A Predictably Difficult Beauty

Rating: 10/10 (23 August 2001)

Ever since watching Arlington Road, I have had small problems with films which do not have happy endings, or at least, in some way, adequately resolved. But then, there were two things different to this film. Firstly, (this may be considered a spoiler) you knew he was going to die from the beginning, and secondly, it is debatable whether this was actually an unhappy ending. Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) played not entirely impeccably, but commendably nonetheless, reached his desired climax - he learns to appreciate real beauty in death. His wife (Annette Benning), played well but sometimes annoyingly to me, did what she had to to retain her 'principles', as such, though we can never know exactly how she will live after this. Both their daughter (Thora Birch), who perfectly presented teen angst and worry, and the complex life that we lead which many adults fail to see, and the boy over the road, (Wes Bentley), who portrayed his double life perfectly and powerfully, reached their own freedom and release in different ways to similar ends. Their ending is not an ending, but a beginning, and so cannot be measured in its 'happiness'. The boy's father (Peter Gallagher), an immensely powerful role, well done, is an exception. He is left confused, angered, enfeebled, and above all, wet. But Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari), the daughter's friend, who plays both experience and innocence with equal care and rate finds the right ending for herself.
I rated this movie ten, but I was tentative about doing so. There seemed to be too much wrong, too much not accurate about modern society. But then I know I am not qualified to talk about the issues it presents, and instead rated it on it's enjoyment factor. Definitely a must-see to any avid movie seer, or even not one.