Rating: 
Summary: The Formula For A Good Movie
Review: All I have to say is that the preview for this movie did it no justice. American Beauty was incredible, but when I first saw the previews, it looked boring. This has occured in movies such as Meet Joe Black, The Devil's Advocate, The Matrix, and especially Fight Club. Movies like Battlefield Earth and Star Wars have been hyped up with their sci-fi previews, but only disappoint with bad plots. My Formula For A Good Movie is to make a bad preview, and you will get a good movie. When the audience is not expecting much and you surprise them, it will leave an impact. Anyway, American Beauty is great. It is such a tease to not release it until October!
Rating: 
Summary: Finally, Gay issues explored nicely -
Review: To be honest I really didn't understand this movie. I was quite confused by all the supposed subtexts and layers of the various characters. But one aspect of the film that really touched me, as an adult homosexual, were the scenes involving the (apparently) gay-hating father and how he treats his son, only to learn that he has lived a life of pain hiding his own homosexuality. I can relate to this. Although not in the military, I've had to deal with the pain and internal conflict of dealing with my homosexuality in a homo-hating world. It's not easy, but like the charcter in the movie, I often deal with things similarly - lashing out, criticizing others, trying to make up for my own shortcomings. What a powerful characterization. I recommend this movie to all gay (and of course straight) men.
Rating: 
Summary: Might as well have been a Pauly Shore movie
Review: I wasn't bothered by the Pedophelia, as a matter of fact, the only thing that bothered me was the script. The acting is great, the direction is great, it has two or three descent scenes, but none of the will ever be able to save this movie from the horror of itself. If this movie had never been made, I would be just as well off.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible
Review: This film is one of my favorites of recent times. It makes you think, makes you think some more, then it drives you nuts trying to figure out how something this good came from a sitcom writer. On a side note, Wes Bentley went to the local school system here, yet the never mentioned it in the local paper. Strange due to the fact that this is a small town that has yet to produce a celebrity.
Rating:
Summary: Look Closer...
Review: This movie is beyond belief.Did it live up to the hype?No it went beyond that.The movie is definately not for everyone.All close-minded people need not watch it.But if you are willing to accept the dark beauty of the movie,i highly reccomend it.It's probably my favorite movie.I can't even begin to describe any single scenes because there are so many great ones.Some sound so simple but they leave you breathless.Who would have thought a bag flying through the air could be so beautiful.On person's review said it was not for children,but I'm 14 and I definately understand whats going on.The sexual scenes are tasteful and only add to the story.One of the most touching scenes is when one character removes her top but the camera zooms in on her eyes.It is truly a classic.The first great movie of the new millenium.
Rating:
Summary: Boundless in nuance and meaning
Review: "American Beauty" exudes so much truth, it's head-turningly elemental. Taking what seems to be a drab storyline, the pace and the approach surprise the audience; we are always with the characters when they complain about their lives, and we are always with them when they laugh and smile about their past experiences. The actors are across-the-cast superb, especially Kevin Spacey, who makes it seem impossible that Lester Burnham be played by anyone but him. While I personally did think that "American Beauty" was a little overrated (I still haven't figured out whether it really IS the best of the decade), and it's true that the Colonel 's role seems only to propel the last act of the movie, that doesn't change its magic. It 's an incredily insightful and intelligent exploration of our daily natures, and the movie is boundless in nuance and meaning. Top it off with an affecting music score by Thomas Newman (who's FINALLY getting recognized), and sweeping cinematography, and you get one of the top picks of 1999.
Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: American Beauty may be too dark to go down as one of the all-time classic movies, but it certainly is a masterpiece of cinema. Every performance was perfect, every role perfectly cast, every deadpan joke worked perfectly.This movie is not for everyone. It deals with some very adult and very touchy issues (adultery, homosexuality and homophobia, dirty old men)and most people I know either loved it or hated it. There is very little room for any middle ground. American Beauty deserved every Oscar it won, plus about a dozen others it didn't- Annette Benning, Thora Birch, and Mena Suvari were all wonderful, as were several other actors whose names escape me. I highly recommend this movie.
Rating:
Summary: a cheer for life
Review: This is a tapestry of its' own human weaving , dependent on human options for direction and solution . ----there are no "Gods" or supernatural " givens " here ...., this is the empowering of of individual humans over group-think . The person who dies is the Jesus-Figure ; ---the one who is self-redeemed by his own actions ; ---not those of people around him , with their own agendas .
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest films I've ever seen!
Review: I've now seen American Beauty three times and feel like I could watch ten more times. There is so much to love about this film. Both Kevin Spacey and Annette Benning are fantastic in the film. The soundtrack is also excellent. Thomas Newman (I've never heard of him before the movie) does a lot of the music and it's great. The dialogue is superb and there are almost no scenes that are unenjoyable. Truly an entertaining film, as well as one rich in theme. You will laugh and cry and think many times throughout the film. My only complaint would be that we didn't see Lester pre-midlife crisis enough to sympathize with him more. They sort of just plunged right into his troubles without establishing how his wife mistreats him, how work [is lame], how he is distanced from his daughter. But a minor complaint. [View] this movie today!
Rating:
Summary: DYSFUNCTIONAL TWIST
Review: FIRST OF ALL I'D JUST LIKETO SAY THAT THIS FILM HAD BEEN N THEATRES FOR MONTHSI FINALLY GOT TO VIEW IT INTORONTO.AND THE FIRST THINGI ALWAYS FIND IN FILMS THATI DIDN'T FIND IN THIS FILMWAS PREDICTABILITY. EXCEPT FOR THE PART WHERE BENNINGAND GALLAGHER GET BUSTEDIN THE DRIVE THRU AND THAT'S ONLY BCUZ OF THE TRAILER THEY SHOWED ON TV.EVERY CHARACTER MADE ITWORTH WAITING FOR THEIRSCENE TO COME ON.AND MRKEVIN SPACEY YOUR THINLIPPED GRIN HAS ALWAYSBEEN A FAVORITE SIGNATUREOF YOU.
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