The brief, but mythical, life and career of film acting legend James Dean is dramatized in this biographical 2001 feature, originally produced for cable television. Dean is portrayed here as a hard worker and wild man, yet a sensitive lost soul whose own turbulent life mirrored the roles he took on his short, but greatly influential career. Dean is played by James Franco under the direction of Hollywood veteran Mark Rydell, a friend of Dean during his life. Rydell's insights provide an especially insightful look at studio politics and procedure in the 1950s.