American Beauty

Plot

Lester Burnham is 42. He is in a loveless marriage to Carolyn, his teenage daughter Jane hates him, and his job is trying to cut costs – with him in the crosshairs.

When new neighbours move in, – he is in awe of the confidence of the son Ricky, and quickly becomes a customer of his ‘weed’ business.

He also becomes infatuated with Jane’s friend Angela, often fantasising about her, and embarrassing Jane.

Direction

Flawless direction from Sam Mendes, in which he won an Oscar for his work. The set designs are flawless – which adds to the ‘beauty’ of what we see – which is clean and tidy – while the feelings of the characters are all broken and untidy.

There is strong use of lighting in darker scenes – that accentuate characters facial features. This gives an almost noir type feel to the film, and is done to perfection.

The final arc which is set at night in the rain is stunning – and could almost be used in ASMR videos. One particular shot has a car window roll down, with a view of a red door on a house – and the colour contrast in the rain is spectacular.

There is also strong use of reflections – mostly in the windows of cars. There is one very strong reflection shot of a face late in the film.

Cast/Characters

Despite the congested cast – they all add to the film in their own way.

The Burnham family – Lester, Carolyn and Jane – played by Kevin Spacey, Annette Benning and Thora Birch, all give stellar performances. Spacey won his second Oscar for his performance, and Benning was deservedly nominated for one too.

The Fitz family – the strict, no nonsense Army Col. Frank Fitz – played to perfection by Chris Cooper, son Ricky – who exudes confidence – played by Wes Bentley – and wife Barbara.

Mena Suvari plays Angela, the object of Lester’s affection, and Peter Galllagher plays Buddy Kane who Carolyn has an affair with.

Screenplay/Setting/Themes

There are many themes that occur within the film, primarily in and around family. The marriages of Lester and Carolyn which is on the rocks as they both long for other people.

Frank and Barbara’s is clearly that she is being oppressed by him, and the revelation of his secret in the final moments of the film make sense why she is completely shut off from the world and is almost living with depression.

There are frequent uses of Rose petals as Lester fantasises about Angela – and the replay as he wants to hold onto these feelings.

The narration from Spacey is needed, and not overused as we do need to know his inner thoughts throughout, especially the final day of his life (which is given away in the beginning of the film).

There was controversy in the film due to Birch’s being underage at one pivotal scene. Also Spacey’s recent history has tarnished the legacy of the film somewhat.

Score/Soundtrack

Thomas Newman’s score is instantly recognisable, and the entire score adds to the strength of the film.

Overall

Despite Spacey’s historic allegations – it did not take away from my viewing in 2024. Still a perfectly made film, and deserved its five Oscars. Speaking of five.

5/5