Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world.

''It was one of those days when it's a minute away from snowing and there's this electricity in the air, you can almost hear it. And this bag was, like, dancing with me. Like a little kid begging me to play with it. For fifteen minutes. 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. Video's a poor excuse, I know. But it helps me remember... and I need to remember... Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in.''


Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation for his daughter's attractive friend. While his daughter forms a bond with the new boy in her neighborhood...

Kevin Spacey: Lester Burnham

Annette Bening: Carolyn Burnham

American Beauty, right from the start tells me form the perfect narration by Kevin Spacey that this is going to be a powerful film and story and boy is it...



A lesson in life, this comes so close into a glimpse of what life is. Character's are not cut outs but living breathing souls that you care about, that you can relate too. All the cast including director Sam Mendes have succeeded in crafting a world which reflects our own so well.
The score, the music all add to the beauty of it. Powerful camera work which is neatly shot and smooth. Transitions flow consistently, while the story shifts between characters to obtain diversity.

This film should affect everyone who sees it because anyone can relate to it's intricate curving and believable characters. American Beauty is actually a social satire of suburban America. These people have an image of what they are "supposed" to be implanted in their brains. One day Lester (Kevin Spacey), snaps out of it. Lester realizes there is more out there than a dead end job, a wife who bosses him around and is obsessed with material possessions, but more importantly Lester realizes there is more in him. As Lester starts to change himself, it also affects his environment. His wife Carolyn (Annette Benning) is totally thrown off keel by his actions. Lester has discovered that they are not the average middle class suburban family but a completely unique group of human beings. When he tries to get this message across to Carolyn, she rejects him, has an affair, and convinces herself she is the victim. Lester and Carolyn's message and the main message of the movie is that we all wear masks, put up visages. Thus unless we become ourselves, we can never truly be happy. It is said multiple times in the film that it would be terrible to be ordinary.

Now, there is a second message. A parallel story is being told. That of Lester's daughter Jane and her boyfriend Ricky. While these two stories are deeply intertwined and connect with each other, Ricky and Jane's message is equally important. Ricky lives in a world of beauty. Beauty is everywhere and in everything. Jane, who at the beginning of the film believes she is ordinary and plain, is brought into this world by Ricky and is shown how much she has to offer. Their message is that there is beauty in everything and all you have to do is look for it.

Kevin Spacey was phenomenal in this, he really was. As was Wes Bentley, this however, his portrayal of his character Ricky Fitts, shows me what a good actor he is. His weirdness and way of shooting things is interesting while his relationship with Jane is touching indeed.
I'm glad the ending was realistic and it added a more meaningful punch to a masterpiece that is defined by it's careful grasp at it's subject, life...

10/10