Have any of you seen “American Beauty” yet? If you have…are you with me? This movie is, as one critic apparantly put it, a flat-out masterpiece.
Chatterbox that I am, I didn’t say a word until we were all the way home, and even then I pretty much didn’t want to discuss it. I felt that words would fail me; they still do. This film defines Great Art (that’s also wildly entertaining). Isn’t truly great art supposed to reach down inside you and touch something deep? Change your view of the world? Speak to your most cherished truths…isn’t it supposed to communicate Truth and Beauty? Well, this film qualifies bigtime.
Brilliant. Moving. Hilarious. Painful. Amazing. It really did rock my world.
On a more pedestrian note, review wise: Spacey is the very best you’ve ever seen him, and that’s saying alot. I can’t imagine the film being quite as brilliant without him. This had better be his Oscar. It might be Anette Bening’s, too. The kids are all startlingly good. Chris Cooper is shattering.
The script, which of course is everything, is flawless. Not a single wrong note. And the director…well, it’s unbelievable that this is his first film, that up until now he had only directed theatre, because I have never seen such passionate and perfect use of the medium to bring a story to life. You can tell that this man was bursting to escape the confines of the stage. And he had the perfect partners in whoever did his cinematography and production design.
Everything about this film was uniformly excellent, I cannot say a thing in criticism. And off the top of my head I would say the last time that was true was when “The Godfather” came out.
See it. See it, see it, see it. And above all, open yourself to what it really has to say.
I knew it was too…I saw it on Tuesday, and about the only thing I could do was recommend it to everyone I knew, because I couldn’t (and didn’t really want to) explain any further.
It’s probably one of the best movies I’ve ever seen in my life. Try not to watch any reviews before you go.
I agree, I think it’s one of the best I’ve seen in years, restores my faith in the medium. I’ve been wanting to start a thread, but didn’t know what to say, it’s so hard to describe. I guess it’s not for everyone, I saw some people leaving in the middle, they just couldn’t hang. I loved it though, left the theater with a big grin on my face,
Larry
Beeruser: miles and miles. Not even the same league, in my opinion. LA Confidential was all style, no real substance. (although the style was pretty damn cool.) This film is so much substance you’d choke if it weren’t for the incredible style with which it’s presented. Just a stunningly good movie.
Ivick (that’s what it looks like on my screen) I would have been grinning, too, if I hadn’t been crying. I cried my guts out. For a whole bunch of reasons, but mostly because when I’m moved, I’m moved to tears.
Yeah, after the movie was over, my date and I decided that we both really needed a drink. I was more on the grinning side of the spectrum, though…and I didn’t stop for days.
I thought it was a good, not great, movie. I think I’m wearing a little thin on the “sordid world behind the placid curtains of surburbia” themes (although my favorite film of all time remains “Blue Velvet”). Spacey was top-notch, Bening was a bit over the top, venturing into caricature land, but the best of all was the kid who played the drug-dealing next door neighbor. He’s got a great future. Chris Cooper, as usual, was great; the thinking man’s Dennis Hopper. Favorite scene: Peter Gallagher banging Bening; “YOU LIKE GETTIN’ NAILED BY THE KING?!!”
That’s because “Blue Velvet” was a frighteningly original film that spawned a huge number of films influenced by it (“Heathers”, “Red Rock West”, “Pleasantville”, “The Faculty” to name a few), “American Beauty” being the latest entry. I like to refer to these movies as “Blue Velvet Babies.”
I haven’t seen it yet, but I would really like to… now I HAVE to.
I have a short list of movies that “rocked my world…”
They’re all fairly new,though. “Shakespeare in Love”, “Patch Adams”, and most especially “What Dreams May Come”
I don’t think there are many that could beat that one. But I’m open!
Hmmm. Maybe you shouldn’t. Judging from movies that rocked your world, I don’t know that you’d be entirely comfortable with this film. A lot of things that you mght find objectionable…
Though in a really strange way, it is the ultimate feel-good movie.
This is a non-smoking area. If we see you smoking, we will assume you are on fire and act accordingly.
I just saw it this afternoon, and it’s still sinking in. I was Jane. My mom was Annette Bening. I was cringing from it, but somehow, I also wanted to be part of that world. The scenes between Jane and the video guy were so intimate…
…they make me realize fully why I hate all these everybody-lose-your-virginity-or-you’ll-turn-into-a-pumpkin “teen” films that are all over the place lately. Primarily, I think those sexual films are a bigger threat to society than violent films. Not every kid is angry enough to pull a Columbine (although many are), but every kid has a sex drive. Pregnancy, date rape, AIDS and other diseases hurt many more lives than guns do, and I don’t like it that teenagers are being sent the message that anyone who’s still a virgin at 16 is a complete loser. Furthermore, and getting back to the topic of AB, kids aren’t being sent the message that sex is not necessarily intimacy. The scenes I mentioned showed two people letting down their barriers for the first time. People engaging in competitive sex, like in American Pie et al, are fortressed, forget barriered.
[rant mode off]
Anyway, the ending suckerpunched me, the music was eloquent (not counting the Lawrence Welk!), and as an Angeleno, I loved seeing Carl’s Jr. masquerading as “Mr. Smiley”!
Remember, I’m pulling for you; we’re all in this together.
—Red Green
SPOILER AHEAD!! DO NOT READ THIS POST UNLESS YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW THE MOVIE ENDS !!!
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Was I the only one who felt like American Beauty was actually The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber spread over 2 hours and set in the 90s suburbs? Oh yeah, and instead of the domineering wife, the gay colonel next door is the killer. Plus the end narration took some of the wind out of it. Otherwise a great film. Amazing how a film like this doesn’t disturb me, where ten years ago it would have.
A man, a plan, a canal: GatewayDrug
[Note: This message has been edited by Eutychus55]
What the Fuck Gateway??? Here I was reading this thread thinking “this is something I should see” and now you tell me how it ends? What the fuck is your problem?
You and the person who told me the “surprise ending” to Sixth Sense before I saw it should both go to movie prison.
