MOVIEmeter
Top 5000
Up 252 this week

American History X (1998)

R  |   |  Crime, Drama  |  20 November 1998 (USA)
8.6
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 8.6/10 from 711,344 users   Metascore: 62/100
Reviews: 1,402 user | 156 critic | 32 from Metacritic.com

A former neo-nazi skinhead tries to prevent his younger brother from going down the same wrong path that he did.

Director:

Writer:

Watch Trailer
0Check in
0Share...

Watch Now

From $2.99 on Amazon Video

ON DISC

Celebrate IMDb's 25th Anniversary with Photos We Love

IMDb turns 25 on October 17! To celebrate, we put together a gallery of some of our favorite movie, TV, and event photos from the last 25 years.

See the Photos We Love

User Lists

Related lists from IMDb users

a list of 37 titles
created 29 Aug 2011
 
a list of 36 titles
created 03 Jan 2012
 
a list of 24 titles
created 27 Feb 2012
 
a list of 40 titles
created 24 Oct 2012
 
a list of 44 titles
created 27 Nov 2013
 

Related Items

Connect with IMDb


Share this Rating

Title: American History X (1998)

American History X (1998) on IMDb 8.6/10

Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.

Take The Quiz!

Test your knowledge of American History X.

User Polls

Top 250 Movies #32 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 13 nominations. See more awards »

Videos

Photos

Learn more

People who liked this also liked... 

Se7en (1995)
Drama | Mystery | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X  

Two detectives, a rookie and a veteran, hunt a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his modus operandi.

Director: David Fincher
Stars: Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey
Fight Club (1999)
Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.9/10 X  

An insomniac office worker, looking for a way to change his life, crosses paths with a devil-may-care soap maker, forming an underground fight club that evolves into something much, much more...

Director: David Fincher
Stars: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter
Crime | Drama | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X  

A young F.B.I. cadet must confide in an incarcerated and manipulative killer to receive his help on catching another serial killer who skins his victims.

Director: Jonathan Demme
Stars: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Lawrence A. Bonney
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.9/10 X  

The lives of two mob hit men, a boxer, a gangster's wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson
Crime | Drama | Fantasy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X  

The lives of guards on Death Row are affected by one of their charges: a black man accused of child murder and rape, yet who has a mysterious gift.

Director: Frank Darabont
Stars: Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan, David Morse
Action | Drama | War
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X  

Following the Normandy Landings, a group of U.S. soldiers go behind enemy lines to retrieve a paratrooper whose brothers have been killed in action.

Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Tom Hanks, Matt Damon, Tom Sizemore
Forrest Gump (1994)
Drama | Romance
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.8/10 X  

Forrest Gump, while not intelligent, has accidentally been present at many historic moments, but his true love, Jenny Curran, eludes him.

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Stars: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise
Western
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X  

With the help of a German bounty hunter, a freed slave sets out to rescue his wife from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner.

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio
Crime | Drama | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.6/10 X  

Mathilda, a 12-year-old girl, is reluctantly taken in by Léon, a professional assassin, after her family is murdered. Léon and Mathilda form an unusual relationship, as she becomes his protégée and learns the assassin's trade.

Director: Luc Besson
Stars: Jean Reno, Gary Oldman, Natalie Portman
Gladiator (2000)
Action | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X  

When a Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by an emperor's corrupt son, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge.

Director: Ridley Scott
Stars: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen
The Matrix (1999)
Action | Sci-Fi
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.7/10 X  

A computer hacker learns from mysterious rebels about the true nature of his reality and his role in the war against its controllers.

Directors: Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss
Crime | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.4/10 X  

After a simple jewelery heist goes terribly wrong, the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is a police informant.

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
Jason Bose Smith ...
Little Henry (as Jason Bose-Smith)
...
...
Edit

Storyline

Derek Vineyard is paroled after serving 3 years in prison for killing two thugs who tried to break into/steal his truck. Through his brother, Danny Vineyard's narration, we learn that before going to prison, Derek was a skinhead and the leader of a violent white supremacist gang that committed acts of racial crime throughout L.A. and his actions greatly influenced Danny. Reformed and fresh out of prison, Derek severs contact with the gang and becomes determined to keep Danny from going down the same violent path as he did. Written by Nitesh D.(nmxpa7@msn.com)

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

See reality in your eyes when hate makes you blind See more »

Genres:

Crime | Drama

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for graphic brutal violence including rape, pervasive language, strong sexuality and nudity | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
Edit

Details

Official Sites:

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

20 November 1998 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

American History X  »

Box Office

Budget:

$7,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$156,076 (USA) (30 October 1998)

Gross:

£291,438 (UK) (2 April 1999)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

| (workprint)

Sound Mix:

| |

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

Paul Mazursky was considered for the role of Murray. See more »

Goofs

When Murray is eating at the Vineyards and says, "Its an expression of rage by people who feel neglected...etc" Derek drops his fork on the plate, but in the next shot he is holding it again. See more »

Quotes

[Derek is leaving prison]
Lamont: 'Sup, man? You getting outta here? Well, c'mon man! What the fuck you waiting on?
Derek Vinyard: Yeah, you know, I got this funny feeling.
Lamont: Oh yeah? What's that?
Derek Vinyard: I'm thinking the only reason I'm getting outta here in one piece is you.
Lamont: C'mon man! Get the fuck outta here, man! You think I'm gonna put my neck on the line for some crazy-ass peckerwood?
Derek Vinyard: Yeah, right. Stupid.
[a moment of silence passes and Lamont looks away]
Derek Vinyard: That's what I thought. I owe you, man.
Lamont: Man, you owe me shit, a'ight?
[...]
See more »

Connections

Featured in The 71st Annual Academy Awards (1999) See more »

Soundtracks

Battle Hymn of the Republic
(circa 1856) (uncredited)
Music by William Steffe
Lyrics by Julia Ward Howe (1862)
Sung a cappella by Ethan Suplee with modified lyrics
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
This is a fantastic movie....
7 January 2006 | by (United States) – See all my reviews

This is a fantastic movie because no matter what side you're on in life, this movie shows them all, good and bad, right or wrong. I also agree with the point in the movie that proves that people can change for the better and straighten things out in their head to do the right things in life. Yes, things in our world have changed, some for the good, some for the bad, but just because you might not agree with some of it, doesn't mean you can play God and try to make things "your way" and this shows exactly what happens when you try. This movie talks about all walks of life and the struggles we all have in what beliefs are right and wrong. Yes this movie is brutal and violent, but also truthful to the past and unfortunately still sometimes the present. This movie is about race, but not only 1 race is singled out and fed to the dogs, they all are. So, go into this movie with an open mind and your mind will come out full.


132 of 146 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Something about Norton's acting enamarie-avila
Coffee shop scene doubt... cervece41
Why do black people tend to hate this film? rs90
Why did he put his mouth on the curb? PJSparkle
My brother dated a female skinhead nairflair
Was the curbstomp wrong? cubanwarlord
Discuss American History X (1998) on the IMDb message boards »

Contribute to This Page