Day 61: American Beauty

"I feel like I've been in a coma for the past twenty years. And I'm just now waking up."

Is there an acting career more varied and successful than Kevin Spacey's? He's starred in critically acclaimed and successful movies like The Usual Suspects and Se7en, more obscure movies like Moon, and this movie, best picture winner American Beauty, which is arguably his strongest work. Written by the brilliant Alan Ball (who also created Six Feet Under, one of the greatest television shows of the 2000s) and directed by Sam Mendes, American Beauty is a brilliant story of self discovery and finding a way to appreciate the beauty of life.

Spacey plays Lester Burnham, a middle aged man who has a boring job, a failing marriage, and an average, uninteresting life. His wife, Carolyn, disguises her disgust for Lester by caring too much about superficial things; his daughter, Karen, cares little about her parents and herself. It's a fairly stereotypical view of the American nuclear family - a dysfunctional family that stays together because they're used to it, or because they're afraid of change, and Ball writes their parts spectacularly. One day, while at a football game at Karen's high school, Lester sees (and meets) Angela Hayes, one of Karen's friends. He immediately becomes infatuated with her, which begins the his character development.

It may seem creepy that Lester becomes interested in a high school student, but this contrast with the way his life changes throughout the film is one of its most interesting parts. He quits his job, starts working out, and generally becomes more happy with his life and its events, whether they be good or bad. He meets Ricky Fitts, whose father is a Colonel in the Marine Corps, and starts smoking marijuana with him. Ricky, despite having a strict, abusive father, also manages to take solace in the little things in life. The entire movie lives through Spacey and his acting. With his narration, you get to know Lester in a personal way. And despite the odd circumstances of his changing life, you feel happier when he becomes a better, more satisfied person. Spacey actually won an Oscar for his role, and it was well deserved.

American Beauty is one of those movies that I feel is the sum of its parts. The movie just would not be the same without the cast and crew it had. The cast, Alan Ball's script, Mendes' direction, and Thomas Newman's soundtrack (he also did the music for Six Feet Under) all combine to make this movie what it is - a true masterpiece of the modern cinema. It's shot and scripted beautifully and its message is a good one, and I'm sure it has made many people think about their lives in a different light. American Beauty is so successful because at its heart, it is about the beautiful aspects of the human condition. It's bold enough to say "don't let yourself get stuck in an average, monotonous life. Laugh, cry, and live."