Compelling and observant take on a film that’s largely been swept under the rug or dismissed. It’s both aptly and yet a bit unfairly described as having “not aged well” but as you correctly point out the flaws were always there and pretty much in plain sight despite the craftsmanship and talent on display.
This was good, I wanna see this film again. I bet that like you I would think a lot differently about it. I'm somewhat older than you and I thought this was really cool at the time. Then I talked with my Dad about it. He was at the time somewhat older than Kevin Spacey's character in the film. He HATED it. He was also not exactly a stellar family man and I think Lester hit a little close to home.
So yea might be some generational dissonance there.
I enjoyed the article; you noted things I had not considered. I never thought of it as a comedy. I agree that the acting was strong, and Hall's shooting was gorgeous. Still, I hated American Beauty before the credits ended. I hated that the script let Lester off the hook by having him not take advantage of Angela. Lester was a selfish bastard from the word go, and this last minute self-redemption felt like a copout.
I also considered 1999 to be the "best year ever" in regard to cinema. Maybe I still think so, but not like I used to. There were 3 movies from that year that were among my favorites that I now believe are morally unsound: Fight Club, The Matrix, and (most important to me) American Beauty. It was the film that opened up my mind to cinema as an art form... unfortunately. I wish it had been a different movie instead.
As you rightly pointed out in your essay, the way that the film deals with Lester at the end is problematic to say the least. He doesn't have sex with Angela when she tells him that she is a virgin, which means that he probably would have done the deed to his daughter's teenaged friend if he still thought she was the worldly tart of his fantasies. My other objection is the character of Ricky Fitts, who gives the profound monologue at the center of the story. Essentially, the film makes the unrepentant teen drug dealer into the wisest and most confident character. I certainly don't hate American Beauty, but I can't commend it anymore.
Compelling and observant take on a film that’s largely been swept under the rug or dismissed. It’s both aptly and yet a bit unfairly described as having “not aged well” but as you correctly point out the flaws were always there and pretty much in plain sight despite the craftsmanship and talent on display.
This was good, I wanna see this film again. I bet that like you I would think a lot differently about it. I'm somewhat older than you and I thought this was really cool at the time. Then I talked with my Dad about it. He was at the time somewhat older than Kevin Spacey's character in the film. He HATED it. He was also not exactly a stellar family man and I think Lester hit a little close to home.
So yea might be some generational dissonance there.
I enjoyed the article; you noted things I had not considered. I never thought of it as a comedy. I agree that the acting was strong, and Hall's shooting was gorgeous. Still, I hated American Beauty before the credits ended. I hated that the script let Lester off the hook by having him not take advantage of Angela. Lester was a selfish bastard from the word go, and this last minute self-redemption felt like a copout.
I also considered 1999 to be the "best year ever" in regard to cinema. Maybe I still think so, but not like I used to. There were 3 movies from that year that were among my favorites that I now believe are morally unsound: Fight Club, The Matrix, and (most important to me) American Beauty. It was the film that opened up my mind to cinema as an art form... unfortunately. I wish it had been a different movie instead.
As you rightly pointed out in your essay, the way that the film deals with Lester at the end is problematic to say the least. He doesn't have sex with Angela when she tells him that she is a virgin, which means that he probably would have done the deed to his daughter's teenaged friend if he still thought she was the worldly tart of his fantasies. My other objection is the character of Ricky Fitts, who gives the profound monologue at the center of the story. Essentially, the film makes the unrepentant teen drug dealer into the wisest and most confident character. I certainly don't hate American Beauty, but I can't commend it anymore.