A powerful drama depicting the rotten and unwanted reality which is there anyway however much American society likes living in constant denial.

Rating: 10/10 (24 April 2005)

There had always been a tradition among the Americans themselves as well as the rest of the world, not without exceptions, of course, to believe in the unity and the firmness of the interrelationships within the typical American family. Before the sixties it had been the privilege of most families on U.S. soil to say that "The bonds which hold our family units together make us the greatest nation on this planet." Nevertheless we should not disparage the family values of the rest of the world for our country consists entirely of the indigenous populations of a multitude of states around the globe. We ought to be fair and unbiased when judging ourselves and everyone else, indeed. But as far as fairly judging ourselves is concerned we have come to the point when all our illusions can no longer shield us from the bitter truth. And that is when cinematic masterpieces like 'American Beauty' are born.
The film catches us completely off guard and awakens a kind of nostalgia towards the past of our great country when parents were respected and teenagers' only income stemmed from respectable diligent part-time work and not from the sale of drugs. Back then a high school education was considerably more impressive and its quality was incomparably better than the relative knowledge of a few pages of Shakespeare and a few simple mathematical formulas we have today instead of a thorough and systematic academic programme which United Kingdom for instance has.
As we watch 'American Beauty' we start to panic and think about our own families especially if our children are teenagers. On the screen in front of us we can see the disintegration of two middle-class families not much different from our own in most cases. Some of us begin to take preventive measures soon after leaving the cinema. And that is the way it should be. In fact it's the only way it should be. Therefore movies like 'American Beauty' are a blessing in disguise, even though the rest of the world may experience a feeling of triumph or scorn and even be encouraged to continue to tamper with our security, prosperity and well-being. Bravo. A 10/10.