Hi, I am 39, married and the mother of a 2 year old toddler. When I have some free time I love to...
Hi, I am 39, married and the mother of a 2 year old toddler. When I have some free time I love to listen to music, enjoy watching movies, socialising and try to keep myself fit.
Member since:12.02.2007
Reviews:3
This is a film about the american way of life "living in the beautiful house and having a beautiful wife and kids. The film is set in suburban America and is one of the wittiest, moving, sad and funny films I have ever seen. The central characters of the movie are Lester Burnham (played by the brilliant Kevin Spacey), his wife Carolyn Burnham (played by Annette Bening), and daughter Jane Burnham (Thora Birch). The family are all embroiled in their own little dramas.
Lester is just generally disatisfied with his life, doesn't like his job, doesn't have sex with his wife and doesn't know what is going on with his daughter. The highlight of his day is masturbation, and when his wife catches him she is shocked and not in the least bit turned on by what he is doing. Carolyn (Lester's wife) is driven by ambition. She is a high powered estate agent and is more worried about getting her next sale, her next status symbol car or satin sofa than what is going on with her husband and daughter. Last of all is daughter Jane who is just another misunderstood and stroppy teenager, who has nothing in common with her parents.
Lester has a very good job until he has what we would call a midlife crisis. When in a management reshuffle by blackmail he gets his bosses to fire him and give him a good severance package. His midlife crisis is prompted when he goes along with Carolyn to support their daughter cheerleading and meets her slutty friend Angela (played by Mena Suvari) and is instantly smitten. That is when he packs in his job , purchases a Pontiac Firebird ( the car he has always wanted), is working in the local burger joint, starts working out (so he looks good naked), smoking pot and listening to music from his youth. When Carolyn finds out he has lost his job she hits the roof. It only seems to make her more uptight than she already was until she embarks on an affair with tycoon Buddy Kane (played by Peter Gallagher).
Meanwhile Jane takes up with strange boy next door Ricky Fitz (played by Wes Bentley) who is never without a video camera, and supplies her dad Lester with his pot. Ricky is the son of a strict military man (played by Chris Cooper) who is homophobic and his mother is a wandered. Angela thinks Ricky is a loser and tells Jane in no uncertain terms, but they seem like two lost souls together.
This is a bit of an insight into the film, I don't want to say much more incase I spoil the ending. This is one of my favourite movies of all time. I hope you enjoy it too.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2007 - Drama - Director: Mike Binder - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Jada Pinkett, Liv Tyler, Saffron Burrows, Donald Sutherland, Mike Binder
Production Year: 1998 - Drama - Director: Carl Franklyn, Carl Franklin - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Meryl Streep, William Hurt, Renee Zellweger, Tom Everett Scott, Nicky Katt, Lauren Graham
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Re-rated based on Ciao's insistence that such reviews are no longer considered "Off Topic"
Soho_Black 15.04.2007 13:01
I see you've posted this as a DVD review, but you've not mentioned the DVD. Are there any extras? If so, what are they and are they any good? If you add to this, or if you change it to be posted as a "Film Only" review, which can be done by accessing "edit review" above the review and changing the drop down menu under the "Which format are you reviewing?" question at the bottom, please let me know and I'll re-rate.
From its first gliding aerial shot of a generic suburban street,American Beautymoves with ... more
a mesmerising confidence and acuity epitomised by Kevin Spacey's calm narration. Spacey is Lester Burnham, a harried Everyman whose midlife awakening is the spine...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Look closer at the most talked about film of the year. A funny, moving and shocking ... more
journey through life in suburban America.Look closer at fortysomething ad man Lester Burnham and his status-seeking wife, Carolyn, as their marriage and lives slowly un...
From its first gliding aerial shot of a generic suburban street,American Beautymoves with ... more
a mesmerising confidence and acuity epitomised by Kevin Spacey's calm narration. Spacey is Lester Burnham, a harried Everyman whose midlife awakening is the spine...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Marking the feature film directorial debut of award-winning theatre director Sam Mendes ... more
this funny moving and shocking journey through life in suburban America follows the trials and tribulations of Lester (Kevin Spacey) and Carolyn (Annette Bening) ...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: A film that makes you laugh *and* think at the same time Disadvantages: You may not like the fact that it's based around a well-worn cliche
![American Beauty [DVD] [2000]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78526734.jpg "American Beauty [DVD] [2000]")
Mar 28th, 2007
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