Have you ever had a day where you thought about dropping everything, getting on a plane, and flying to a deserted island just to get away from all of your responsibilities? We know that we cannot actually get away from them, but the thought of doing so is reassuring enough.
But what would happen if we had the courage to get away from these responsibilities? Would it be for the better? Or would the consequences ultimately be detrimental? Sam Mendes' 1999 film
American Beauty challenges this question through its protagonist, Lester Burnham (played by Kevin Spacey), and his willingness to separate himself from the things that burden him.
Lester lives as a stereotypical middle-aged-father and has become exhaustingly bored by the monotony. He appears to live in a neat little world, with a loving wife and daughter, living in their perfect home, doing everything as they are supposed to. The film's narration quickly puts an end to this idea, as Lester's thoughts tell us that he has grown to be cynical and annoyed by all of the elements of his life that define who he is. He does not enjoy his job and cannot stand his boss. While he loves his family, he cannot seem to connect with them. His daughter acts as though she hates her father, and his wife barely pays attention to him, forcing Lester to fantasize instead about Jane's 16 year old friend Angela.
This crush motivates Lester into becoming a person that chases after his dreams rather than accepting the position he is in. He starts to work out in an effort to impress her, in addition to buying a new sports car. The transformation continues as a new family moves down the street consisting of Army Colonel Fitts, his wife, and their quiet, strange son Ricky. As Jane and Ricky become involved, Jane is driven even further from her father, and Lester feels compelled to better himself. He quits his job, much to his wife's disappointment, to pursue a job flipping burgers at the local drive-in. While it seems that Lester's life has significantly gone downhill, he could not be happier that he is doing what he thinks is for the better. In fact, he does so much for self betterment over the course of the film that he is completely unfazed by the discovering of his wife's affair.
While this film's main character is laced with pessimism and cynicism regarding the suburbia he is trapped inside, his transformation, which begins with the creepy fantasies about his daughter's best friend changes his from subdued to driven. This drive has Lester unafraid of doing what we all long to do: drop everything and do something for ourselves for once. Spacey's character becomes funny, brash, and driven (even if by the wrong thing), but is flawed in his reluctance to observe the affects of his actions on those around him. Sure, he may be feeling better off for the changes he made, but not stopping to consider how the others might take it has deleterious consequences in the end. This movie allows us to think about which we should value more: pleasing those whom we are closest too, or doing whatever we deem right for ourselves.
