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Sam Mendes of Road to Perdition fame first directed American Beauty a haunting, sad, and funny life of suburbia gone wrong. Kevin Spacey, who won a Best Actor Oscar for his role, is Lester Burnham, a depressed 40’s husband with a droll job in a magazine. He’s constantly pushed around, especially by his successful real estate wife Carolyn (Annette Benning) and his rebellious teenage daughter Jane (Thora Birch). He decides to get noticed and not be the scab that everyone flicks at.
First, he blackmails his boss; he does drugs, and others, to name some. Carolyn starts to see a rival real estate dealer (Peter Gallagher), Jane falls for a voyeuristic new neighbor Ricky (Wes Bentley), who is supplying Lester with his drugs. Lester also falls for Jane’s best friend Angela (Mena Suvari), while his father, recent Oscar winner Chris Cooper, abuses Ricky. Although these stories do not seem to have anything in common, they flow together simply.
As I was watching this movie, I was reminded of two movies: Far From Heaven and Ghost World. The former had an affluent family with one problem that leads to the next, while the latter, besides that they both star Thora Birch, have troubled high schoolers. I thought that the acting was capital. Spacey was an “all-singing-all-dancing crap of the world” who slowly turned himself into something greater. I thought that this transformation was simply amazing, and so was Spacey’s acting. It was just outstanding. I really felt for him. Benning was also very good, but I understand why she didn’t win an Oscar, and she cried too much.
One thing I enjoyed about this film is that it accurately portrayed upper-middle class families. They have special sofas, luxury SUVs, and more. Although the people there only think materialistically, they have no idea that everything can turn to shambles. However, Jane realizes that her life isn’t normal, and she doesn’t do anything about it. Birch was great, too, but nowhere near as great as her performance in Ghost World. All of the others were great too. I especially liked Suvari’s Angela, who thinks she is perfect and shuns her inner feelings. I also liked the “twist” that Ricky’s father undergoes.
Small aspects make or break a movie. Here, they make it. The music was simply outstanding, sometimes sad, sometimes happy and gleeful. Also, the cinematography was great. Billed as a dramedy, it succeeded in both parts, but not was much as it could have. I didn’t laugh as much as I wished, and I wasn’t as touched as I wanted to be. Other than that, I really loved taking this trip down the not-so-long-ago.
Rated R for strong sexuality, language, violence and drug content.
Review Date: March 28, 2003