One of the most notorious and intoxicating films of the 1990s, American History X is certainly not for the faint of heart, but it’s an incredibly rewarding watch.
Though it is one of the most revered movies of recent times, fans of American History X might be surprised to hear that the film which shocked the world in 1998 was disowned by its director.
Having produced two cuts of the film for New Line studios, director Tony Kaye was aghast after star Edward Norton (notoriously anal over the final cut of his film, even recutting The Incredible Hulk trailer a few years) and editor Jerry Greenberg were brought in to work on the third and final cut of the film.
Appalled by what had been done to his work, Kaye tried to disown himself from the entire project, even attempting to replace his name in the credits with ‘Humpty Dumpty’. We’ve no idea where the praise for the final cut should go – Norton, Greenberg or the existing content Kaye had shot, but we can’t understand how anyone could not be incredibly proud of the stunning story of transformation.
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| Thankfully, this type of tattoo didn’t catch on |
Norton stars as Derek Vineyard, initially a neo-Nazi skinhead and leader of a white supremacist gang in LA. What makes Vineyard such a fascinating study of racism is that he’s a world away from the typical Hollywood treatment of such figures.
Rather than an ill-mannered and moronic redneck, Derek is a strong alpha male, eloquent and imposing; though once he opens his mouth, his views are completely abhorrent.
Yet the genius behind the initial framing of his character is that rather than a simplistic caricature, we see his motivations and family life. Worse, we see how a figure like Vineyard could be revered by his younger brother, who seeks to live up to his sibling, even after Derek is sent to jail in a gut-wrenching ‘curb stomp’ scene.
Behind bars, Derek’s manhood is stripped from him and he realises that supposed neo-Nazi inmates are not 100% true to their beliefs, despite the bravado they displayed when they were on the outside. Assigned to menial shift work alongside ‘Lamont’ (likable comedian Guy Torry), Derek lets down his guard, makes a friend and eventually serves his sentence with a full head of hair and a new perspective on life.
Without spoiling too much, everything comes to a head when Derek discovers that his brother has become much more radicalised without the somewhat taming influence of his sibling. The final realisation of the film, however – a message on the futility of racism and bigotry – is so simple that it initially catches viewers off guard – racism is nothing other than baggage that will hang over your life, cloud your judgement and potentially ruin every relationship you hold dear.
It’s a simple but effective message that makes a somewhat tough film always worthwhile for repeat viewings. Now if only we could convince its director to give it a watch…
For more cult films, check out the Jameson Cult Film Club.
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