American History X
American History X is a 1998 American crime drama film directed by Tony Kaye and written by David McKenna. The film stars Edward Norton and Edward Furlong as two brothers from Los Angeles who are involved in the white power skinhead and neo-Nazi movements. The older brother serves three years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, is rehabilitated during this time, and then tries to prevent his brother from being indoctrinated further. The supporting cast includes Fairuza Balk, Stacy Keach, Elliott Gould, Avery Brooks, Ethan Suplee and Beverly D'Angelo.
McKenna wrote the script based on his own childhood and experiences of growing up in San Diego. He sold the script to New Line Cinema, which was impressed by the writing. American History X was Kaye's first directorial role in a feature film. Budgeted at $20 million, filming took place in 1997. Before the film's release, Kaye and New Line Cinema were in disagreements about the final cut of the film, which Norton had played a pivotal role in editing. The final version was 40 minutes longer than Kaye's 95-minute cut, which resulted in him publicly disowning the film through dozens of trade paper advertisements, thus negatively affecting his directing career.
Distributed by New Line Cinema, the film was released in the United States on October 30, 1998 in limited theaters and received a wide theatrical release on November 20, 1998, grossing $23.9 million against a $20 million budget. American History X was critically praised, with Norton and Furlong's performances and the film's message drawing acclaim. Norton received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. The film has also been used for educational purposes in the United States and in other countries. A follow-up, African History Y, with Kaye returning as director and starring Djimon Hounsou, was in active development as of 2020.
Plot
Danny Vinyard antagonizes his Jewish history teacher by writing an essay on Mein Kampf. African-American principal and outreach worker Dr. Bob Sweeney gives Danny an ultimatum to either study history directly under him through current events, "American History X," or be expelled. Danny must write a paper on his older brother, Derek, Sweeney's former student and neo-Nazi leader, whose release from prison happened earlier that same morning.Years earlier, Danny and Derek's firefighter father was shot and killed by a Black drug dealer while extinguishing a fire at a crack house. Immediately afterwards, Derek erupts in a televised, racially motivated tirade. High-profile neo-Nazi Cameron Alexander becomes his mentor, and they form a violent white supremacist gang called the Disciples of Cameron.
Derek's mother, Doris, invites Murray, her boyfriend, to dinner, where an argument about Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots ensues. Derek assaults his sister, Davina, and openly berates Murray for his "Jewishness", causing Doris to banish Derek. That night, several Crips members, who Derek had antagonized earlier while beating them in basketball, attempt to steal his truck. After Danny alerts him to the theft in progress, Derek shoots one and curb stomps the other in front of Danny. Derek is arrested and sentenced to three years in the California Institution for Men.
In prison, Derek joins the Aryan Brotherhood; despite initial resistance, he befriends Black inmate Lamont, his assigned workmate in the prison laundry. Abandoned by the D.O.C. and disillusioned by prison gang politics, Derek realizes they are criminal gangs using neo-Nazism and white supremacy as a façade. He abandons the Aryan Brotherhood, who beat and gang rape him in the communal shower.
Hospitalized, Derek is visited by Sweeney and pleads for help to leave prison. Rebuking Derek for wanting to avoid dealing with the consequences of his actions, Sweeney reveals his own racist past and informs him that Danny has joined the D.O.C. After leaving the hospital wing, Derek publicly snubs the Aryan Brotherhood; Lamont warns Derek that he has exposed himself to be murdered by other Black inmates for his past affiliation. Derek is never harmed, later learning that it is due to Lamont's intervention. Before leaving prison, Derek thanks Lamont.
Derek returns home to find Danny sporting a D.O.C. tattoo and becoming a skinhead. Danny feels betrayed after Derek tries to persuade him to leave the group. At a D.O.C. compound party, Derek confronts Cameron for using him and then abandoning him for three years. Declaring his departure from the group, Derek refuses to allow them to use Danny. When mocked, Derek brutally beats Cameron. Seth and the others, including Derek's ex-girlfriend Stacey, attack Derek. Seth pulls a gun, but Derek disarms him and holds everyone at gunpoint before fleeing, tossing the gun into a nearby bin.
