American Beauty (1999)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0169547/
Director: Sam Mendes / Script: Alan Ball
Runtime: 122min
Cast: Kevin Spacey, Mena Suvari, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Anette Benning
Genre: Drama
Tagline: …look closer

There is this seemingly ideal suburban family. If you look closer, you will get insight into the many aspects of American social life, which is far from being perfect. Lester Burnham, the narrator of the movie, is having a mid-life crisis; he becomes infatuated with his daughter’s (Jane) colleague (Angela) and he considers he must change certain aspects of his insignificant life.

The film deals with concepts such as beauty, family, the American Dream, social relations and life. The truth and the reality of social life is not always, or let’s say never, as it seems. The movie presents all kinds of problems that the constituents of the seemingly perfect families may have, approached with dark humour and irony. The actors’ performances are remarkable. The cast is great; Mena Suvari is perfect in her embodiment of Angela, the blonde, superficial hottie. The movie is filled with fantasies of Lester about her; his illusions involving many petals of roses. Lester ultimately transforms from being a loser; he leaves his job, talks back to his manipulative wife, buys a car, works out etc. Meanwhile his daughter, Jane befriends with the neighbour guy Ricky, a kind of a weirdo who films everything. He is a quite interesting character; he asserts that there is so much beauty in life and “an entire life behind things”. The plot is intelligently constructed; portrays perfectly the reality of the American community with its many aspects.

It’s a movie which makes people think. Illustrates perfectly the dysfunctional relationships that govern our social life, and treats beauty as a part of everyday life, which we are more likely to overlook. I liked the movie’s approach to these themes, still the film seems a bit overrated to me.