Time and time again these days, one of the biggest issues I hear talked about is racism. It seems to be something that is improving yet I believe it will never come to an end like many of us want to be. Why is that, you ask? Well, unfortunately many humans are taught to look down on others and just feel that their own ideas are right. The media teaches us these things, whether it has to do with clothing (making you think you are better than someone else because you have better brand name clothes) or just plain stereotypes (italians are in the mob, computer nerds must be uncool, jewish people are cheap) etc. I don't believe in any of these things because I am able to think for myself. Unfortunately many people fail to do that and go along with the stereotypes and ideas without really thinking about it. Therefore I think racism (a type of stereotype) will keep existing unfortunately.... until people learn to actually think for themselves and deconstruct and weigh out the good and bad of ideas.

Many of us know the simple fact today.... racism is bad. But by only knowing that simple fact, does it really help us in any way? We are all sheep following each other it seems and instead of just knowing that simple fact, if we took the time to analyze it and look at the different perspectives of it, we would learn how to improve on it. Many people today say... "if a person is black, give them the job because that is the right thing to do I heard." Well yes it is a good thing to do, but don't just give them the job only because they are black. That defeats the real purpose and that is just being racist all over again. A person should get the job because they are qualified. We should learn to put both those ideas into one. If we are going to learn not to be racist, we first need to step back and look at what made us a racist world and how we can teach ourselves to change.

American History X is one such film that doesn't just go along with the regular hollywood style. It is a film about nazi skinheads. As soon as I say that word, many of you will say "Nazi Skinheads = bad thing" Yes it is a bad thing, but did you ever think about how these people came about or ways to change them?

This film is a good one because it isn't just one sided. It looks at different aspects of racism. The main character is a nazi skinhead yet the film isn't just about skinheads going around killing people and it isn't just about trying to catch them. It smartly shows the evolution of how one person becomes this and gains these ideas. People just aren't born like this, they evolve to these ideas through what they have heard and experienced. I believe if we can understand these ideas better then we can do more to change them for the better.

We all know that racism is wrong and that the ideas of nazi skinheads are wrong but instead of taking the obvious road of saying that, this film dives deep into their ideas. The only way we will ever change is if we learn how these people think and act and what makes them this way. These people can be helped and can change because most of them are really like us. They just just developed the wrong ideas because of the harshness of life. In the film, the main character played by Ed Norton does change into a better person so we see that change is possible. Yet he still has to deal with the harsh realities of what he has caused to himself and his family.

We are shown his family life and that usually plays a key role in the development of a person. We learn that his father instilled racist ideas in the character early on in his life. We also learn that Ed Norton's father dies in a black neighborhood when trying to fight a fire. We hear the discussions by family members over Rodney King and others similar to that case. Ed Norton's younger brother also becomes part of the nazi skinheads...... not because he's evil.... but just because he's following his brother's footsteps and not really "thinking" for himself.

In the film we aren't directly told which side is correct, we are just told both sides to think about it. The film treats the viewers in a way that makes them think and doesn't tell them what they should think. We know racism is bad..... but do we really know why it's bad? This film shows us exactely why, from many different perspectives.

In the main character's family, not all the family members are racist, which is how things normally are. We all form our own ideas, just like the nazi skinheads whether it is bad or good ones. The film doesn't only show that nazi skinheads can be bad but it shows that blacks can be bad too. It shows that the real problem is always two sided and helps us to explore the ideas from a multi- dimensional angle and hopes that we are able to come up with the right idea on our own.

This film is alot like Schindler's List. It shows you the brutal realities of life from a more open standpoint and makes us reflect on the problems in the world. This film also like Schindler's List should be only viewed by mature people. I say this not only because of the violence but also because we are forced to think for ourselves and unfortuantely many immature younger adults might be lost or get the wrong ideas since many can not think for themselves yet.

The direction of the film is good, using interesting camera angles along with slow motion in the right places. The performances in the film and real and amazing, especially the performance by Ed Norton. He transforms himself into a brutal Nazi skinhead and we can feel the hate and power he has. The only point of this film that seemed weak is how easy the transformation from bad to good went for the main character. It is good to see that he can change but he does is a complete 180 degree turnaround, to a point where he doesn't even acknowledge his racism from earlier on.

Nevertheless, this film is one that all should see, because it reminds us of the harsh realities of the world such as racism or just basically the simple fact that some people don't get along. I hope after seeing this film, people will really THINK about their actions towards others, whether it is regular racism or just learning how to say hello to your neighbor, every little point is important.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age