Fan-tas-tic

Rating: 9/10 (28 February 2001)

This is a (V.O. Lester) "fan-tas-tic" film.
American Beauty is a work of art that is so deceptively simple on the outside that some people probably miss the subtle complexities that exist within it. I won't pretend to tell someone what they missed, or what to look for. I will only say that this film works on so many different levels that I believe each of us who have seen it come away with a feeling that is similar, but especially unique to each of us. I find it rare these days to find a film that is made with such intelligence and perhaps even more rare to find a movie that doesn't try so hard to make each of us feel or think a certain way.
American Beauty is one of the best movies I have ever seen and it continues to impress me each time that I view it. The "look closer" theme that was used in promoting this movie works equally well as a vaguely tantalizing introduction and a nice epilogue. You *will* look closer....at yourself and everything around you.