Overrated and incomplete

Rating: 8/10 (8 December 2007)

Well, this is a bit of a letdown, but then again, I went into it with a critical mind anyway, so it's not such a surprise. This is the much lauded American History X, and it is in fact a great movie, and I do mean truly *great*, instead of just *good* or whatever other adjective you might stick in there. What is "great," then? American History X boasts a sleek, crystal clear filming job and top-notch, through the roof acting, and it's obvious that this one wasn't let out of the gate until everything was just picture perfect all around. Yet, at the same time, this is not always good, with a few blemishes adorning its polished-to-perfection exterior. Yes, this is surely a giant of a film, but it does tend to stumble over its own feet a bit. Just a bit.
Not modest or afraid at all, American History X is chock full of lengthly, rather rotund exhibits of preaching - and it is even mentioned once in the film - which is not a bad thing in itself. I hear lots of people crowing about how that's what's wrong with this movie, but no, it isn't. I don't mind it at all, and it mostly just serves as food for thought and a way of carrying the story along. But yes, there it is - this preaching, as it is so dubbed, carries the story far too much, overwhelming the movie like a blanket. The problem with this movie is that it's incomplete. Come on, are we really supposed to believe that all of this - the party, the talk, the flashbacks, the death - happened in one night? Are we honestly expected to believe that this white supremacist teenager changed his outlook in life in one single night while writing an essay? The ending, too...while touching, it left me feeling cold overall. Nothing here was elaborated upon properly - we didn't see near enough of Derek's transformation to a new man in prison; just the bare minimum of it. There were less than 3 scenes with this Cameron character, who had been built up as quite important, and the whole party speeds by like a blur to the point where you wonder what just hit you. Give us more, dammit, this barely scrapes the surface of the potential this movie had. It tries to fool us by throwing in a lot of preaching and whatnot, but that won't fool me.
Regardless, I did enjoy this quite a bit. American History X grabbed me by the throat and went full-throttle for damn near two hours. The characters are believable, and the plot is thick and quite juicy. It's a thoughtful, pensive film that will force you to really sink your teeth in and think; this isn't a summer blockbuster or a popcorn flick of any kind. For fans of intelligent, creative, introspective films, this is a winner, but be warned, it is not as good as people say. A rather tragic complex; a great film that just doesn't live up to expectations. The potential is there, though, and all in all this is an enjoyable film, so go get it if this sounds like your thing.