American Beauty (1999)

NEUTRAL

Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube

93%

1999, Comedy/Drama, 2h 2m

RT Critics’ Score: 87% (UNBIASED)
RT Audience Score: 93%
Awards & Nominations: Won 5 Oscars
111 wins & 102 nominations total

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Critics Consensus

Flawlessly cast and brimming with dark, acid wit, American Beauty is a smart, provocative high point of late ’90s mainstream Hollywood film.

Audience Consensus

American Beauty is a movie that will make you laugh, cry, and question your own existence all at the same time. It’s a dark comedy that’s not afraid to tackle heavy themes like isolation, repression, and the meaning of life. Kevin Spacey gives one of his best performances as Lester Burnham, a man who’s tired of living a mundane life and decides to make some drastic changes. The movie is beautifully shot and the script is both lyrical and thought-provoking. It’s a must-watch for anyone who’s ever felt stuck in their own life and wondered if there’s more to it than what meets the eye. Just don’t watch it with your parents, unless you want to feel awkward for the rest of the night.

Storyline

After his death sometime in his 43rd year, suburbanite Lester Burnham tells of the last few weeks of his life, during which he had no idea of his imminent passing. He is a husband to real estate agent Carolyn Burnham and father to high school student Jane Burnham. Although Lester and Carolyn once loved each other, they now merely tolerate each other. Typical wallflower Jane also hates both her parents; the three suffer individually in silence in their home life. Jane tries to steer clear of both her parents. Carolyn, relatively new to the real estate business, wants to create the persona of success to further her career, aspiring to the professional life of Buddy Kane, the king of the real estate business in their neighborhood. Lester merely walks mindlessly through life, including at his job in advertising. His company is downsizing, and he, like all the other employees, has to justify his position to the newly hired efficiency expert to keep his job. Things change for Lester when he falls in love at first sight with Jane’s more experienced classmate, Angela Hayes. Both Janie and Angela can see Lester’s sexual infatuation with Angela, who courts such attention from any man as a sign that she is model material, she having once appeared in Seventeen and is a career to which she aspires. Lester’s infatuation with Angela gives him a reenergized view on life, where he openly doesn’t care anymore what anyone thinks about what he does, anyone except Angela. This infatuation coincides with the Fittses moving in next door: homophobic disciplinarian US Marine Colonel Frank Fitts who rules the house with a military fist (that fist being both figurative and literal), his semi-comatose wife Barbara Fitts, and their bright and quietly subversive 18-year-old son Ricky Fitts, who openly abides by his father’s rules while behind the scenes lives by his own quite different perspective. Much like Lester’s infatuation, Ricky immediately becomes infatuated with Jane; he considers girls like Angela as ordinary. The entry of Angela and the Fittses into the Burnhams’ lives ultimately leads to each of the players confronting what is truly in his or her heart.

Production Company(ies)

Distributor
DreamWorks SKG

Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical

Filming Location(s)
Sacramento, California, USA

MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong sexuality, language, violence and drug content

Year of Release
1999

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Black and White
Sound mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS Dolby
Aspect ratio:

2.39 : 1
Runtime:

2h 2m
Language(s):

English
Country of origin:

United States
Release date:

Release Date (Theaters): Oct 1, 1999 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 2, 2002

Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama

Keyword(s)
starring Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Mena Suvari, Peter Gallagher, directed by Sam Mendes, written by Alan Ball, Comedy, Drama, R, Box Office $130.1M, reviewed by Paul Clinton, Ann Hornaday, Jeff Strickler, Ed Potton, Marc Lee, Joe Morgenstern, Joanna Connors, Mike Massie, Tim Stevens, Josh Larsen, Tim Dirks, Kevin Spacey as Lester Burnham, Annette Bening as Carolyn Burnham, Thora Birch as Jane Burnham, Wes Bentley as Ricky Fitts, Mena Suvari as Angela Hayes, Peter Gallagher as Buddy Kane, Bruce Cohen produced, Dan Jinks produced, Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, SDDS, Dolby A, Dolby Digital, Flat (1.85:1), rated R for Language, Drug Content, Strong Sexuality, Violence

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: $356,296,601
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $639,562,333
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 206
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 69,745,074

US/Canada gross: $130,096,601
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $233,527,026
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 287
US/Canada opening weekend: $861,531
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $1,546,472
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,228

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $15,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $26,925,418
Production budget ranking: 1,218
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $14,499,338
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $598,137,577
ROI to date (est.): 1,444%
ROI ranking: 71

Cast & Crew

Kevin Spacey

Annette Bening

Thora Birch

Wes Bentley

Mena Suvari

Lester Burnham

Carolyn Burnham

Jane Burnham

Ricky Fitts

Angela Hayes

Kevin Spacey – Lester Burnham
Annette Bening – Carolyn Burnham
Thora Birch – Jane Burnham
Wes Bentley – Ricky Fitts
Mena Suvari – Angela Hayes
Peter Gallagher – Buddy Kane

