SHOULD BE REQUIRED VIEWING FOR THE NEXT GENERATION

Rating: Null/10 (11 January 2000)

When I went into "American Beauty," I expected something completely different; I thought it was just going to be about a man in the midst of a midlife crisis- something I could only relate to from an outside perspective. What I got, however , was a lesson in appreciation. A film which pointed out how much people take for granted. This film's themes has something for everybody, and I guarantee that if evryone let themselves go, and allowed "American Beauty" to influence and touch them, they would live better lives. You can't say that for many films.
Also, "American Beauty" should be called the "ultimate teen film." I say this because teenagers are the ones who should learn the most from Lester's experience throughout the film, and realize that there is SO much life can offer. There are even teen characters to relate to. Unfortunately, the reason why "American Beauty" isn't called the "ultimate teen movie," is that the bulk of movie-going teenagers would rather go and see crap like "Drive Me Crazy," and "Cruel Intentions" than actually learn something valuble about themselves. "American Beauty" is no doubt a classic, and will stand appreciated for years to come, owed without a doubt to Sam Mendes, Kevin Spacey, Allan Ball, and Wes Bentley.