Perhaps The Best Film Of The 90's **** (out of ****)

Rating: 10/10 (25 December 2002)

American Beauty is the most complicated and advanced character study to deal with filial and romantic relationships gone awry since Mike Nichol's Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?. Kevin Spacey gives one of the best performances in the history of cinema, as emotionally worn Lester Burnham, whose love of life is redeemed by a lust for his daughter's 17 year old friend. Conrad Hall's beautiful cinematography and Alan Ball's darkly comedic and incredibly brilliant screenplay exaggerates to varying degrees all aspects of the modern American family, to create a startling film that is both a caricature and a portrait. Sam Mendes direction is flawless, and strong support comes from Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Mena Suvari and Chris Cooper.