Sam Mendes

Alan Ball

Bruce Cohen

Dan Jinks

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Sam Mendes

Writer(s)
Alan Ball

Producer(s)
Bruce Cohen, Dan Jinks

Film Festivals

Awards & Nominations
Won 5 Oscars
111 wins & 102 nominations total

Academy Awards
Oscar Best Achievement in Cinematography Winners, Oscar Best Achievement in Directing Winners, Oscar Best Picture Winners, Oscar Best Writing Winners, Oscar Nominees, Oscar Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen Winners, Oscar Winners

Top Reviews

Paul Clinton

Ann Hornaday

Jeff Strickler

Ed Potton

Marc Lee

CNN.com

Baltimore Sun

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Times (UK)

Daily Telegraph (UK)

AMERICAN BEAUTY
All Critics (190) | Top Critics (58) | Fresh (165) | Rotten (25)
American Beauty is deeply disturbing, acerbically funny, brilliantly acted, breathtakingly original and highly sophisticated.

February 22, 2015

Paul Clinton (CNN.com)
CNN.com
TOP CRITIC
A tightly coiled rage seethes beneath the pretty surface of American Beauty, a wickedly funny black comedy directed by newcomer Sam Mendes.

February 22, 2015 | Rating: 4/4

Ann Hornaday
Baltimore Sun
TOP CRITIC
This is Spacey’s best performance since he took home an Oscar for The Usual Suspects.

February 22, 2015

Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
TOP CRITIC
This engrossing centrepiece meshes with subplots involving Burnham’s dysfunctional family and unbalanced neighbours, in a virtuoso study of isolation, repression and fulfilment. Mendes infuses the lush visuals and lyrical script with dramatic panache.

February 22, 2015

Ed Potton
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
With its parade of neurotics, psychotics, bigots and deceivers, American Beauty is an endlessly rewatchable black comedy.

February 22, 2015 | Rating: 5/5

Marc Lee
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Why, then, did I enjoy it so little? Because of its unrelenting self-importance: American Beauty wants us to know, in every shot at every turn, just how clever and mercilessly cutting it is.

May 8, 2014

Joe Morgenstern
Wall Street Journal
TOP CRITIC
[It’s] a movie that years from now will end up on the lists of greatest movies ever made. It’s a complete original, at once hugely entertaining and deeply thoughtful, combining comedy, tragedy and philosophy in surprising and gratifying ways.

February 4, 2022

Joanna Connors
Cleveland Plain Dealer
It’s a love story, a tale of redemption, a drama of unraveling lifestyles and psychological corrosion, and a poetic tragedy, all wrapped up together.

September 9, 2020 | Rating: 10/10

Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
[The skewed morality] is not a happy note. But it is a powerful one. That’s the thing that makes American Beauty such a compelling feature even now.

December 19, 2019

Tim Stevens
The Spool
…a particularly embittered entry in the suburban satire genre.

October 16, 2019 | Rating: 1/4

Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
American Beauty (1999) is a tragic, absurdist, satirical and dark domestic tale – and the debut feature film of British-London theatrical-stage director Sam Mendes.

September 27, 2019 | Rating: A+

Tim Dirks
Filmsite
As faux-deep Oscar bait goes, American Beauty is as broad and predictable as an episode of Three’s Company.

September 16, 2019

Steven Hyden
Uproxx…

Plot
After his death sometime in his 43rd year, suburbanite Lester Burnham tells of the last few weeks of his life, during which he had no idea of his imminent passing. He is a husband to real estate agent Carolyn Burnham and father to high school student Jane Burnham. Although Lester and Carolyn once loved each other, they now merely tolerate each other. Typical wallflower Jane also hates both her parents; the three suffer individually in silence in their home life. Jane tries to steer clear of both her parents. Carolyn, relatively new to the real estate business, wants to create the persona of success to further her career, aspiring to the professional life of Buddy Kane, the king of the real estate business in their neighborhood. Lester merely walks mindlessly through life, including at his job in advertising. His company is downsizing, and he, like all the other employees, has to justify his position to the newly hired efficiency expert to keep his job. Things change for Lester when he falls in love at first sight with Jane’s more experienced classmate, Angela Hayes. Both Janie and Angela can see Lester’s sexual infatuation with Angela, who courts such attention from any man as a sign that she is model material, she having once appeared in Seventeen and is a career to which she aspires. Lester’s infatuation with Angela gives him a reenergized view on life, where he openly doesn’t care anymore what anyone thinks about what he does, anyone except Angela. This infatuation coincides with the Fittses moving in next door: homophobic disciplinarian US Marine Colonel Frank Fitts who rules the house with a military fist (that fist being both figurative and literal), his semi-comatose wife Barbara Fitts, and their bright and quietly subversive 18-year-old son Ricky Fitts, who openly abides by his father’s rules while behind the scenes lives by his own quite different perspective. Much like Lester’s infatuation, Ricky immediately becomes infatuated with Jane; he considers girls like Angela as ordinary. The entry of Angela and the Fittses into the Burnhams’ lives ultimately leads to each of the players confronting what is truly in his or her heart.

Trivia