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American Beauty [DVD] [2000]
starring: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Mena Suvari
directed by: Sam Mendes
directed by: Sam Mendes
![: American Beauty [DVD] [2000]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41HJ06Y1ZNL.jpg)
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Aspect Ratio: 16:9 - 2.35:1
Audience Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over Binding: DVD DVD Layers: 2 DVD Sides: 1 EAN: 5051188120535 Format: Anamorphic, PAL Label: Dreamworks Home Entertainment Languages: Manufacturer: Dreamworks Home Entertainment MPN: DSL1205 Number Of Discs: 1 Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Dreamworks Home Entertainment Region Code: 2 Release Date: November 27, 2000 Running Time: 117 minutes Studio: Dreamworks Home Entertainment Theatrical Release Date: October 01, 1999 |
Average Rating: 
List Price: £19.99 Amazon.co.uk's Price: £3.97 You Save: £16.02 (80%)Prices subject to change. Used Price: £0.78 Third Party New Price: £2.95 |
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
DREAMWORKS, DSL1205, pal 2+4
Amazon.co.uk Review:
From its first gliding aerial shot of a generic suburban street, American Beauty moves with 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 of the story, and his very first lines hook us with their teasing fatalism--like Sunset Boulevard's Joe Gillis, Burnham tells us his story from beyond the grave. It's an audacious start for a film that justifies that audacity. Weaving social satire, domestic tragedy and whodunit into a single package, Alan Ball's first theatrical script dares to blur generic lines and keep us off balance, winking seamlessly from dark, scabrous comedy to deeply moving drama. The Burnham family joins the cinematic short-list of great dysfunctional American families, as Lester is pitted against his manic, materialistic realtor wife, Carolyn (Annette Bening, making the most of a mostly unsympathetic role) and his sullen, contemptuous teenaged daughter, Jane (Thora Birch, utterly convincing in her edgy balance of self-absorption and wistful longing). Into their lives come two catalytic outsiders. A young cheerleader (Mena Suvari) jolts Lester into a sexual epiphany that blooms into a second adolescence. And an eerily calm young neighbour (Wes Bentley) transforms both Lester and Jane with his canny influence. Credit another big-screen newcomer, English theatrical director Sam Mendes, with expertly juggling these potentially disjunctive elements into a superb ensemble piece that achieves a stylised pace without lapsing into transparent self-indulgence. Mendes has shrewdly insured his success with a solid crew of stage veterans, yet he has also made an inspired discovery in Bentley, whose Ricky Fitts becomes a fulcrum for both plot and theme. Cinematographer Conrad Hall's sumptuous visual design further elevates the film, infusing the beige interiors of the Burnhams' lives with vivid bursts of deep crimson, the colour of roses--and of blood. --Sam Sutherland
Average Rating:
Rating:
- An observation of lifeThere is a character for everyone in this film to relate too, or, can relate to someone you know. Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is a character every middle-aged man can relate. Attracted to the fresh and youth of his daughter's (Thora Birch) best friend (Mena Suvari) and his hilarious attempts at turning back the clock are extremely funny at a distance; in that, I hope I don't become as desperate as Lester in my middle years. His daughter can represent the complexity, hoplessness and uncertainty ... Read More
Rating:
- Modern classicThis is NOT a 'chick flick', as described by a colleague of mine who hadn't seen it. It is a modern classic, though. Middle aged man has mid-life crisis, only with half a dozen twists in the tail. Dark and beautiful: it'll make you gasp in surprise and laugh out loud. One of my favourite movies in the world. Enjoy...
Rating:
- American beautyI'd seen this film on supermarket shelves many times but would have never watched it till I read about it in Chris Evans autobiography. He made the film sound interesting and different and it didn't disappoint.
Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening are brilliant but there are so many weird and wonderful characters and through the film I couldn't make my mind up whether to like them, dislike them or pity them?
But what a twist in the end, so sad but brilliant. I really enjoyed this film and ... Read More
Rating:
- hilariously funny, as well as deeply moving.It might seem a little over-the-top to say, but this film teaches you so much more about LIFE...
It teaches you to find beauty in places where there seems to be none.
It teaches you that something can, on the other hand, seem so beautiful on the surface, but underneath it has flaws.
It teaches you about irony, and to be grateful for what is good in your life before it's gone...
It's also hilariously funny, as well as deeply moving.
The whole cast give excellent performances, ... Read More
Rating:
- American beauty, only skin deep.Saw this twice at the cinema when I was a student, but always with misgivings. The trailer made it look more screwball, less pretentious than it is.
A film about stifled people finding the motivation, often misguided, for breaking out of familiar patterns and, in Spacey's case, rediscovering a zest for life. Truth be told, Lester's rejuvenation, entertaining as it is, amounts to nothing more than a midlife crisis, and the narration from the afterlife palls with repeated viewing.
The ... Read More
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