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American Beauty (1999)

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All reviews for American Beauty

American Beauty
by civex in civex Blog

liked it.

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"Lester (Kevin Spacey) is bored with his life, his job, his wife, Carolyn (played by Annette Bening), and his home. In the midst of what appears to be a mid-life crisis, he is laid off his job and falls hard for a high school girl, his daughter's best friend. His imaginary affair with her renews and reinvigorates him, and Lester decides to make his life, if not exciting again, at least not stagnant. Lester's family and life are contrasted with two other families: the next door neighbors, a family headed by a retired military man (Chris Cooper) who is a closet psychopath and whose son is a drug dealer; and two gay men, who live the only normal family life we see, bringing welcome gifts to new arrivals in the neighborhood. Lester becomes the order taker at a fast food restaurant, and lives a second childhood with much comic relief. The movie is well-written and well-acted, with a lot of tension at the end as we wonder how Carolyn is going to resolve her own conflict concerning ending ... " [More]

10 Best Masturbation Scenes
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"Andrew Sarris may be one of the most influential American film critics, but here’s a claim, located within his recent review of In Search of a Midnight Kiss, that may not hold up to some of his better-remembered theories: “Even when we confront 40-year-old virgins of either gender, movies refuse to show them compensating for the lack of a sexual partner. There is lasting shame involved in this spectacle.” Not to ever, ever profess superiority over Sarris, but I’ve nonetheless compiled today’s list as a way of proving the man wrong. There are actually tons and tons of masturbation scenes found in non-porn movies, from the low brow to the high brow, from as indirect as the boy wizard playing with his wand under the covers in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban to as direct as the non-simulated masturbation in Michael Winterbottom’s 9 Songs and John Cameron Mitchell’s Shortbus (which would probably feature my #1 pick, from the sound of it, if I ev " [More]

An amazing movie, but...
by Smooth_J in Smooth_J Blog

liked it.

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"American Beauty was a great film. I liked it immensely, even with my doubts about it after my dad hated it, and then my friends talked it up so much. Some parts of the movie were extremely powerful and quietly beautiful. And while the ideas pursued are really nothing we haven't seen before, it does it in a very fresh, darkly hysterical way that I've never really seen put into effect so perfectly. However, a lot of the movie feels very self-indulgent. Sam Mendes seemed to think during filming that he was creating a masterpiece (which, in some respects, is true). But it becomes almost obnoxious, especially considering the fact that he's a cynical Brit, when he creates events that would only ever occur in a stereotype. Parts of the film feel very staged and unbelievable...and while I understand his satire, which is often brilliant, it becomes tiresome when it's put into the wrong places.Now that I got my criticisms out of the way, let me tell you how much I love ... " [More]

American Beauty
by tjl30 in tjl30 Blog

loved it.

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"This movie is great, especially the ending. The characters and plots led to a fantastic conclusion, defiantly worth watching. " [More]

FilmCouch #20
by paul in paul on spout.com

liked it.

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"Interview with Christopher Smith director of Severance, a fall-down-funny-then-cover-you r-eyes slasher flick opening in theaters tonight. The FilmCouch group reloads discussion on what makes a villain from FilmCouch 18, and somehow draws a connection between American Beauty and Star Wars. A 33 year old German film is more relevant today than ever–Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), by New German Cinema pioneer Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Download FilmCouch #20 or subscribe in the iTunes store (search for “filmcouch” or click here to launch iTunes) and a new free episode will download every Friday. Films under discussion: Severance Star Wars American Beauty [More]

An Amazingly Written Film
by JakeStevens in JakeStevens Blog

loved it.

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"The most remarkable thing about this film is how, when viewed from their personal perceptions, each character in the film is the protagonist. The characters are so well written, so realistic, so well-rounded, that it's hard for me not to be amazed with this every time I see it. It goes without saying, but the cast is amazing, the care put into every nuance of the film shows the mark of a true master of the cinema. I've enjoyed everything Sam Mendes has put out thus far, and I'm sure I will continue to do so. A worthy winner of the Best Picture Oscar. " [More]

Decoding The Supreme Court Movi ...
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"As I understand it, the Supreme Court is *not* arguing, as Nikki Finke puts it, to make it a “crime to see American Beauty or Lolita.” The Reuters report is, admittedly, poorly written, so I’m not entirely sure what’s going on. But I *think* the law would not make it illegal to make or see a film depicting an underage person being naked or having sex; I *think* it would ban anyone from promoting such a film as containing teen sex or nudity. So the image from American Beauty to the right would be a-okay within the context of the film, but could not be distributed as an advertisement for the film. Even though Mena Suvari was 20 when the film was released, because the character she plays is underage. Right? Am I wrong? Tell me what’s really going on so I can pick a side.

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