American History X

I was engaged the whole way through, though I'm not convinced this movie was right in the head. Its white supremacist arguments were too refined, and its lesson was too muddy.

It set up an interesting dichotomy of explicitly arguing for white supremacy in the dialogue, while experientially arguing against it. I assume the point was that the actions speak louder than the words; that the anti-racist arguments conveyed through dramatic storytelling overpower Norton's racist barking. The trouble is, for people who are analytical or not very empathetic, like me and probably most white supremacists as well, the words speak louder than the actions, at least in this movie. In other words, this movie has better arguments for white supremacy than against it, in my mind. So what's the point of the movie?

Sure, bad things happen to the white supremacist in the movie. But bad things happened to Jesus, and that didn't scare anyone away from Christianity. In fact, it probably scared negative 1 trillion people away, so far. So is Derek a martyr for a noble cause? Or are we supposed to take his eventual misfortune as karma for his sick values? I don't think it's clear. I mean I know what I think, but I don't think the movie is clear enough to shield against slightly racist people actually getting more racist when they watch it. Sometimes words speak louder than actions. Think about how people cling to specific Bible verses more than the spirit of Jesus' actions. Or how one poorly written tweet can ruin a career otherwise defined by upright action. This movie dwells on Derek's propaganda, and tries to do a good job of conveying what his arguments really would be. And it does a good job. His arguments are probably better than his opposers'. He's also a sick bastard, but that doesn't tend to stop anyone from gaining a following, if they're persuasive enough, and Derek is persuasive. I don't believe his arguments, but I don't see why the movie had to make them so persuasive anyway.

Also, are we supposed to feel sorry for him in the end? Sympathy for the devil? It kind of seems like it, but why would the movie do that? Also, what turns the white supremacist around -- getting raped and also meeting a fun black guy? Is that realistic? I don't think so; he's too gentle with Lamont from the start, based on how his character acts up to that point; and the "rock bottom" shower scene isn't rock bottom enough to actually bottom out his racism. I don't buy it -- I think the movie sketches an arc of redemption and karma but doesn't really sell it.

That said, I liked the movie. Solid entertainment.