Not worthy of the hype or critical acclaim it received.

Rating: Null/10 (9 August 1999)

WARNING; There is a potential spoiler in this review. If you don't want anything given away, please do not read on. If you don't care about the movie and wonder why I'm about to point out the big flaws, please be my guest and read on.
"American History X" works as the same kind of plot as "Little Odessa." In "Odessa," Tim Roth starred as a ruthless hitman who comes to terms with his estranged father. He also reunites with his kid brother(Edward Furlong), for whom he doesn't want involved in his "line of business" . "History X" is about a white-supremacist skinhead (played by Edward Norton) who reforms himself and doesn't want his brother (Also played by Edward Furlong) to go the same path as he did. Do the plots sound similar? Thought so. The endings for both movies are similar as well. And like both movies, the characters were not very sympathetic, and the message (if there was any) fell FLAT.
For those of you who've seen it, you'll remember a line monologued by Furlong at the end saying "there is no time for anyone to be saturated with hate and anger." And then you'll remember what happened to him, which is a total contradiction about the line and the point. So what is that supposed to prove? It seems we've been suckered into the same sort of Melodrama before: Guy succumbs to something bad because of his father. Guy wants to redeem himself but it won't be easy because he'll have to run into a couple of tragedies along the way. How many times are we going to see that? This is a Made-for-TV plot nuance. They've done it before in "Bad Lieutenant", then someone made "Little Odessa," then there was "Affliction", and now this. What next? A movie about a drug addicted porno star who is the way he/she is because the parents were equivalent to J. W. Gracy and Lorena Bobbitt?
This movie wasn't without its redeeming points. Edward Norton and Avery Brooks delivered excellent performances, which would probably give the only reason to see this. Don't see it for any other reason. Many have also missed the point that this film has a sentimental portrayal of racists, making them look "like intelligent and loving people." Wrong. Racism is a form of ignorance and hate, and that is what it will always be. I do not recommend "American History X."