Parsons: American History X

The film American History X is about a family that has been affected by the Neo-Nazi groups that are present in the United States. The whole film is about the mistakes that one man made and how they affected his entire family, finally leading to the death of his little brother. The angry, white, working class young adults in this film feel like their neighborhoods and their lives are being changed because of people of different races. The lash out with hatred and become part of the Neo-Nazi organizations that aim to show the white are a superior race. The main character, Eddy, is not an uneducated idiot, but rather was a good student and can articulate his thoughts. But when his father is killed and his ideals are threatened he reverts to rage and physical violence, and leads other young adults down this path.

One scene that really shows the turmoil between the characters is the basketball scene. The Neo-Nazi group is playing basketball against a group of African American men, who the audience is made to presume are part of a gang. The whole scene is full with the disgust that each race has for the other, and the Neo-Nazi’s make a bet with the African American men. They play for the right to “own” the basketball court. This is one of the flashback scenes, so it is black and white. This is really effective in this scene though because it plays off the whole “us vs. them” mentality that the Neo-Nazi teens have. Everything is black and white to these kids. Everyone playing has their shirts off, and the audience can see the contrasting color of their skin perfectly. Often the camera pulls back on the basketball court and we get these long, dramatic shots of the game, and it feels almost like a battle scene. There are also slow motions shots that change the reality of this scene.

This scene ties well in to the article “The White Supremacist in Anti-Racist Films.” The white characters are almost the victims in this situation and the dramatization of the scene makes the audience almost sympathize with and route for the whites to win the game. In this scene, whether intentional or not, the movie takes on some of the racist sentiment of the Neo-Nazi’s it portrays.