Director: Tony Kaye
Writer: David McKenna
Starring: Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Beverly D'Angelo, and Fairuza Balk
This is one of those movies that leaves a scar on your heart and has a place in your memory forever. If you ask someone if they have ever seen it, just the natural reaction of that teeth breaking emotion of pain explodes over their face, answering your question with a yes.
First and foremost, I have to confess my love for Edward Norton. He is just awesome. I have seen him execute every different type of character and personality. You may always recognize his face from film to film, but you can never take his roles for granted until you see the credits. He even beats Ted Bundy for the champion of sociopathy when he is on camera.
I love that American History X opens and closes with a beach. It makes me compare the ocean and the reality of racism. It's overwhelming and looks to be infinite in size. It can swallow you up before you know it.
I also really dig the use of black and white for the obvious reasons, along with the symbolism behind it. Naturally, the absence of color differentiates the past from the present while the story flash backs in time to tell a story. I always have a soft spot for these special moments in movies. However, when the screen changes like that in this film, I feel the director wanted us to see in black and white because that's all the main characters saw. They ignored everything about people to exert their focus on their skin color instead. Whenever color entered the viewers vision again, Edward Norton's character, Derek, was out of prison with a reformed mind set. In other words, he removed the hate that was obstructing his view, and he gained his sight back while we were able to see color again.
The excitement integrated with the eye-popping scenes of violence made a two hour movie fly by. There were a lot of character building scenes that consisted of large chunks of dialogue. Sometimes a lot of talking can make you check your watch twice in one minute, but on the other hand, the movie creators only have 120 minutes to introduce a character, and in this case a transformation of character, well enough to get the viewer emotionally attached to him. This movie does a genius job with this because although I do not agree with Derek's initial attitude, I was still intrigued by his knowledge and intensity. His preaching and leadership grabbed you by the throat, but him smashing a guy's skull open on a curb shivered your spine.
It's rare you come across a man raping another man on screen. In my opinion, I find that all rape scenes, regardless the circumstance, haunt my memory. Unfortunately, I find it difficult to cleanse my eyes and ears of the damage done even if it is just a movie being filmed with hundreds of crew members surrounding the victim. Well to say the least, it must have been awkward for Edward Norton to accept the role of "Derek" knowing what was in store for him.
On a side note, I will be meeting Edward Furlong at Monster Mania in Cherry Hill, NJ at the end of this month! I think I'm more excited to hear his distinct voice in person! Hasta la vista, Baby!
First and foremost, I have to confess my love for Edward Norton. He is just awesome. I have seen him execute every different type of character and personality. You may always recognize his face from film to film, but you can never take his roles for granted until you see the credits. He even beats Ted Bundy for the champion of sociopathy when he is on camera.
I love that American History X opens and closes with a beach. It makes me compare the ocean and the reality of racism. It's overwhelming and looks to be infinite in size. It can swallow you up before you know it.
I also really dig the use of black and white for the obvious reasons, along with the symbolism behind it. Naturally, the absence of color differentiates the past from the present while the story flash backs in time to tell a story. I always have a soft spot for these special moments in movies. However, when the screen changes like that in this film, I feel the director wanted us to see in black and white because that's all the main characters saw. They ignored everything about people to exert their focus on their skin color instead. Whenever color entered the viewers vision again, Edward Norton's character, Derek, was out of prison with a reformed mind set. In other words, he removed the hate that was obstructing his view, and he gained his sight back while we were able to see color again.
The excitement integrated with the eye-popping scenes of violence made a two hour movie fly by. There were a lot of character building scenes that consisted of large chunks of dialogue. Sometimes a lot of talking can make you check your watch twice in one minute, but on the other hand, the movie creators only have 120 minutes to introduce a character, and in this case a transformation of character, well enough to get the viewer emotionally attached to him. This movie does a genius job with this because although I do not agree with Derek's initial attitude, I was still intrigued by his knowledge and intensity. His preaching and leadership grabbed you by the throat, but him smashing a guy's skull open on a curb shivered your spine.
It's rare you come across a man raping another man on screen. In my opinion, I find that all rape scenes, regardless the circumstance, haunt my memory. Unfortunately, I find it difficult to cleanse my eyes and ears of the damage done even if it is just a movie being filmed with hundreds of crew members surrounding the victim. Well to say the least, it must have been awkward for Edward Norton to accept the role of "Derek" knowing what was in store for him.
On a side note, I will be meeting Edward Furlong at Monster Mania in Cherry Hill, NJ at the end of this month! I think I'm more excited to hear his distinct voice in person! Hasta la vista, Baby!
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