Stream it now American Beauty 1999

 

wow this film totally blew my expectations out the window.Thought it was going to be boring but was the total opposite, had me captivated from beginning to end. Watch it if you have not seen it. peace.

American Beauty is completely opposite of what I thought it would be, but in a very very good way. To be honest, I actually didn't think that I would like it as much as I did, as this film just completely blew me out of the water.

Pretty much everything about this film is perfect, especially the acting, and especially Kevin Spacey. Spacey's performance as the sarcastic Lester Burnham was just unbelievable, and is one of his best performances by miles. The character of Lester made me laugh so many times with his sarcastic comments and his crazy outbursts. Annette Bening did an excellent job as Lester's wife, Carolyn, the stubborn materialistic real estate saleswoman.

Pretty much the only two things I did not like about American Beauty was one, what happened to Kevin Spacey's character at the end (don't want to spoil it if you haven't seen it) and two, the Ricky character played by Wes Bentley. The Ricky character in the film just annoyed the hell out of me, I mean he annoyed me to no end. And he was so weird that it was very uncomfortable to watch him when he was in screen, and not in a good way.

The story was just absolutely amazing, as you watch a family go further and further down hill through time. And in the end, everything just falls apart and can never be put back together again. My favorite scene by far would have to be the drive through scene when Kevin Spacey finds out that his wife is cheating on him, the things he says to her are just hilarious.

Director Sam Mendes really knows how to direct a film, and its no surprise to me that American Beauty won the 1999 Best Picture Academy Award, not to mention 4 other Academy Awards. Two words....Simply Amazing.

When I first heard about "American Beauty", my friends (that can't absorb any complexity of a movie without calling it weird), told me that it was a waste of time, well, @#$% my friends!

The characters in this film are memorable, even if sometimes they sound cartoonish. Spacey, as I expected, is wonderfull, ironic, and depressed sometimes and, to watch his turn from dominated husband to a triumphant and happy person is a great experience, I wanted him to send everybody to hell, but the movie showed me that it really didn't matter anymore to him.

The directing in this movie is very succesfull too, it chooses first person narrative sometimes, and the movie would be different if they haven't done this.

We also have great character studies in it, like Fitts (Bentley) and Col. Frank (Cooper),I really didn't expect his turn in the end...

The end of this movie, although some may say it's silly, is very moving and profound, when I finished watching this movie, I had no words to describe what it ment to me. Look at the last lines: "I guess I could be pretty angry about what happened to me... but it's hard to stay mad, when there's so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I'm seeing it all at once, and it's too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that's about to burst... And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life...". I dare you to do better than that!

Verdict: With great performances, script and directing, it just doesn't need anything else...

American Beauty is Sam Mendes finest work, it is a fantastic film that tackles the realities of life in such a brutal and honest fashion.

Sam Mendes brings out the normalities of a mans life and brings it in such an artistic and amazing fashion onto our screen. You laugh and feel for his main character Lester Burnham, who is played by Kevin Spacey, and Lesters family which is an outstanding cast.

To try and breakdown this film and explain the amazing sub-stories and cultural relevance it has for the modern family, it would take more characters then I have been allowed! Just take my word for it, it is amazing!!

My only point of contention is that I felt Mena Suvari's character Angela was a little distressing and although probably a reality I didn't feel it was necessary to run that storyline to the extent of nudity! (Just my opinion) It felt awkard and a little too much shock value!

American Beauty is totally mind blowing and shocking and yet has some beautiful moments, check it out.

90% - Amazing film with some amazing moments.

After watching this film, I was left completely speechless. I felt emotionally drained in the best sense of the term. This is a great, moving, and powerful picture. Every single performance in this picture is brilliant. The film looks amazing and Mendes' use of the camera is spectacular. A great representation of the disillusion of the American Dream.

This movie makes me realize things that are important in life than just materials i learn a new lesson every time i watch it and it's Kevin Spacey's best performance in his career

In all honesty, I couldn't decide if I liked this or not. So much was well done and yet at the same time, so much just left me sitting in my seat befuddled. The actors were fantastic and Kevin Spacey gives what is most likely his best performance in his entire career.

There have been some amazing dramas about families that seem perfect on the outside, but underneath they show a totally quite opposite picture. Movies such as Kramer Vs. Kramer, The Great Santini, Ordinary People and Terms Of Endearment were just a few of the best. Not to mention the endless amount of television dramas that dealt with same heavy issues. But no movie had pulled all the stops completely in character, dialogue and visuals as strongly as American Beauty. The dysfunctional family was never so exposed and familiar as in this film.

