Rating: 
Summary: American Beauty The Film Of Our Time
Review: When American Beauty came out on DVD i was very hesitant to buy it because i prefare British movies but this one of the few films i agree with the critics. Kevin Spacey is excellent as 40 something Lester Burnham from the begining i felt for poor Lester (his anology of the after life is my favourite part of any film ever). As gets persucuted from by his wife Carolyn (Annette Bening) and his Daughter Laura (Thora Birch) for daring to revolt against his "normal" suberban life.His revolt begins one night when he goes to see lauras cheerleading group(my second favourite part of the film) he meets Angela (Mena Suvari)lauras best friend and they both change each others lives when Angela realises she has feelings for lester. One of the stangest characters is the Burnhams new next door neighbours particulary there son the drug dealer who spies on Laura and ends up selling Lester Drugs. This Has to be regarded as the greatest fim of the 1990's mainly due to the emotional performances from Spacey and Suvari and if there is a dry eye win the last 20 mins your more manly then i am i have seen it at least 10 times and i always end up crying in the end 20 mins. So i would like to congralulate Sam Mandes on a superb film which is both funny and emotional something hard to do nowadays.Kevin Spacey on been in my opinion been my favouite male character out of any film and finally Mena Suvari who is my favourite hollywood babe and her character is the best piece of acting by a woman in any film. So in conclusion go buy this film it will be the best purchase youve ever made . Thank You.
Rating:
Summary: American Cinematic Masterpiece
Review: This Movie Didn't Turn Out The Way It Was Advertised But I Think That Made It Better. No Advertisment Could Ever Give You An Idea Of How Good This Is. It's Good In The Fact That It Challenges You To Look At The World Through Someone Elses Eyes, Which Very Few People Do Today. It Shows You That Things Arent Always As They Appear To Be And That You Shouldn't Judge From First Glance. This Movie Is Message Upon Message Upon Message Upon Extremely Interesting Story. It's No Suprise This Movie Has A Cult Following. This Movie Doesn't Get Old Because Every Time You Watch It You See Something New. A Must Have. A Very Intellectual Movie That Will Challenge You For Some Time To Come
Rating: 
Summary: Campy performances, but a film with a message
Review: This movie is dark comedy, but I still feel that the acting was over-the-top, especially by Benning. This film is a warning to us about the breakdown of families consumed by careers and materialism. That's one of the themes, at least. I like most of the scenes with the girl Angela, notably her cheerleader-performance with the Spartanians, and then near the end of the film when she is all alone with Lester. If the performances were less campy, I would have given it five. The DVD has great sound, but the extras are only average IMO. My favorite parts of this film are the music (main theme/Angela's CD) and the screenplay.
Rating:
Summary: "So Much Beauty In this World that it Hurts"
Review: In 1999 the Academy Awards folks finally got things right by giving it's top awards to the film, "American Beauty". This definitely was the best movie put out that year. A modern classic in the making. In this era of Hollywood blockbusters, where special effects and noise seem to take precedence over well written sripts and acting, it is a true pleasure to find such an articulate, meaningful and well made film. This is the story of an upper middle class family, who's lives are turned upside down, when outsiders seperately come into their world. A father, mother and a teenage daughter all experience emotional awakenings and transformations, that later will have strong repercussions on thier lives.In the end this is a film about finding beauty and happiness in this world. Alan Ball (of HBO's "Six Feet Under") has written a brilliant script which seems to make you want to laugh and cry at the same time.Director Sam Mendes has pulled off an audacious debut which skillfully brings this story to life.The acting in this film is first rate. Kevin Spacey is fantastic as Lester Birnaum, a man who is just waking up to life. Equaly great is Annettte Bening as his materialistic wife. West Bentley and Thora Birch, who play the teenage lovers, are a real find. I predict both these talented young actors will have very successful careers. As a whole, this is very well packaged and good looking DVD, which is loaded with extras.My favorite of them is the excellent commentary track that director Sam Mendes provides, about the making of the movie.This DVD is well worth your while.
