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American History X

Decent Essays

The film American History X is rated by the users of IMDB.com (Internet Movie DataBase) as one of the 50 best films ever made. It is a crime/drama, a very violent film; not for the faint-hearted. American History X was released in 1998, and it is directed by Tony Kaye.

Casting:

-Edward Norton (Derek Vinyard)

-Edward Furlong (Daniel Vinyard)

-Avery Brooks (Dr. Bob Sweeney)

-Stacy Keach (Cameron Alexander)

-Beverly D'Angelo (Doris Vinyard)

-Jennifer Lien (Davina Vinyard)

Summary

The setting is in Venice Beach, USA, and tells the story about Derek Vinyard, taking place in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Derek Vinyard is a very bright and charismatic student, who is drawn in to the neo-Nazi gangs when …show more content…

After the killing of his father, he becomes a white supremacist. Upon his release from prison he has abandoned his neo-Nazi ideologies, and we follow his struggle to keep his family together, and stop his brother from following his footstep.

Derek is tall, well-trained and strong, both physically and mentally. He has a swastika tattooed on his chest, and before he is sentenced to prison he is a skin-head. After his prison stay he lets his hear grow back.

Edward Norton does a great job in the role, portraying Derek in an excellent way; he was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. He is said to be one of the greatest actors in the world in his age-group.

Comments and personal opinions

When showing scenes of Derek's life before prison, it is in black and white, no colours. This is brilliant, it is easy to follow the progress in the film, and to figure out what is past and what is present. This could have developed in to a lot of sentimental talk and massive clishès, but fortunately the director manages to avoid that trap.

Danny is the narrator in the film, he tells the story of Derek's life while writing the essay about him. This is an interesting way of telling a story, makes it very “alive”.

American History X is a “one to watch” film. It touches on several important and controversial topics, such as racism, illegal immigration, gangs, the fact that neo-Nazi groups

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