Derek Vinyard (Edward Norton), a neo-Nazi skinhead and white supremacist recently released from three years in jail for shooting two black men who tried to steal his truck, tries to rid his younger brother, Danny, (Edward Furlong) of his racial prejudices.
Derek has undergone a radical transformation through his friendship with a black prison inmate and the moral clarity of solitude.
This tough, powerful and uncompromising cautionary tale from director Tony Kaye takes a brutal look at the depths of racial prejudice and the roots of violent hate crimes.
Stacy Keach’s performance as craggy-faced white supremacist Cameron Alexander is subtle and insidious. He’s a manipulative tyrant who uses angry youth as a means for spreading racial hate, using hardcore punk music to attract youngsters to an ideology that is extremely base and uncomplicated.
Told in colour with grainy black-and-white flashbacks showing how Derek – the son of a murdered firefighter – became a hatemonger, Kaye’s cutting-edge treatise is a shock to the system, filled with unforgettable moments, seriously handled issues and superb acting by Norton, who was deservedly Oscar-nominated.
One close-up of Norton – bare chest tattooed with a large swastika, eyes flashing contempt for the black man he has just kicked to a bloody pulp and for the cops who think they can contain his fury – is scarier than any fantasy Halloween fiend
American History X is definitely not for the squeamish.
Derek Vinyard
Edward Norton Danny Vinyard
Edward Furlong Doris Vinyard
Beverly D’Angelo Davina Vinyard
Jennifer Lien Dennis Vinyard
William Russ Seth
Ethan Suplee Stacey
Fairuza Balk Dr Robert Sweeney
Avery Brooks Murray
Elliott Gould Cameron Alexander
Stacy Keach
Director
Tony Kaye
Video
You May Also Like
Albert, R.N. (1953) The events presented in Albert R.N. are based on fact and took place in the prison…
