Something doesn't quite add up for me in the ending of American History X

Submitted by robbie2000williams t3_11dtcvu in movies

Spoilers ahead:
Watched it for the first time and really enjoyed the story and narrative. One thing I don't quite understand though is this; Danny getting shot in the end is portrayed as if it's Derek's fault for getting him involved in White Supremacy, which would make sense. However, in the beginning of the film, all Danny does is walk into the bathroom, confront the kids that were bullying the snitch, and tell the snitch that he needs to stand up for himself. I don't see how White Supremacy is the catalyst here... Is it implied that he wouldn't have done the same had the races of the bullies and bullied were swapped? If so, I still don't see how that could bring him to be shot... Is it because he used derogatory language? I don't remember the dialogue exactly, but that would explain it. I just thought it would make more sense if Danny was racially bullying a black kid, harnessing the views that his brother had been feeding him. That way, Derek would have been immediately responsible for Danny's actions and partially for his death. How I see it at the moment, any kid could have been shot for retaliating against the bullies, and therefore Derek isn't really responsible. Maybe I have completely misunderstood this part of the plot though, what are your thoughts about this? Can anybody shed some light onto a detail that I maybe missed?

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Behemothic1 t1_jaaozza wrote

Because of Derek, Danny has been rolling with skinheads for a while. He is a known white supremacist and has shaved his head. So blowing smoke in the guys face was more than just standing up for a vulnerable person.

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robbie2000williams OP t1_jaapgcw wrote

Replying to Behemothic1 (#2,084,821)

Yeah, that makes sense. I suppose if they knew that he was a white supremacist and obvs can see his shaved head, they know he's a kid who actively hates them because of their race and that is enough motivation, regardless of Danny's intentions in that scene. I think maybe I was focusing too much on just that scene, not the whole context.

Edit: typo

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ZZartin t1_jaaq4fr wrote

Derek wasn't responsible at least not directly. He certainly contributed to the racial tension including heavily influencing Danny's perspective up to that point.

It's kind of implied that the kid who shot Danny was getting into a gang and that was part of his initiation. Which makes it mostly just a tragedy since Danny had just had some revelation and has now been killed over something completely trivial.

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Veszerin t1_jaato95 wrote

>Danny getting shot in the end is portrayed as if it's Derek's fault for getting him involved in White Supremacy, which would make sense. However, in the beginning of the film, all Danny does is walk into the bathroom, confront the kids that were bullying the snitch, and tell the snitch that he needs to stand up for himself.

  1. It's the same guy that was bullying the snitch that is the one who shoots Danny.

  2. I think it makes sense that Derek blames himself a bit, that's plausible, even if how much of it is his fault is arguable.

The tragedy is that Danny moves past his hate and resolves to put it aside only to fall victim to a consequence of an earlier interaction.

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Real-Jackfruit-5884 t1_jab27ao wrote

I feel like it brings the movie full circle in the message it portrays. The black guys are the same as the skinheads. how no one wins at the end of the day in gang life it's just tit for tat and goes around in circles. The black guys arnt victims lol how did it all start by them breaking in to Derek's trick over a b ball game, or bullying the kid in the bathroom. Their anger led them to stealing the truck and getting killed or killing Danny. It's literally shows that they are both going through the same experiences black and white is only a thing sperating them in their minds

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