Sam Mendes has created a modern classic

Rating: 9/10 (31 January 2000)

American Beauty is one of those films that comes from nowhere to completely surprise and delight the cinema going public. Sam Mendes makes his directing debut with a film that shows us American suburbia and its inhabitants in all their glory.
The movie focuses on Lester Burnham, a middle aged advertising executive who hits his mid life crisis. Lester deals with this by quitting his job (and blackmailing his boss in the process), smoking pot and obsessing over his 18 year old daughter's best friend.
Much of this is documented on video tape by the son of the Burnham's new next door neighbours. Ricky Fitts always has a camcorder with him and seemingly tapes everything. His parents are a bit strange too. His mother is always in a world of her own and his father is a committed United States Marine Corps veteran and, true to stereotype, is repressed, regimented and obsessed with discipline.
The performances are excellent , Kevin Spacey, in particular, is on top form and could well be in the running for an award this year. Annette Bening is great as Burnham's wife, an uptight Estate Agent who ends up in the arms of one of her rivals. Thora Birch comes of age in this movie with a mature performance. She plays Jane Burnham, Lester's daughter, who is horrified to find her dad obsessing over her cheerleader friend (played by American Pie's Mena Suvari). The rest of the cast perform admirably - Mena Suvari is the cheerleader vamp, Peter Gallagher plays the Estate Agent shark Buddy King, Wes Bently shows promise as Ricky Fitts and his parents are played well by Chris Cooper and Allison Janney.
Watching this movie, I identified with Spacey's character. The urge to just quit your job and spend your time smoking pot, dreaming about your 18 year old daughter's school friends and working out so that you will "look good nude" has been kept in check for now - but for how long?