Rebel Without a Cause (1955) - Quotes

Conflict of Identity in Youth Culture

Taglines: The bad boy from a good family.

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The Inner Conflict of Jim Stark

Taglines: Jim Stark... a kid from a good family - what makes him tick... like a bomb?

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The Desire for Belonging and Love

Taglines: To Belong...and be loved.

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Class and Family in Conflict

Taglines: ...and they both come from good families!

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Teenage Turmoil Reflected in Society Today

Taglines: Teenage terror torn from today's headlines

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A Discussion on the End of the World

Plato: Jim, do you think the end of the world will come at nighttime?

Jim: Uh-uh. At dawn.

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Memory and Trauma in Youth

Plato: I used to lie in my crib at night and I'd listen to them fight.

Jim: [laughs] Can you remember back that far? I can't remember what happened yesterday. I can't. How do you do it?

Plato: Oh, I had to go to a headshrinker. Boy, he made me remember.

Jim: Did he?

Plato: Then my mother said it cost too much, so she went to Hawaii instead.

Jim: Well, what's your problem?

Plato: Oh, I don't know. But, but I'm happy now, here. Oh, I wish we could stay here.

Judy: Plato, where's your father now?

Plato: Oh, he's dead. He was a hero in the China Sea.

Jim: You told me he was a big wheel in New York.

Plato: I did? Aw, what's the difference? He might as well be dead anyway.

Judy: It's all right.

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Exploring Plato's Castle with Friends

Plato: Well, what do you think of my castle?

Jim and Judy: Wow. Shoo. Gee. Wow.

Jim: Well, now. There, then. Uh, I think we'll take it for the summer.

Plato: Right this way.

Jim: [to Judy] Oh. Uh-huh. Would you like to rent it, or are you more in the mood to buy, dear?

Judy: You decide, darling.

Jim: Oh, yes. Yes.

Judy: Remember our budget.

Plato: Oh, don't give it a thought. It's, uh, only three million dollars a month.

Jim: What?

Judy: Oh, we can manage that. I'll scrimp and I'll save and I'll work my fingers to the bone.

Jim: You see, we're newlyweds.

Judy: Yes. Oh, there's just one thing. What about...

Plato: Children? Right this way.

Judy: Yes.

Plato: See, we really don't encourage them. They're so noisy and troublesome. Don't you agree?

Jim: Ugh. Drown em like puppies. Ugh.

Plato: [leading them to an empty swimming pool] This is a wonderful arrangement. They can carry on and you'll never even notice.

Jim: Oh, a sunken nursery.

Plato: In fact, if you lock them in, you'll never have to see them again, much less talk to them.

Judy: Talk to them — heavens!

Jim: Nobody talks to children.

Judy: No, they just tell them.

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Morbid Personality and Unlikely Arrivals

Jim: How did you get here?

Plato: I hitched.

Jim: I'll bet you'd go to a hanging, wouldn't you?

Plato: I guess it's just my morbid personality.

Struggles of Belonging and Identity

Ray: Things pretty rough for you at home?

Jim: What a zoo!

Ray: What?

Jim: It's a zoo. He always wants to be my pal, you know? But how can I give him anything? If he's — well, I mean, I love him and all that type of stuff, and I-I mean, I don't want to hurt him. But then, I don't, I don't — well, I don't know what to do any more, except maybe die... If he had guts to knock Mom cold once, then maybe she'd be happy and then she'd stop pickin on him, because they make mush out of him, just mush! I'll tell you one thing. I don't ever want to be like him. How can a guy grow up in a circus like that?... Boy, if, if I had one day when, when I didn't have to be all confused, and didn't have to feel that I was ashamed of everything... if I felt that I belonged someplace, you know?

Conflict Over Parenting and Responsibility

Frank: Don't I buy everything you want? A bicycle — you get a bicycle. A car.

Jim: You buy me many things.

Frank: Well, not just buy. We give you love and affection, don't we? Well, then, what is it? Was it because we went to that party? Well, you know what kind of drunken brawls those kind of parties turn into. It's not a place for kids.

Carol: [to Frank] A minute ago you said you didn't care if he drinks.

Mrs. Stark: He said a little drink.

Jim: You're tearing me apart!

Carol: What?!

Jim: You, you say one thing, he says another, and everybody changes back again!

Carol: That's a fine way to behave!

Mrs. Stark: Well, you know who he takes after.

Jim: Aww!

Choosing Friends Wisely Matters

Frank Stark: Watch out about choosing your pals. You know what I mean? Don't let em choose you.

A Plea for Connection and Understanding

John "Plato" Crawford: [to Jim] Hey, you want to come home with me? I mean, there's nobody home at my house, and heck, I'm not tired. Are you? See, I don't have too many people I can talk to... If you want to come, we could talk, and in the morning we could have breakfast like my dad used to. Gee, if only you could have been my dad.