I used to think that "American History X" was of questionable quality

Rating: Null/10 (19 October 2003)

I used to think that "American History X" was of questionable quality. I first saw it when a friend and I rented it thinking it would be a funny skinhead flick. After that it became somewhat of a guilty pleasure. It never seemed to be too present in the mainstream, not the kind of movie you can bring up in a crowd and invoke an impassioned discussion. After a recent viewing I can positively say that "History" is a very good movie whether you like it or not, due in no small part to Tony Kaye serving double duties as both director and cinematographer.
Through a splintered timeline,"American History X" tells the story of Derek Vinyard (Ed Norton) and his family. Derek is a Disciples of Christ neo-Nazi in Venice Beach, California whose family falls apart starting with the murder of his father in a Compton drug den and climaxing with Derek's violent hate crime and subsequent incarceration. Derek is released from prison to face the state of poverty his family has fallen into and the fact that his younger brother Danny (Edward Furlong)is following along the same path as him. Derek immediately sets out to educate his brother on the painful truth of his life in the hopes that he can save Danny from meeting the same fate.
As I said earlier, director Tony Kaye also handled the photography for the picture. Kaye has a remarkable eye, and we are given a multitude of poignant images that, had the film recieved more recognition, would have gone on to be iconic. Visuals that haunt the memory, like Derek's frightening grin when he is being arrested, the neo-Nazi hordes goose stepping around their Venice Beach compound and the Vinyard brothers as infants,playing on the beach. That's just to name a few.
I've often heard the castigating point of view that "History" is throwaway garbage whose only redeeming quality is Edward Norton's inimitable performance. I couldn't disagree with this more. As far as the acting, there are more than strong performances all around: Furlong as Danny convincingly portrays the conflict and confusion in youth; Avery Brooks stands out as the African-American high school principle who stayed with Derek from when he was his pupil through his imprisonment; Stacy Keach plays a man you exemplifies the character you love to hate in Cameron Alexander, the white power entrepreneur who profited from Derek's ruin.
I've even been able to overcome my initial reservations. The basketball scene always struck me as laughable. Its a simple enough scenario: the skinheads challenge the blacks to a game and the outcome will determine who controls the courts. If the blacks lose, they have to leave the courts and never look back. Its a trivial event but the score for the scene is an epic orchestral piece that swells as if the fate of the world were in the balance. I used to think that this was just a bad decision by the director, but now I think the effect is intentional: Kaye doesn't want the audience to take the neo-Nazis seriously. Obviously their cause and consequences are of the utmost seriousness, but Kaye makes sure the viewers always keep their distance before buying into their propaganda. The music reflects the way that the skinheads see the situation: to them, this really is a monumental event. They're probably hearing the epic music in their heads at that moment.
Being a geek, I find it interesting to note the Star Wars parallels present in the film. Derek Vinyard is Anakin Skywalker aka Darth Vader). Cameron Alexander is Palpatine. Alexander (Palpatine) makes Vinyard (Vader) his apprentice and manipulates him into doing his dirty work for him. This leads the apprentice to commit heinous acts of evil and undergo traumatic physical and psychological changes (Derek transformation and hardships in prison, Anakin's transformation into Vader). In "History", Luke the son becomes Danny the younger brother. Alexander (Palpatine) sets his sights on Danny (Luke) sensing that he would be a powerful ally. Derek (Vader) senses that Danny is going to be exploited and destroyed just as he was, so he rises up and overthrows his former master (Derek assaulting Cameron at the party > Vader killing Palpatine in the second Death Star). Just something to muse over.
"American History X" is a powerful film. I don't know if it will cause a change of heart in those of the racist persuasion, but it presents many discussion points and is guranteed to cause even the most casual film viewer to think about the ideas portrayed long after leaving the theater. Many people find the movie difficult to watch. The road to redemption is not pretty. "American History X" shows the ugly face of ignorance and its many consequences.