American History X 1998
I remember watching this movie a long time ago, probably not at the theaters, and being really impressed with Edward Norton’s performance and happy in general with the movie. When it was on sale in the bargain bin, I went ahead and bought the Blu-ray. I still like it, and while maybe it is a little preachy and simplistic, it is interesting that in 2017 as I write this, the neo-nazis are still in the news and everything that these guys are railing about are still front and center. But I also love the line in the movie that makes Norton’s character turn his life around: “Has anything you’ve done made your life better?” Then as now hate is still nothing but a downward spiral that only makes things worse.
The Blu-ray I bought, which must be from 2009, has very few extras: just the trailer and three deleted scenes. There is no making of, no interviews with the cast, and no director’s commentary. Reading about the movie later, the director wasn’t happy with the film and basically quit after the studio asked for changes to his first draft. Edward Norton was heavily involved in finishing the film. So it is probably a little bit of a flawed movie, but I like how the backstory is told in black and white and the present story is in color, and I think overall the movie works pretty well. Norton deserved the Oscar nomination he received for playing this indelible character.
Written: 12 Sep 2017
Owned on: Blu-ray, Digital