American History X, everyone.
From what I can tell, this is a perfectly normal reaction to it. |
| Look, Derek's on the right-wing of the page. Like he's on the right-wing of politics. No? Too soon? |
I don't exactly know where to begin with this one. Not for kids, that's a cert, but if you are over 18, and not of a nervous disposition, this film is just incredible.
Another one that's part of my Film course at school, I don't mind admitting that I welled up in lesson at this film - the complete and total shock of Danny's death threw me completely. It's an emotional roller-coaster, but one well worth going through for the beauty of the message behind it.
Great acting, too - as a theatre techie and film geek I'm not often one to notice the actual performances, but Edward Norton makes it very difficult not to: Derek, extreme racist and inspiration to his gang of skinheads (that's not a spoiler, you can get that from the picture. I don't need to highlight that one.) goes through multiple huge life and personality changes throughout the film: so much so that it's difficult to believe Norton plays all variations of Derek, rather than getting a genuine skinhead to fill in for him. Ethan Suplee too, eternal idol of mine and better known as Randy off My Name Is Earl, plays an almost worryingly convincing violent, racist, white-supremist: so convincing that it took me a couple of viewings to actually recognise him as Randy off My Name Is Earl.
Now onto my stuff, the interesting stuff - the tech stuff. Whoever's idea it was to film the flashbacks in black and white is a genius, the messages of the film just become so much stronger - not only does it age the flashbacks, making the beliefs demonstrates within them seem outdated, but the fact that the whole film is about black and white people, plus the fact that Derek only sees things as black or white, wrong or right... just, that colour scheme is the bestest most ingenious colour scheme ever.
And as for the infamous curb-stomp: if you can bare to take your eyes off the horror of the actual murder, and it took me a couple of goes to manage that, just listen to the sound effects around it: the dull thud of the head, the drowned out police sirens, the chorus of voices that sing as Derek gets arrested - it's an incredibly moving combination.
I'm not too sure what else I can say without making this entire post highlighted in green.
If you are of a nervous disposition, if horror/thrillers are not your thing, if you scare and scar easy then for the sake of your own sanity, do not watch this film.
For the braver amongst you: I may be new to film geeking, my 'films seen' list is limited, but I highly doubt anything will give you an emotional shock to the system quite like this.
And if you have a film that does, please God send me a link to it.
(Personally I don't think this trailer does it justice, but meh, it'll do.)
