till sunday, near the end. Fine, so Dean was heard saying 20 ways till sunday now and again. Doesn't mean you're doing character improvisation by repeating it. I would give it less than a one, but it had real events in his life, and that porsche spyder was near identical.

This is probably interesting for people who know absolutely nothing about James Dean's life, those who may even be shocked by the sad ending. However, it has nothing to offer in the way of a script, and many scenes are embarrassingly implausible.

Worst of all is the way the movie deals with James Dean's rumoured homosexuality. The only reference is when Sal Mineo asks Dean out on a date, and Dean replies with obvious disgust at the idea of dating a man. So there you go. Obviously James Dean was heterosexual through and through. The rest of his life is treated with just as much subtlety.

I loved this movie, Casper played the part so well. I loved the sound track for this movie too. I do not know much about James Dean, but this movie to me seemed to be so believable, even my Mother enjoyed this movie. Yes the ending was sad but that was not what made the movie for me. I enjoy the story, which in it's self is very believable.

I'm so glad this movie only cost a buck.

I wasn't expecting much from Casper Van Dien; but with some direction and rehearsals he might have pulled it through.

But there isn't any direction here, and no screenplay to direct. The film concentrates on Dean's love affair with an Italian singer. Everything else disappears into schlocky TV schtick. None of the characters act like the actual people we know them to have been. And how can you make a film about a great actor and avoid scenes where he acts? Dull dull dull. Total rip-off. Gee, I wish I could get that dollar back....

I really love James Dean, but I really truly hated this movie. It was a terrible portrayal on his behalf. James Dean was really really shy in real life, and the only way we saw that was when we saw him talk about racing when he was filming his shoot on the cowboy movie. Overall I thought this was a terrible portrayal on Dean himself and a disgrace to him. If you want to do a realistic story, do it right please.

I saw this on TV after I heard Robert Mitchum was in it. He looks very sick and frail and it was sad to see him like that. His grandaughter was just AWFUL as Dean's girlfriend. Van Dien was Ok I guess, this is a very amateur production. Why it was released on DVD beats me! Stay away!

The worst thing, much worse than Casper Vain Thing's portrayal of James Dean, is that this was Robert Mitchum's last movie before he died of lung cancer the same year. It's immoral that they managed to fool the poor man who was obviously very sick already to appear in this piece of trash, just to be able to cash in on his great name. This is a TV movie? Not even worthy of TV, it's straight to video or an amateur home movie.

Imagine it! They managed to simultaneously violate the legacy of two Hollywood legends, Mitchum and Dean! They have no shame. That horrible grinding screeching sound ringing in your ears and setting your teeth on edge is not a teacher with long nail extensions dragging her hands down a schoolroom blackboard, it's the sound of the bottom of the barrel being well and truly scraped.

I am a movie pig. Meaning, I watch more than my share, hog the Net Flix Que in my house and have 100s of old video. Suffice to say, I believe I know how to judge. This movie, from beginning to end was so hard to stomach. The thing that hooked me was the story between Pier and Jimmy. So I watched. But, the accents by the "Italians" in the movie were so bad, they'd have been better just speaking in their native accents and letting us understand they came from Italy. The whole 50's feel was lost. One minute Casper comes across with the boyish ways of Buff and Bluff then he seems like a tooth paste commercial being cute! Sadly, even Connie Stevens and Mitchem who were good in their roles, the screen writers were doing high school drama! IT was just painful. I watched because I wanted to know what happened between he and Pier. I hope that who ever did the casting I really hope they have improved or decided on another profession.....OH AND THE MUSIC!!! WHat was that?????? There were these songs, I use the term loosely, that had horrible Muzak melodies and then lyrics that I think were supposed to tie in the scenes, maybe, I guess???? My 12 year old asked me if kids did this? No kidding? She was watching the movie with me. listening to the words & the music and innocently asked, "mom, is this a kids project?". OK, I am done, buy really, someone, take this story and do it, really do it well. I think there is so much to cover in the few short years and He and Pier make a great love story.

Unless this script was written based on Pier Angeli's romantic memories; and lack of grasp on who James Dean was. Now this could have been the case that the Angeli family sold her personal letters or something. As best I've read Dean's most serious love was Dizzy Sheridan; he just smarted from being dumped by the Italian beauty queen. The film made it seem like he was suicidal on their breakup; and that was part of why he had the accident that killed him. These are very very, silly inferences!

It is criminal to have produced and released this.

The film made it seem like Dean was just an precocious teenager with no depth or IQ.

I just saw James Dean: Live fast Die young, and somewhat (if not very) dissapointed of the film. I'm not an actor but I watch movies, especially classic movies, religiously. Putting Casper Van Dien as Jimmy Dean in this picture is a sin, he did a very dissapointing job portraying Dean. My most dissapointment goes for the team that made this film. Back in those days smoking was COOL! And Van Dien couldn't even drag a cigarette. The Lighting is biased, did they try to make look like an old movie, or what? The same goes to the motorcycle- riding scene. But it is good to see that somebody finally decide to make a movie about America's Legend. But I am sorry that I bought this DVD instead of renting it... =) Peace to all of you

I bought this movie because I love James Dean and think Casper Van Dien is cool too. When I watched this movie, I was disappointed that it was more of a cheesy fictional story that depicted Dean as a real jerk. Yes some of those things happened but I felt that Casper wasn't James Dean, that he was some misc. character. I hated Casper's acting. What was up with the eyebrows?! James Dean never acted like that. This movie is truely a disgrace to the James Dean legacy. If you guys really want to watch an awesomely acted James Dean recreation movie, watch James Dean starring James Franco. Its the best one I've seen next to the real thing.

I bought this movie because I have enjoyed the few films that Casper Van Dien has made. He does a credible job of portraying James Dean. Details of his Hollywood life came out that I had not known at the time of Dean's life (i.e. his relationships with Pier Angeli and Ursula Andress). What proved most discouraging were the "terrible" Italian accents (particularly from an accomplished actress like Diane Ladd) and from the Mitchum girl. I also found the background music uneven and sometimes so loud the dialog was muted. What might have been a good film came off as pretty amateurish.