An amazing film

Rating: 10/10 (4 October 1999)

Every once in a while, you will walk into a movie theater to watch a movie, and when you walk out, you are not quite the same person you were when you went in. This is the way that I felt when I saw "American Beauty." It has been two days since I saw this film, and I am still feeling some residual effects of the impact of this wonderful, quirky, beautiful picture. While some may not enjoy it, I found it to be an incredible motion picture--without doubt the best I have seen all year. As I watched the story unfold on the screen, I became totally immersed in the characters, the imagery, the multitude of subplots. And when the movie drew to a close and the credits began rolling, I felt a bizarre euphoria, as if had ingested a large quantity of psychotropic drugs--the movie just completely blew me away. I sat there, speechless, watching the credits roll until the immediate effect of the film faded and I walked with my wife to our car. On the way, neither of us spoke a word. While normally we will discuss what we just saw (as when we saw "The Sixth Sense" we said things like "I never expected that" and "Wow, that was really cool"), this time we just walked quietly, amazed. When we finally got to the car and started driving away, my wife burst into tears.
"American Beauty" is truly a masterpiece of a film. It is one of those rare films that bears the capacity to change you, even if subtly. I have avoided specific references to the character and plot because I feel that this film is something that needs to be experienced directly, not summarized. I can't say that this picture will affect you the same way that it affected my wife and me, but from the reviews that I have read, I am certain that I am not alone.