Wednesday, 10 October 2018

Never Play a Game of Chicken With a Professional Acrobat

Rebel Without A Cause (1955) is one of my all time favorite movies. Starring James Dean, there is a scene in the movie outlined here:

Two players (read, teenage boys) decide to settle a dispute (read, teenage girl) by way of near-death experiences. Each speeds an automobile towards a cliff (or at each other, in later adaptations). A simple rule governs the challenge: the first to jump out of his automobile is the chicken and, by universally accepted social convention, concedes the object in dispute. The second to jump is victorious, and, depending on context, becomes gang leader, prom king, etc.
Of course, if both jump simultaneously, a stalemate results, and if neither jumps, a fiery death is assured since all cars (in movies) explode upon impact.
The game of chicken has been featured in many films, though the first, Rebel without a Cause, still sets the standard.


(Thanks to Gametheory.net for the above description.)

4 comments:

  1. Excellent work Angie, and very sound advice! And inspired by a great film too, still very powerful today, and always fun to spot Dennis Hopper in the teenage gang.

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    1. Thanks Steve. This collage made itself when I tore that photo of Niagara Falls out of a book and then glanced over at the page of little cars I meant to cut out sometime.

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  2. Replies
    1. Thanks Michael, sometimes the ones that just come together quickly are the best. By the way, I had to search a bit for someone who looked like they were falling out of their car. That guy is a tennis pro minus his arm with the racket!

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