Rating:
Summary: Wondeful Movie
Review: How can i describe this movie. It's not easy. It's jumps along the lines of about every movie drama: Romance, Comedy, Drama, Suspense, Mystery. One thing I can say is that a whole lot o' kissin' is going on. Kevin kisses Annette, Chris kisses Kevin, Kevin kisses Mena, Thora kisses Wes, Annette kisses Peter...dang.American beauty is definetly a movie that you either hated or loved. It's not everyone's style. But it fits perfectly into my style. The cast gives an amazing performance, and their acting is flawless. I truly am shocked that Wes Bently, Thora Birch, and Mena Suvari were cheated out of Oscar Nominations for their roles. I still think Haley Joel Osment should have won that Oscar, but how Wes Bently wasn't nominated and Jude Law was? Come on... Something else that is excellent about the movie is much comedy is mixed into the dramatic scenes. This is one of the funniest movies I've seen, and it's deeply dramtic in almost every aspect. The music deserves notation, both the classic rock and elevator music, to Thomas Newmans incredible score. Every song (With words) fits perfectly into the movie, from 'Don't Rain on My Parade' to 'American Women'. Something I find myself debating is who IS the American Beauty. Sure Ricky mentions how much beauty is in the world, but either Jane or Angela is the American Beauty...my personal opinion is Angela, but you might disagree. Two interesting scene plays:
-In every scene there are roses, or the color red
-When you first see Lester at his job, look at one of the posters he's got on his cubicle. It says 'Look Closer' the slogan that was used on the movie poster. My two cents. It deserved every Oscar it got (And then some. Angelina Jolie wins and Thora Birch doesn't even get nominated? CONSPIRAcy!) so go watch it, and appreciate it for what it is
Rating:
Summary: Great movie one of the best ever made in modern day
Review: This movie lines up with Citisen Kane The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the wind witch where awarded the best movie's of all time this movie goes right up there with it, Witch the MOVIE is about a guy who go's crazy and his family basicly spliting up and his daughter who fall's in love with the boy next door. NOTICE SPOILER The guy ends up geting killed at the end, witch you will turn off the movie saying that it was probly one of the weridest movie you have ever seen but after you watch it a 2nd time you will relize the meaning of the movie and in my opinon this was the greatest movie ever made in the last 8 years.
Rating:
Summary: Amazingly Beautiful
Review: This film is awesome! So beautiful from it's cinimatography to it's message. You will never look at a paper bag or your life the same way again...
Rating:
Summary: The Best Movie Ever Made
Review: Never has a movie better parted critics who judge a movie based on content vs. depth than "American Beauty" has. I mean by this that those who give this movie bad reviews are those who base it on the fact that it HAS sexual content, drug use, violence and language, all involving suburban families. Those who give it good reviews are those who see not the disturbing ways they act, but the meaning and beauty in all their actions. To anyone (teens, adults) in suburban america, this movie let's you know that you're not alone in your confusion. It helps you understand the uselessness of "...a $10,000 sofa appolstered in italian silk." It helps you understand the beauty of all things. It helps you understand why we do what we do.
Rating: 
Summary: Upon review...
Review: I really loved this movie the first time I saw it in theaters. However, when I watch it now the Kevin Spacey character just seems a bit...creepy to me. It is hard for me to romanticize this middle-aged man's shallow sexual desire for a sixteen-year-old girl. Even his decision at the end doesn't really redeem him in my eyes. Also, the Wes Bentley character may be the warmest, fuzziest, most conscientious drug-dealer in history. As for the DVD, it is OK. The extras basically amount to the PR company gushing over how great the film is without too much real insight into the making of it.
Rating:
Summary: A decent flick, for Hollywood
Review: Albeit I personally have decided that Hollywood produces nothing good, American Beauty is one of its few movies that manages to break free from most signature Hollywood cinemas. In it, a man is faced with the dim facticity of his ordinary life, and decides that this ordinarity is something that he cannot live within. In the far background of the movie, only somewhat recognized and presented by the writer, this man is coming face to face with his finitude, a rarely thought of topic in the average Western man. He is walking about in a nihilistic stupor until a teenage avant-garde opens him up to a lifestyle that he never thought possible. Thus his redemption has form. The teenager, a child of a mental and abusive family, strikes me as an existential Buddhist, at peace with the emptiness of existence, but making radical decisions taken only by the strongest of men (as Nietzsche saw it). Unfortunately, the drugs and sexual relations throughout the plot of the movie diminish the real core; a journey into negative philosophy, where death and nothingness confront the transitory conscious being. The existence of these two ethical breaches are no doubt enough to get the most naive viewers off track right away. But even for those able to see it as a tool, they turn out to be like a hammer punding a screw into a hole, when a hammer is more appropriate for nails. The writer is unable to maintain the postmodern feel that the core of his plot could have produced. This is also seen in the frequent references that "nothing is more terrible than being ordinary." The main characters are continually searching for salvation in something they believe will be extraordinary, but the writer fails to realize that redemption is impossible. The teenage avant-garde's image of the world being beautiful, a glimpse of God, was left unsupported. One could view existence in the complete opposite manner and there was nothing in the movie that would have been able to have exemplified beauty over it. But this is certainly a failure of modernity, the naivity of romanticism and of existential philosophies. But the end of the movie presents a little postmodern negative eschatology for the viewer, borrowing on Levinas' conception of the *il y a*. Unfortunately, the ending was a bit dissapointing as well, as the man is shot in the back of the head, and dies content without ever truly facing his own finitude. Certainly there are better movies (especially foreign films), but American Beauty stands out at least a little from the ordinary ethical code that Hollywood is so fond of including in nearly all its films. The writer tried to tackle a concept, and manages to pin down a few good thoughts for the few of us able to catch them.
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