1 of 8

Write now Article Tools

Warning: this contains spoilers.

AMERICAN BEAUTY (Sam Mendes: 1999)

SYNOPSIS: "My name is Lester Burnham. This is my neighbourhood; this is my street; this is my life. I am 42 years old. In less than a year I will be dead. Of course I don't know that yet, and in a way, I am dead already."

American Beauty tells the story of Lester Burnham, father to Janie and husband to Carolyn, who is suffering a mid-life crisis. Feeling suffocated by his wide and the superficial charade of daily life in mundane suburbia Lester decides to start making his own decisions such as buying a sports car, quitting his job and smoking pot. Angered by Lester's new lifestyle Carolyn, a highly-strung and pretentious realtor, starts an affair with her like-minded business rival Buddy Kane. Their teenage daughter Janie meanwhile becomes intrigued by her new neighbour Ricky, the son of an incredibly strict militaristic bigot Frank Fitts. As Janie becomes closer to Ricky she drifts away from her flirtatious best friend Angela, a beautiful cheerleader who Lester's lusts after.

REVIEW: "And that's the day I knew there was this entire life behind things, and... this incredibly benevolent force, that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid, ever"

American Beauty is one of those rare gems of Hollywood; a truthful and inspiring story without swamping the audience in sentimentality, ironically not very Hollywood-esque. Indeed Clinton (cnn.com) wrote that it's not your typical high-concept Hollywood film, and some feel it might be a hard sell with mainstream audiences'. However the appeal to a mainstream audience lies in the talented filmmaking. In fact the carefully balanced drama and sharp humour really shows this film for what is truly is; a satire about suburban life. Thorn (plume-noire.com) relates American Beauty to the American Dream and therefore highlighting its satirical look at modern life:

"the film denounces the hypocrisy of a society obsessed with an outer appearance of success but is eaten away by frustration on the inside, thus destroying a certain American Dream. Here, Puritanism, patriotism, empowerment, and corporate America will not be spared"

Lester has a mundane job, a stagnant marriage and feels he is an unnecessary part of the family. He finally changes his life and makes himself happy again. But it does not matter, because nothing is more important than realizing the beauty of everything. Because it is only when you accept this that you can be truly happy not matter how

• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Movie reviews: American Beauty?
We want to hear your view. Write now!