This is what won Best Picture?

Rating: 1/10 (5 December 2000)

I know I'm a little outnumbered here, but this is one of the most boring and overrated films I have ever seen. This is the winner of Best Picture, along with being said that it is one of the best movies of all time? How exactly is this possible?
When I had seen the trailer for American Beauty, I immediately wanted to see the film. I'm the kind of person who waits for the movie to come out on video, so I can view it at my own speed because I usually like to watch parts of it more than once to get the full understanding of them. I had heard so much about the movie, and after it racked up the Oscars, I was forced to rent it. I did and boy, was I ever disappointed.
What is so great about it? So it's a tale about a man who is unhappy with his life and decides to change it in many ways. My life isn't exactly the most perfect, and at times, I too would like to change something about it. Everybody probably does. If I wrote my thoughts down on paper along with some characters and intelligent writing, do you think that I could sell it to a production company?
Let's discuss this movie in sections. The actors did a well job with the parts they were given. I'll admit that Kevin Spacey portrayed Lester Burnham in an excellent way and deserved the Oscar that he earned. Annette Bening made a disaster of her character, Carolyn. I thought that in every scene she was in, she tried to steal the show. Her character's story and problems were kind of bland if you compare them to Lester's. I was so glad to see that the Best Actress award didn't go to Annette for her ridiculous role. Thora Birch, who I have always liked, did a very good but not terrific job as Jane Burnham. Her character is complex and that was about the only thing I liked about this film. It does a pretty good job of describing what a teenager is like. The stuck-up Angela Hayes, played by Mena Suvari was the worst part of American Beauty. All I wanted to do was slap her, which was good because the character really spoke to the audience. I didn't like anything about the lines or actions she said/did. Wes Bentley was all-right but I didn't like his character and thought that the movie would have been a lot better off without his story line. I realize that it would have left out a ton of significant situations and plots to each character, but I don't know, it really didn't fit into the Burnham's problems.
Why was the plot and main idea given such rave reviews? Hard times after another came for the always depressed and suffering Lester Burnham. Yeah, yeah, the poor guy realizes that his life is pathetic and then his wife and daughter also have some problems. ALMOST everybody goes through mid-life crisis, but for some reason, this guy really stood out. Why?
The different problems that the characters go through are quite interesting, yet very odd. Carolyn's affair, Jane's encounter with the boy next door, Lester's obsession with Angela, smoking pot, working out, etc., etc., etc., were all amusing and entertaining to watch.
Perhaps, the thing I liked most about American Beauty was the conclusion. The whiplash ending happened fast and probably caught everybody else off guard. Finally, American Beauty was put to rest. (Well in my house anyways.)