Brilliant but Tragic

Rating: Null/10 (15 August 2004)

American History X is undoubtedly one of the very best movies ever made, despite the controversial elements shown in it. Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Avery Brooks, Ethan Suplee, Elliott Gould, and Stacy Keach are all excellent in this film (they're all great actors, and I'd like to add that Beverly D'Angelo is good as the mother). I must admit that I found some of the words and quotes used by the characters in the film to be hilarious. However, the main things I hated to see were the black kids picking on and beating up on the white kids, and I especially hated to see Edward Furlong getting shot to death in the end (this was for no reason at all, if you ask me). It would've been something else if there were more to the movie (or perhaps a sequel) after Edward Furlong was shot, for the viewers would've known more about how Edward Norton (as well as the rest of the cast that made up the Vinyard family) dealt with it. Although this film is controversial and labeled as "racist" by some people, I personally think that it's a very strong and important film because it does tell the truth about how some parts of society operate. I personally recommend viewing of this film to Sociology classes everywhere because this movie strongly emphasizes the presence of and problems caused by racism in society.