#35 American History X

In Summary

American History X is a powerful film about the power of hatred.

The film centres around the lives of two brothers who have turned to white supremacy after the murder of their father. While American History X eventually unravels the ideology, the power of this film is in how it illustrates how people become susceptible to it.

The story of the film is told out of chronological order, arranged around first demonstrating how all-encompassing white supremacist ideology can be, then how the older brother, Derek Vinyard, learns through of the flaws in the ideology through his time in prison, then the family's attempted escape from a neighbourhood divided on lines of race.

Ed Norton, in one of his defining acting roles, expertly portrays Vinyard's absolute certainty in his line of thinking throughout much of the film - and the power it imbues him with - then is able to take the audience through each step of unravelling as he learns of the inconsistencies and hypocrisies in white supremacy.

The amount of Nazi paraphernalia throughout the film is initially incredibly jarring, however, American History X is able to move past that shock phase to reveal the people hiding underneath the swastikas. There is a sense of community decay and poverty amongst impressionable young men in the film that is ripe for exploitation.

Importantly, the film makes sure not to give these young men an excuse for turning to racism. White supremacy is shown in its ugly light, even the lead characters do not get away after their eventual attempts to reject it.

The message of American History X is that hate begets hate, while it is possible for it to be unwound, hate has its consequences.

A Memorable Quote

 kept asking myself all the time, how did I buy into this shit? It was because I was pissed off, and nothing I ever did ever took that feeling away.

Things You May Not Know

• The character of Derek Vinyard is based on the ex-white supremacist, Frank Meeink.
• Ed Norton turned down Saving Private Ryan in order to star in this film, gaining 30 pounds of muscle in order to prove to the director, Tony Kaye, that he was physically capable of the role.
• Tony Kaye almost quit the film due to the constant changes to the script made by Ed Norton and his co-star, Ed Furlong.

One of the Greatest of All Time?
American History X is a powerful film that has only become more relevant over the years as we have seen a resurgence in the far-right. Importantly, the film details the process through which that line of thinking can be unravelled. It isn't an easy process, but it at least demonstrates if people can be manipulated into ideologies they can be un-manipulated.

This is a film that doesn't pull its punches in order to make the audience feel more comfortable. This is an urgent, in-your-face piece of work that is as heart-breaking as it is worthy.