This was quite a film...

Rating: 10/10 (17 January 2000)

I thought the 'beauty' aspect of the film was kind of corny and that the movie would have been just as good without it. But this film was excellent nonetheless.
It's almost a whodunnit, almost a comedy, and almost a tragedy. In fact, it has elements of all of those combined and that makes it interesting. On top of that, its almost Titanic in that you know from the beginning that Lester (Spacey) will die, but your interest never wavers. You are given reasons to believe that any one of 5 people may kill him, and you are amused along the way.
The marriage depicted between Carolyn (Benning) and Lester seems quite realistic. Carolyn has certain career goals and seems intent on making them at the expense of everything else. She appears to be pleased to appear successful, regardless of whether she is or not. Lester is unhappy at work and at home because neither is fulfilling. Work is work, his daughter Jane (Birch) is in the awkward teenage years when you hate your parents, and his wife is not interested in him in any way until he tells her that he quit his job. Then she gets very interested in the fact that his income will not be there.
All of this changes when Lester sees Jane's friend Angela (Suvari). A teenage cutie who he finds himself fantasizing about. Angela for her part is obsessed with the idea that she will become a model one day. She likes the idea that men look at her and she brags to Jane of sexual exploits. When she gets the idea that Lester doesn't just see her as Jane's teenage friend, she plays with him, making provacative comments to see his reaction.
This is the setting and from here we're taken on an interesting journey that is quite funny and real. It's not complicated or deep, but it is compelling. Its hard to imagine anyone coming out of this one disappointed. I sure wasn't.