The most overrated movie of the 20th Century(if not all time)

Rating: Null/10 (2 June 2002)

Oh my God!! I have never watched a movie so undeserving of its praise. I'm serious. It isn't the worst movie of all time, but it certainly does not deserve to be #20 on this site, and possibly not even in the top 250. Yes, Kevin Spacey is a brilliant actor, that gets no argument from me. "The Usual Suspects" is proof of that alone. But OH MY GOD this movie is overrated. It is not ALL of that. Yes, it's funny, but only sporadically. It's pros are its occasionally funny script, Wes Bentley, Wes Bentley, and, oh yeah, Wes Bentley. Maybe the most interesting character in the movie. Yes, the cinematography is beautiful, and Spacey gives a great if not somewhat overrated performance. But the simple fact is, in a year that produced The Sixth Sense, Fight Club, The Insider, Three Kings, Magnolia, and even The Hurricane, there is no way American Beauty was better than all of those. Thought provoking, yes. Profound? Excuse me while I laugh my ass off. Things are not always what they seem. How many times have we seen that before? Oh, so the pretty girl turned out to be a virgin. Stop the presses! The homophobe is gay? Alert the media! I mean, jeez! The only Oscar this movie deserved is maybe one for cinematography. In five years, it will be forgotten. No psycho will be trying to assassinate George W. Bush in order to win Annette Bening's, Thora Birch's, or Mena Suvari's affection. Best movie of '99? IMO, The Sixth Sense or Magnolia. I do not want to make snobby generalizations, but if you love this movie and call either "The Godfather", "Goodfellas", or "Raging Bull" overrated, then you need serious psychiatric attention because those movies effortlessly deificate on this PASSING FAD!!