Kevin Spacey is an unhappy office worker who is unhappily married as well to Annette Bening. She herself is miserable, trying to be the vision of the perfect wife and real-estate broker, but is less than successful. Their daughter, Thora Birch, is simply an unhappy teenager who is also ashamed of her parents. These three are so stuck in their own personal misery, they never even try to work together as a family. Surrounding them are also other characters who on the outside seem alright but are insecure and messed up in their own way. Everyone except Thora's classmate and next door neighbor who admits that he and everyone else is screwed up, and keeps a visual log on them as he films them for his personal library. The misery that is shown in the beginning of the film becomes even more miserable.

The list of conflicts and complications are endless in this movie. Almost ever scene is an episode that is disturbing and shocking. Not to mention several times halarious. Several of the situations are just too pathetic to be taken seriously. Excellent acting, beautiful cinematography and very artsy under the direction of Sam Mendes. This movie actually gets you to question what goes on in your own neighborhood, and would you really want to know? Definately a family drama that really isn't made for the whole family, but without question one that will blow your mind.

March 2010 marks not only my 5th anniversary of pouring my movie thoughts into Rotten Tomatoes, but also the 25th anniversary of my life. I've decided to do an alphabetical wealth of reviews to remember the occasion: A to Z of films from my DVD collection, some new discoveries and some old favorites. And here we go:
A is for American Beauty.
Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is an average suburban American man: boring corporate job, frustrated marriage, angsty teenage daughter. He narrates first his death, and then his life, as the plot weaves seamlessly between Lester and the people around him. These include his career-minded wife Carolyn (Annette Bening), who finds her stress release in literally screwing her competition (Peter Gallagher), listening to self-empowerment tapes, and shooting guns. Also in their cute suburban house is his daughter Jane (Thora Birch), a typical high-schooler who abandons her "normal" friend Angela (Mena Suvari) and finds her niche with the not-at-all typical boy next door, Ricky (Wes Bentley). Ricky's home life is dominated by his Marine Corps father (Chris Cooper) and vacant, passive mother (Alison Janney), and he escapes to his videos and his blossoming relationship with Jane. Angela, meanwhile, is more interested in screwing Lester until he offers just that. Unfortunately, someone else is also interested in screwing Lester, someone who can't take no for an answer.
Say what you will about its hyper-realism and sometimes shaky plot; this film put indelible marks in American cinema history. Rose petals and plastic bags will never be seen the same way again. And one could not ask for more intriguing and - dare I say - beautiful directing. Nor could one demand a more superb cast, some playing completely against type. Its pacing is smooth and the story is interesting, though it revels in the normalcy of the failed American dream and populates suburbia with characters who are not completely believable.
Overall, an "artsy" flick, maligned and overestimated with equal frequency, but still an enjoyable viewing more than 10 years later, and that's the real proof of good cinema.

it a beautiful movie, it's wonderfully shot and directed, from a great script. every character holds a metaphor that is available at first sight. and that's great.
set in the 90-es suburbia, where all the characters live. they are successful in a conventional way: they have jobs, houses, kids and gardens. but they are deeply unhappy inside.
the hero and the narrator is lester, a man who will be dead because of a great misunderstanding caused by his rebellion towards the society of success. he quits his job, dreams about his daughter's friend and spends his days flipping burgers, drinking beer, smoking pot and exercising. his wife is a raw-model of the modern 90-es woman: successful, financially independent, hooked onto self help literature and making an image of herself. she is cold and materialistic. their daughter is, however, a typical teenager with typical teen problems (she is saving her money for a boob-job that she doesn't need). her friend angela is an object of lester's fantasies, but she is also insecure teenager with a slutty mask. in the neighborhood we also have a marine colonel, who hates "junkies and faggets", his sedated wife and his son, a drug-dealer and an amateur film-maker who rocks the world of lester's daughter. we also have two successful gay men, the king of real-estate business and so on.
the whole movie stands as picture of all the downsides of the progress and success. people stopped being people, stopped being happy, stopped being free, or at least fighting for it, got hooked up on all the stuff, and the stuff ain't life. there is something absurd with it, and the comic tone of the movie underlines it, creating a mix of satire, comedy and tragedy. kinda french, in a way.