Kevin Spacey ....
Lester Burnham
Annette Bening ....
Carolyn Burnham
Thora Birch ....
Jane Burnham
Wes Bentley ....
Ricky Fitts
Mena Suvari ....
Angela Hayes
Peter Gallagher ....
Buddy Kane
Directed by .... Sam Mendes
Check out the
American Beauty CD.
Or the Shooting Script
American Beauty
by Ed Owens
The worst anyone can be is normal.
The topic of familial dysfunction in America is nothing new. In fact,
the last two to three years have seen such a glut of similarly thumbed
films that its getting more and more difficult to get excited about a
new one. Or at least it was. American Beauty is a wonderfully entertaining
film that succeeds in being both witty and tragic, and though it brings
nothing new to the topic of dysfunctionality, it's the form that matters.
Then, things change. Lester becomes infatuated with one of Jane's school
friends, Angela (Mena Suvari - Slums of Beverly Hills, Nowhere)
and Jane befriends the new neighbor, Ricky (Wes Bentley - Beloved).
It soon becomes very clear that the two newcomers are as odd as the Burnhams,
though in their own ways. The impending tragedy is inevitable, and yet
somehow irresistible.
What makes American Beauty work is not what it says (been there,
done that) but how it says it. First time director Sam Mendes' hand is
both passionate and sure. Each shot is tightly drawn and crafted for maximum
effectiveness, and the pacing (once the film hits its mark) is perfect.
In fact, the film is so lovingly put together that one can't help but
admire the craftsmanship. Lester's first vision of Angela, a day dreaming
fantasy swathed in rose petals, is luscious to look at, as is much of
the film, and succeeds in transcending the visual, becoming more textured
and nuanced than a mere image. Added to this is some strong writing on
the part of first timer Alan Ball. Ball's script hits the perfect happy
medium, giving us enough detail to quickly identify characters but leaving
the viewer enough room to enter the characters, to make individual judgments,
rather than dictating how and what we should feel.
American Beauty isn't saying anything new, nor does it claim
to be. But the passion of its makers and the enthusiasm of the performances
manage to make American Beauty more than the mere sum of its parts.
It is a film one experiences rather than watches, and in today's world
where so much emphasis is placed on the image, a movie you feel is refreshing
indeed. 
Lester
and Carolyn Burnham (Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening) are a perfectly
normal couple by today's cinematic standards: obsessive materialists whose
only reason for staying married would appear to be to keep up appearances.
The neuroses of the parents have rubbed off on the daughter, Jane (Thora
Birch - Alaska, Clear and Present Danger), who is saving
her baby-sitting money to pay for breast surgery in spite of her already
ample figure. The family dynamics, skewed as they are, have settled into
a comfortable pattern for everyone involved.
The
film is also aided by some dead on performances. While many of the characters
skirt dangerously close to stereotype, each of the actors and actresses
(watch Spacey and Bentley specifically) manages to add dimensionality
and depth, bringing the otherwise fuzzy sketches into sharp focus. This
is not to say the film is without flaws (Spacey's voice-over is often
banal and unnecessary), but the positives far outweigh the negatives.
The result is a film that is both charming and distressing, a humorous
look at 90s ideals that doesn't seem quite so funny once you've left the
theater. Its also a portent of the hopefully great things to come from
Mendes.