it seems to endorse patriarchal control of the family, it shows its title character failing to survive, let alone achieve an earthly reunion with his slain wife and son. But the most complex of the three films is American History X. After his father is killed by a sniper, Derek plays head of the family by committing brutal acts of racism that surely repel most viewers. Here, the while male protagonist's patriarchal ambitions hardly seem healthy. Yet even when Derek undergoes a dramatic, inspiring transformation from racist to non-racist, he cannot prevent his younger brother from being a victim of racial conflict. Indeed, this film is more complex than The Patriot and Gladiator not only in its handling of the family restoration plot, but also in its approach to issues of race. While all three movies seem to value close personal relations between blacks and whites, American History X is distinct in stressing obstacles to these groups' forming one happy human "family."
             As The Patriot begins, Benjamin's family has already suffered the loss of his wife. Defending his decision not to join the colonists' fight against the British, he cites as a priority the maintenance of his remaining family. More than ever, he contends, he needs to be an engaged head of his clan. When he eventually joins the Revolutionaries, he is prompted to do so by exactly this commitment to the role of family patriarch. Specifically, he takes arms against the British to avenge their killing of one of his sons and to prevent them from executing his oldest boy Gabriel. By the end of the film, Benjamin has in effect preserved his family by helping to defeat the British. Moreover, he has even wed his deceased wife's sister, thereby literally maintaining blood ties. In the final scene, the newly-married couple and the surviving children are all back home, looking forward to the physical reconstruction of their house.
             This sun...