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Summary: American History Mess
Review: This movie is about a White Supremacist who see's the wrong in his thinking after a stint in jail...This movie is really Gritty and realistic...I do not recomend this movie for impressional people..
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Summary: Moved me to hatred, forgiveness, and compassion.
Review: This movie took me inside the minds of some Neo-Nazi white supremisists. I was shaken by it, but some of the characters redeem themselves, allowing viewers to sleep at night after watching it.
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Summary: Awsome Movie
Review: This movie is a great film and the acting is top notch. It is very depressing but if you want to Edward Norton at his best. A MUST SEE.
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Summary: Not merely the Nazism is Disturbing
Review: If you're reading these reviews, you've already read adequately (and quite correctly) about how disturbing is the hatred and violence in American History X. I agree with the other reviewers in their emotional responses, but there are more disturbing things in this film than the Nazi fanaticism and Vinyard's eloquent defenses. It was also difficult not to notice the prominent anti-American symbolism (perhaps "heavy-handed" would be better adjective). Whenever a hateful scene is shot, the American flag is sure to appear before the camera lens. The more emotionally disturbing the hate, the more visible the flag is, larger and larger until the scene where the mother's Jewish boyfriend is thrown out and the Stars and Stripes covered two-thirds of my television screen. The Flag remains in the viewer's face until the scene where Vinyard and his brother tear down the Nazi regalia covering Danny's room. This is the last scene in which the flag appears; when the swastika is gone, so is Old Glory. Danny's room remains bare and the flag is as noticeably absent from the remainder of the film as it was pandemic in the first half. The message, while superficially against extremism, I found to be actually supportive of it. Extremists are marked by their inability to conceive of moderation. Anyone who disagrees with an extremist's ideology is sure to identified as belonging to the opposite extreme. This film seems to hold to this outlook - the alternatives for Americans today are to be either lovers of Hillary Clinton and Rodney King, or to be Nazis. Promulgated throughout the film, this outlook is especially reinforced in the final flashback. Here, disagreement with Affirmative Action and questioning what is taught at school are specifically labeled as racist and as root causes of American Nazism. The message seems to be that there is no room for fair ideological differences; there are no alternatives to our race problems but those being espoused; kill the attempt to freely discuss these problems and get behind Hillary and toe the line - or be labeled a Nazi. The plot-line is very predictable, and Edward Norton's excellent performance and some good direction are the two things standing between my opinion as is and a dismissal of American History X as crude propaganda.
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Summary: Drama in American History X
Review: The Genre of a movie is often extracted by certain characteristics that we associate with specific aspects in that movie. Why are we drawn to view certain genres of movies? We may be looking for a specific genre of movie because of something that is going on in our own lives at any given time. Drama is one of the most widely viewed and created genres in the film business. This could be because drama centers around conflict of characters and our lives are consistently revolving around conflict of sometime. If it is not directly in our lives it plays a part in someone's life who is close to us. Though movies are characterized as a drama, western, horror film, or one of many others, this does not mean that the film will solely roll along the tracks set forth by that genre. American History X is one of few movies that may be classified as a drama, but it will also give you a whole new perspective on how you view what is going on around you, and may even lead you to question areas of your life.
American History X does show many things that you would expect to see in a drama film. Camera shots that start us viewing the normal state of a character and then changing pace as he is plummeting in a downward spiral through life. We see this in Derek Vinyard's (Edward Norton) case as we see him in his house, (though already we can tell something is wrong by the way he is living) and shortly after we see him murder someone. Drama, as defined by Webster, is: 'A prose or verse composition presenting in dialogue and action a story involving conflict or contrast of characters, intended to be performed on the stage.' Conflict plays a significant role in American History X. We see conflict between Derek Vinyard and his brother Danny (Edward Furlong), we see conflict between the Vinyard boys and their mother, we see conflict between just about every character that has a prominent role in this film. Most of all, we have conflict between black and white, which American History X is centered around. We live through the drama of Derek Vinyard's life and see his perspective and why he views things the way he does. We are so immersed in the drama that we begin to ask ourselves questions about how we are living. We watch Vinyard as he turns himself around and how he tries to undo what he has done in his life. We feel the struggles of his dramatic path through life, and we begin to ask ourselves the same questions he faces. The conflict surrounding Derek is so strong that it is impossible to ignore. It is very easy to see how this movie is classified by a drama, but American History X is definitely not just another drama. American History X is film so dramatic, so controversial, with so much conflict, that it will leave you sitting in silence while the credits roll. American History X will have you questioning yourself and your life, all because of a movie some people say is probably 'just another drama.'written for: CST 4395
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Summary: Extraordinarily Powerful
Review: This study of racism, prejudice and hate - what it does to people and what it takes to change a person's heart - should be required viewing for everybody. The final line of the movie "What have I done??" is the total anguish of recognizing what such behaviors cost us as humans. Please watch it and learn from it - it's truly a great work.
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Summary: American History X
Review: OH MY GOD were the first words that came out of my mouth when this movie ended. I think that movies like this can only give the complete essence of what they're trying to say with a strong and stellar cast who can make that message easier to say. Edward Norton-WOW!! I mean, i don't even think that you could begin to describe the kind of effect he had on you during the whole movie. He made you believe that he really was the white supermacist that he was portraying. It was so real, that it was actually quite scary. And Edward Furlong? Needless to say, I think that he is one of the most talented young actors out there today. He had such a strong perfomance and for a kid who was only about twenty or so during that movie, I think that he deserves more credit. All in all, I think that this is one of the best movies of 1998, and I would reccomend it to everybody.
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Summary: Best movie ever
Review: This movie is most definitely worth buying on DVD.... After seeing it the first time, I was so completely taken aback by it that I had to watch it again. This will change the way you think about race relations and racism in America.
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Summary: Fear, Blood, and Lies - AHX Is A Timeless Classic
Review: American History X delivers a strong statement on the issue of racism in the US. It shows how racism is passed down among a rural white family, only to result in a tragic ending. Edward Norton gives a breath-taking performance as... skinhead Derek Vinyard. Aided with T2's Edward Furlong, who plays Derek's younger brother Danny, the two bright stars put together a story that still leaves viewers in awe. American History X is a true masterpiece. Although not suitable for young children, it's a film that belongs in the heart of every American today.
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Summary: Powerful Visual Sensation of Racism
Review: I like this movie. The story is about how Derek (Norton) turned into a racist and then back into a non-racist under the influence of his father and his jail-mates respectively. And it's also about how his brother Daniel molded himself into another racist Derek. Some of the scenes are very powerful, especially the one where Derek killed a black man and then got arrested. Senses of hate, cruelty, violence and defiance are all very effectively expressed by the slow black-&-white series of images of Norton displaying the swastika tattoo on his naked muscular chest. But this comprehensive representation of racism is unfortunately not matched by the subsequent plot development where Derek came to regret about what he'd done. The eariler expression of racism is so powerful that the later less successful projection of the transformed Derek pales in comparison. Overall, however, it is a movie that would leave a lasting impression with the viewers. Viewers may not agree with the way the movie handled such a sensitive topic, but it in any case has succeeded in bringing us a strong visual sensation of racism. It is disturbing because most of us used to discuss about it only verbally and read about it only from the papers. But with the excellent casting by Norton, it all appears so vividly in front of our eyes.
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