Film Analysis: American Beauty - Movie Review Example

Essay, Visual Arts and Film Studies Topic: Film Analysis: American Beauty American Beauty is a movie relating to the investigation and self-analysis about what is the essence of life and why one’s own pursuit alone is important for the concerned individual. American Beauty (1999) is directed by Sam Mendes and relates to the story of Lester Burnham played by Kevin Spacey. He is a middle age American living in greenbelt of suburbs, dislikes his job, has developed cynical attitude towards life as he is experiencing a midlife crisis. He greets viewers with the synopsis of his life until then. In his deep, flowing voice he intones: "My name is Lester Burnham. This is my street. This is my life. In less than a year, Ill be dead. Of course, I dont know that yet; in a way, Im dead already..." When an individual is not loved by his wife and daughter and unacknowledged at work, more correctly he does not love his work, he thinks his desperate situation in life needs desperate remedies. In the domestic front, Lester leads an unexciting life, living silently under the thumb of his wife. But the point to be noted is that Lester is working for an advertising firm. Though there is nothing special about working there, in the characterization of Lester it has some significant meaning. Advertisements generally engage the people in the world of make-believe and lack the element of total honesty. The purpose of the advertisements is to sell the product and make profits. Lester sits on his desk brooding, the lifeless blue computer screen challenges him. From the perspective of color psychology, blue is responsible and reliable. One can rely on it to take control and do the appropriate thing in difficult times. It has a need for order and direction in life, including its living and work places. Next to it on the wall, a small sign reads, "Look Closer". The reflection and the sign seem to be an urgent call for Lester to break from the current life. He is yearning to find meaning to his life. The negativities that are part of the movie which have been cleverly ingrained lend support to the theme of the movie and contribute to the inner investigation process of the actors. Light can be appreciated only in relation to darkness. The uncertainties of the world are the best launching pad for the transformation of an individual and crises are indeed opportunities. The director cannot stop just by describing the adverse effects of sexuality, foulmouthed language and drug content. He has to show the reformation and rehabilitation aspect to dwell in the theme of inquisitiveness to know the essence of life. The perspective in life of Carolyn played by Annette Bening who is having an affair ardently desires to further her career and her investigating process of life is entirely different from that of her husband. Their daughter Jane played by Thora Birch hates her parents and thinks that she is the creator of her own destiny and does not like any interference in her life by them. Thus, all the three of them, have independent pursuits in life. All these characters are operating on the big canvas of the “American Dream” but the ground realities for the achievements of the dream are different for each individual. The genre of the movie is satire. The movie elucidates that nothing is as perfect as it may seem on the surface. Everyone wears the mask to project that part of the personality, which one is not. By wearing the mask he hopes to protect the hidden agenda being protected in his inner world. Every character in the American Beauty desires to achieve something in life, but one is not precisely aware of the consequences of such a firm decision to live life as per one’s own inclinations. Not owning satisfaction in the present position be it one’s job, or any other issue, it is the beginning of progress. To such restless and dissatisfied souls, earning money alone through the job in which they have no interest is not the be-all and end-all of life. They are desperate for a change to pursue a vocation that charges their passion. As such Lester Burns quits his job and takes up employment at a fast food restaurant and he enjoys the work there. The implicit message of the movie American Beauty is life of an individual is like a computer circuit. Each circuit has the beginning and the end and is unconcerned about the other circuits and remains independent from their influences, yet it owes its existence to the total machinery that makes the computer. Without the computer, it has no existence. Let us try to understand the working of the mind of a small character in the movie, Angela, played by Mena Suvari and how she is on the pursuit of her life. She has the reputation of being a whore. That is far from truth, she is just wearing the mask to pretend what she is not, and in reality she is a virgin. Her pretentions are just to attract attention. Though she creates issues throughout the movie, intrinsically she is a peace-loving individual and the viewers will have sympathy for her before the movie concludes. Certain individuals have time for everything except for introspection. Lester’s wife is one of them. Her only pursuit is aggrandizement of wealth and to achieve that end she is willing to compromise with her character. She is having an affair with a real estate agent Buddy Kane played by Peter Gallagher. His career goals and ambitions match with that of Lester’s wife. Lester counsels her often to mend her ways by telling her that the authentic purpose of life is elsewhere, but she fails to connect. She remains stubborn on her path till the end and fails to appreciate the real purpose of human existence. Certain persons are incorrigible and have rigid approach to life. Apparently it looks as if all the characters except Ricky Fitts are in search for their purposes in life and he only looks like the stagnant character unwilling to change the ways of life. But this is not the correct interpretation about his life. Generally, changes happen with the advancing age and the fact that he remains true to himself during the course of the entire movie does not mean that he does not change. It only means that he has challenged the situations well which warranted change, and handled those barriers astutely to find his peace. He has discovered himself and decided about the milestone in the journey of life where he has to stop. This explains the mystery surrounding his character. The deepest ocean waters are silent and similar is the case with Ricky Fitts. His father evokes terror in his heart, but it appears to me that his silence is not the one