Amazing, Wonderful, Powerful, Beautiful

Rating: 10/10 (17 October 2005)

SPOILERS We all wish we could do a Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey). Every day, life is the same monotonous process. We get up, those who can get jobs go into work and do them (often with a dislike for it), and by and large the majority of the population is mostly miserable. Couples change as they grow old, and as an ever increasing divorce statistic shows, they start to hate each other. So, let's change our lives, Burnham did.
"American Beauty" was a masterpiece put simply. Constantly packed full of glorious images and the notion that there is beauty everywhere, it gorges the eyes and it hits the heart. We laugh, we cry, we fall in love with the Burnham family (yes, even Annette Bening's bitchy wife) and in the end of the day, we sit there in awe at the jewel that we've just witnessed.
Lester Burnham (Spacey) is dead. We know this because he tells us so in the opening credits. Recounting the final year of his life, we learn about how life has gone wrong. A depressed and miserable loner, Burnham hates his job, he hates himself, and his rare joy is an occasional bout of masturbation in the shower. Yes, for Burnham life is awful. That is, until he falls in love. Encountering his daughter's friend Angela (Mena Suvari), Burnham is a man possessed. All of a sudden he's taking drugs, he's exercising constantly and he's blackmailing his boss. He radically alters his life, and for the first time in what feels like an eon, he is happy.
This film is, rather appropriately considering the name, a thing of pure beauty. Majestic in appearance, plot, acting, soundtrack, and just about everything, it is just out of this world.
Led from the front by the enigmatic Spacey, arguably one of the finest actors of his generation, the film never fails to leave you breathless with joy.
Well, saying that, it does leave you questioning your own existence. The film is a joy because it makes you want to change your own life. Few films in the modern era really get under the skin, but "American Beauty" does it without looking like it's trying. It drags its message into your heart, and as Burnham's life is played out before your eyes, you find yourself driven to examine the irrelevance of your own existence. It's depressing stuff, but in a good way.
How can the film leave you joyous and miserable I hear you ask? It isn't that confusing truthfully. Examining your own life can be one of the most depressing and most important things you will ever do, but when a film has such a beautiful and honest approach to the subject, you can feel a content sense of happiness at your own misery. Few films can really disorientate like this, and "American Beauty" does it wonderfully.
This is a beautiful film for multiple reasons. Amazing in just about every detail, it is near to perfect. At the same time, it engulfs you. It leaves you passionate about your own life, and it inspires you to change it. Now that can't be a bad thing.