Powerful, Disturbing And Often Brutal - This Makes Its Point

Rating: 8/10 (2 February 2010)

Offering both a very disturbing look at the inside workings of a neo- Nazi skinhead group, as well as a powerful reflection on the redemption of one of its former leaders, this is a truly powerful movie that is both disturbing and sobering. Much to my surprise, it was quite fast-paced and never seemed to lose itself in moralizing or philosophizing, although the temptation was there. The story revolves around an assignment given to a local white teenager by his black principal. The teen (Edward Furlong), whose brother was the former skinhead trying to go straight after doing time in prison, had written a book review expressing admiration for Mein Kampf. His principal (Avery Brooks) assigned him to write the story of his brother, focusing on its social significance. That angle could, as I said, have led to a lot of moralizing. Instead, it served as a springboard to a very powerful series of flashbacks detailing the brother's growing involvement in the movement and his experiences in prison that led to him turning around, as well as a bit of the story of him going straight upon his release. The brother was brilliantly played by Edward Norton. The movie is very brutal and violent at times and is frankly not for the faint of heart. It also seems that a lot happens as a result of one assignment that, as I understood the story, had to be done in one night.
Director Tony Kaye made a good decision to film parts of the movie in black and white, which made a powerful statement in itself of the danger of seeing things in simplistic terms. In the end, this isn't a movie that simply attacks the white skinhead movement. It points out the problem of hate for the sake of hate, and, while focusing on the skinhead movement, the point is applicable when applied to black gang bangers or Latino gangs or any other race-based or religion-based hate movement. Hatred is a waste of time and energy - ultimately, hatred is a waste of life, a point powerfully made in the last scenes of the movie. This movie will not leave you feeling good - but that isn't its purpose. It will leave you with an understanding of the pointlessness of living by hate. 8/10