¿ What a wonderful Life ?

Rating: 9/10 (14 March 2000)

American Beauty is a poignant and compelling portrait of the american, and non american, middle class family. The story begins in a rather dramatic way, presenting hypocritical, depressive and contradictory characters that end up being caricatures of themselves. This is partly due to the stereotypical dimension that Sam Mendes, writer and director, confers to its characters.
Professional, personal and sexual frustration mix up in this immediate modern classic, a remarkable effort of a promising young director, and the consolidation of Kevin Spacey as a "pantheon" actor, proving that Usual Suspects and L.A Confidential were no fluke.