The Only Bright Spot in a Dark Year for Movies

Rating: Null/10 (25 June 2000)

"American Beauty" is far from being a masterpiece. It's not even an excellent film, but it is very good. The film centers around Kevin Spacey (in an Oscar-winning performance)who plays a man who is experiencing a mid-life crisis. After meeting his teenage daughter's girlfriend, Spacey goes through an extreme transformation that will effect all those closest to him. Annette Bening (in an Oscar-nominated role) is almost as good as Spacey, playing his real estate-selling wife. However, the other actors fall far short of Spacey and Bening. Chris Cooper, Mena Suvari, and Thora Birch do nothing special in my opinion. Wes Bentley is also just adequate. The screenplay is excellent and the direction is pretty good by first-time film maker Sam Mendes. Any other year, "American Beauty" would not have gotten any serious consideration for a Best Picture Oscar. However, its impeccable timing and its lack of competition made it a runaway winner that captured five Academy Awards in 1999. 4.5 out of 5 stars.