American History X
![Watch film American History X — American History X (1998) Original Trailer [HD]](https://www.acmodasi.in/amdb/images/posters/s/2/american-history-x-1998-Y8Z1R.webp)
Short description
American History X centers on Derek Vineyard, a young man from California who becomes the leader of a neo-Nazi skinhead group after his father is killed. His younger brother Danny admires him and follows the same path of racial hatred and violence. When Derek kills two Black men, he is sentenced to three years in prison. Behind bars, his views change, and after his release he wants to keep Danny from repeating his mistakes, but his former associates and the consequences of his past stand in the way. The story unfolds partly through Danny's narration, as he is made to write about his brother.
The film was directed by Tony Kaye, from a screenplay by David McKenna and produced by John Morrissey. It was Kaye's first feature film, followed years later by Detachment, The Trainer and Humpty Dumpty X. Edward Norton plays Derek, and Edward Furlong plays Danny; Beverly D'Angelo, Jennifer Lien, Ethan Suplee and Fairuza Balk also appear. On IMDb it holds 8.5 out of 10 from 1.3 million votes, and on TMDB 8.3 out of 10 from roughly 13,000 votes. A critics' rating of 7.5 out of 10 from 88 reviews places it below the audience scores. Made for 20 million dollars, it took in about 24 million worldwide.
What's left behind the scenes
- During a basketball game, Seth is wearing a jersey with the number 88. This is a skinhead code for "NN" or "Heil Hitler": "N" is the eighth letter of the Latin alphabet. 88 is also a reference to the 88 principles formulated by neo-Nazi leader David Lane.
- Specifically for this role, Edward Norton gained 30 pounds (approximately 13.6 kilograms) of muscle mass.
- The word "fuck" is uttered 205 times throughout the film.
- The quote that sounds at the end of Danny's essay are the last words of Abraham Lincoln during his inaugural address in 1861.
- When Danny was shot, he fell. At the beginning, his essay slipped out of his hands, in the next frame it's in his hand, and when Derek ran up, the essay was no longer in his hand.
- The musical group “Anti-Heros” sued “New Line Cinema” because one of the film's characters had a tattoo with the name of the group. The group did not want to be associated with Nazis.
- The studio asked Edward Norton to recut the film, thereby giving more screen time to his character. Upon learning of this, the film's director, Tony Kaye, attempted to have his name removed from the credits, but by revealing his intentions during the film’s promotion, he violated one of the rules of the “Directors Guild of America,” which states: “directors who use pseudonyms must not disclose information about why they decided to remove their name from the credits.” Later, Tony sued the “Directors Guild” and “New Line Cinema” for violating the First Amendment, demanding $200 million in compensation for moral damages.
- Cameron (Stacy Keach) characterizes Bob Sweeny (Avery Brooks) as Uncle Tom. Brooks played Uncle Tom in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" (1987).
- The diner where Danny and Derek have breakfast before Danny goes to school is the same diner as in "The Big Lebowski" (1998).
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