Finding Danny, Derek angrily confronts him over his actions. Derek relates to Danny his experience in prison, prompting a change in Danny. Returning home, they remove neo-Nazi posters from their shared bedroom. The next morning, Danny completes his paper for American History X, reflecting on how Derek initially adopted their father’s racist views, as shown in a flashback. As Derek walks Danny to school, they stop at a diner. Sweeney and a police officer inform them that Seth and Cameron were attacked the night before and are in an intensive care unit. Derek denies knowing anything or being involved in any way but reluctantly agrees to see what he can find out.
Danny is shot dead in a bathroom by a Black student he confronted the day before. Derek runs to the school, pushing past crowds and police officers to find Danny's bloodied corpse. Cradling Danny's body in hysterics, he blames himself for influencing Danny's views and actions. In a voiceover, Danny reads the final lines of his paper for Dr. Sweeney, quoting the final lines of Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address reflecting, “We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection” and appealing to the “better Angels of our nature”.
Cast
Production
Development
Screenwriter David McKenna wrote the screenplay for American History X and sold the rights to New Line Cinema when he was 26. The inspiration for the story came from the punk-rock scene of McKenna's childhood, where he often witnessed violent behavior. "I saw a lot of bigotry growing up, and it made me think about writing something about the world of hate-mongers. The point I tried to make in the script is that a person is not born a racist. It is learned through environment and the people that surround you. The question that intrigued me is: why do people hate and how does one go about changing that? My premise was that hate starts in the family". In order to make the characters as realistic as possible, McKenna interviewed and observed the behavior of skinheads during the writing process. He said "I had seen documentaries that just didn't ring true to me, and I wanted to write an accurate portrayal of how good kids from good families can get so terribly lost".Producer John Morrissey, who read the script three years prior, was impressed by the script's intense characters and dialogue. Michael De Luca, then-production president of New Line Cinema, said "I was intrigued by its intensity, conviction and brutal honesty. There was a brilliant character study woven into the screenplay, and I knew we had something special if we did it correctly". In 1996, the producers first approached Dennis Hopper to direct the film. Hopper turned down the offer, Larry Clark was approached to direct the film, but turned it down due to a scheduling conflict, Tony Kaye was then approached to direct. Kaye, who had been De Luca's preferred choice from the beginning, accepted and made his directorial debut in a feature film on American History X. He took the contract to a synagogue, "I signed it in front of the rabbi. I thought it would make it good", Kaye said. After the film was released, De Luca stated "It's everything I had hoped for. The performances are explosive and frightening, and the film dramatically demonstrates both the subtle and overt roots of racism while also showing the possibility for redemption".
Casting
was offered the role of Derek Vinyard, but he was not interested. After holding casting calls, Kaye was unable to find a suitable actor for the lead role, but casting director Valerie McCaffrey suggested Edward Norton. Kaye initially objected, feeling that Norton lacked the "weight or presence", but he eventually conceded. According to executive producer Steve Tisch, Norton's passion for the project was "contagious", and he even agreed to a pay cut of more than $500,000 from his usual $1 million fee, to be cast in the lead. Norton was initially reluctant about the project until Francis Ford Coppola convinced him. McCaffrey also cast Edward Furlong for the role of Danny Vinyard. To prepare for the role, Norton increased his calorie intake and spent hours in the gym to gain 25 pounds of muscle.Filming
took place in Los Angeles and Venice Beach, lasting for several months and finishing in May 1997. Kaye served as cinematographer and camera operator, and would often silently walk around the set, scouting for camera angles or visuals. During filming, Kaye established a casual environment for the cast and crew. He welcomed visitors on set, including singer Courtney Love, Norton's girlfriend at the time, and British historian John Richardson. Kaye would arrive for work in a Lincoln Town Car with a chauffeur, and a license plate that read "JEWISH". He carried four cell phones and a fax machine, and during the Passover holidays, Kaye had boxes of matzo delivered to the set. He also discovered at the time a newsletter published by a British political group, the National Front, which said he was a prominent Jew who supposedly controlled Britain's media.Both Furlong and Ethan Suplee found taking on their roles that had hateful views to be uncomfortable. Furlong said "It's pretty intense, having to say this incredibly hateful stuff". The actors had "white power" tattoos painted on their arms, which Suplee forgot to remove one day after filming, and was confronted by a man in a convenience store. Norton recalls "Doing that film created the strangest distortion of perception on me... the degree to which that film and the magic of camera and art and black and white photography... made a lot of people think that I was a larger and tougher person than I am". The flashback scenes were edited to be in black-and-white, whereas the present-day scenes were edited to be in color.