American History X

tmdb15435519 6/23/2021 4:54:25PM 8.4

Despite having a somewhat weak cast, this is an incredibly poignant drama of one man's struggle to live a new life. Probably too violent and close-to-home for some.

CinemaSerf 7/1/2026 6:13:56PM 8.4

"Danny" (Edward Furlong) isn't making much progress at school so his teacher "Sweeney" (Avery Brooks) gives him a project. He is to document the life of his elder brother "Derek" (Edward Norton) whom he adores. "Derek" was a neo-Nazi - and an active one at that who has only recently been released from prison for killing two men who tried to steal his car, but after spending time behind bars he has begun to question his hitherto unshakeable belief in the supremancy of white people and so once free determines to escape the toxic and somewhat hypocritical grip of "Cam" (Stacy Keach). It's "Danny" who narrates this story as his family marry their more contemporaneous timelines with examples of the brutality his brother raged against those of colour - and pretty much any colour - who lived in Los Angeles. At home, though professing love for his family, he rules with a rod of iron and is particularly displeased when his widowed mother (Beverly D'Angelo) takes up with a decent Jewish fella (Elliott Gould). This brief storyline helps to explain a little of what drove "Derek" down this violent path in the first place and why he is so constantly angry. Might there be any chance of his rehabilitation? This is quite probably Norton's best effort on screen. His portrayal of "Derek" exudes a ghastliness and a loathing that is palpable and would appear to render him a lost cause, and yet he also manages to bring just a little humanity to the character as the film flips between it's timelines. Furlong is also on quite compelling form as his young character struggles between a conflict of sibling loyalty and an inate sense of decency that is struggling to make it's presence felt but that the sparingly used but effective Brooks knows is hidden beneath the façade and the bravado presented by "Danny" at school. It's violently graphic at times presenting an authentically written showcase of the irrationality of hatred for it's own sake, and though not an easy watch at times it does cpome across as real - and that's quite an achievement for all concerned.

Andre Gonzales 4/16/2023 4:57:10PM 8.4

There's really no point to the movie. Just a lot of violence. That's pretty much it.