related to the submissive individual. His father is over strict and physically abusive but mother compensates that vacuum with love. She lives in fear for the dispositions of her husband and rarely speaks. Read this dialogue from Ricky Fitts and one can understand the level of his philosophical approach of life and understand of relationship of nature to human life. “It was one of those days when its a minute away from snowing and theres this electricity in the air, you can almost hear it. And this bag was, like, dancing with me. Like a little kid begging me to play with it. For fifteen minutes. And thats the day I knew there was this entire life behind things, and... This incredibly benevolent force that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid, ever. Videos a poor excuse, I know. But it helps me remember... and I need to remember... Sometimes theres so much beauty in the world I feel like I cant take it, like my hearts going to cave in." This character touches the zenith of philosophical heights when he states that there is so much beauty in the world, but the vessel that the human being carries with him is too small to accept those offerings of grace by Nature. Boris Pasternak, the famous Russian author once said “Silence is the sweetest sound on earth”. Rickey Fitts fits into this description well and his silence is not suppressive but dynamic. All the characters in the American Beauty strive to find the beauty of their life and not everyone succeeds to enjoy the fulfilment of their dreams. But those characters convey their message to the viewers, “the beauty is in making efforts for the fulfillment of the dream. Success and failures are of no consequence”. The path chosen by each character for attaining their dream world is different. It has to be thus depending upon the level of progression of each individual and the circumstances in which one is born and brought up. Fighting on remaining true to one’s convictions is the ultimate purpose in life. One cannot achieve more than what one deserves but one can remain true to one in trials, tribulations, duty and beauty of life. American Beauty serves as the rejoinder to the hurdles experienced by many that lead to the non-fulfilment of the expectations of the American Dream. Just as beauty is skin deep and will not last long forever, the promises of American dream are also fleeting. Those who take the fructification of the American Dream for granted are in for disappointment. The title of the movie American Beauty has the hidden agenda, and the issues dealt with by the characters in their own light are extremely realistic. Each character has one’s own way of looking at the things, dealing with the situations, and their philosophical and psychological progression belongs to different levels. That is the reason why they act the way they do. They bare the playthings of sociological and cultural influences to which they are exposed to and as such they are compelled to articulate their own definitions of success. Thus, the growth of the American Dream becomes the like the growth of the octopus that moves in several directions simultaneously and the viewers are unable to pinpoint its destination. Problems arise when the efforts for fructification of the American Dream transcends the barriers of morals. Pure beauty baffles definition and each character sees a new horizon. Even the non-speaking entities have a purpose to convey, and objective to achieve, if not for self, for the sake of conveying it to the others. Thus the fallen petal flowers represent outward beauty, and how their beauty is impacted when they are separated from the original source of beauty, the flower, and a garbage bag representing the pure beauty. If one’s level of understanding is higher enough to appreciate the beauty of the garbage bag, perhaps that individual has an understanding of the working of the cosmos and visualizes the perfection in the divine order of things and their overall interconnectivity and interdependence. Mention is made about nudity, violence and swearing in the film and how they can go in tandem with the philosophical concept of beauty. Understand how lotus blooms in filth, it grows in water and yet it remains untouched by filth and water and looks forward to the sunlight for its existence. This should be the way of human struggles also, and in response to every struggle the human being needs to discover the beauty of life and dreams are realized with a never-say-die attitude. The beauty is not in sun-rise alone, it is also in the sun-set. Victory and defeat are but alternative beats of the same heart. The source of forbearance, acceptance, desperate attitudes, love and pursuing one’s ambitions with passion, all these originate through the combined force of mind and the heart. The total syllabus of lessons of life is within and the individual only needs to learn how and when to turn the pages. The director of the movie flies high, but makes the viewers aware that his roots firmly penetrate the depth of Mother Earth. He has used the symbols to comment on the essence of life. Take for example the bright red family home door and the pools of blood. The special effects are meant to convey profound messages. Notwithstanding the script, notwithstanding the plot, notwithstanding the skill of the actors, if you want to dip their existence and dialogues in the aura of spirituality, his evolution and nonviolent and response to the day to day situations needs to be truly magnificent, so that each actor conveys what he means, and contributes to the total picture. As such this movie becomes the masterpiece. Then all roles are assimilated in one big role and the story becomes complete. It turns out to be like the musical orchestra, with several artists playing different types of in instruments to contribute to the musical splendor of the event. American Beauty defies definition of traditional acceptance of beauty and articulates a beauty that is beyond the reach of the senses. Direct delivery of moral lessons cannot be considered to contribute to the essence of life, and for that practical experiencing is needed. The wise saying goes ‘the taste of the pudding is in eating it’. No amount of verbal description about the pudding will placate one’s taste-buds; practical eating will! There is a strong possibility that the viewer will get some of the essence of life that will impact the mentalities, hopefully for the better as teaching by practically showing is the technique adopted by director of the movie San Mendes. Work Cited Mendes, Sam (1999) American Beauty; Los Angeles www.imdb.com/title/tt0169547/‎ . Read More