American Beauty

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2:53

American Beauty

R

Released Oct 1, 1999

2h 2m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

87%

Tomatometer

192 Reviews

93%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is a gainfully employed suburban husband and father. Fed up with his boring, stagnant existence, he quits his job and decides to reinvent himself as a pot-smoking, responsibility-shirking teenager. What follows is at once cynical, hysterical, and, eventually, tragically uplifting.

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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.

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Paul Clinton (CNN.com)

CNN.com

American Beauty is deeply disturbing, acerbically funny, brilliantly acted, breathtakingly original and highly sophisticated.

Feb 22, 2015

Full Review

Ann Hornaday

Baltimore Sun

A tightly coiled rage seethes beneath the pretty surface of American Beauty, a wickedly funny black comedy directed by newcomer Sam Mendes.

Rated: 4/4

Feb 22, 2015

Full Review

Jeff Strickler

Minneapolis Star Tribune

This is Spacey's best performance since he took home an Oscar for The Usual Suspects.

Feb 22, 2015

Full Review

Mark Johnson

Awards Daily

With its clever and thought-provoking exploration of middle-class life, American Beauty continues to ignite conversations and debates, setting it apart from many other films

Jun 14, 2023

Full Review

Joanna Connors

Cleveland Plain Dealer

[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.

Feb 4, 2022

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

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.

Rated: 10/10

Sep 9, 2020

Full Review

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Dave G

An absolute masterpiece.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/17/25

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Andrew S

Simply brilliant .....a must watch, enjoy !

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/09/25

Full Review

Sharang L

While it's difficult to quite understand what the makers set out to say, the movie is impactful and even scary in a unique way.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/25/25

Full Review

Topher S

this movie is such a meme

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/25/25

Full Review

Audience Member

A film often called overrated and outdated. In my opinion way off. This is still a very affective and incredible film. With of great acting, great cinematography, great music, and all under two hours. It’s still relevant! Yes 9/11 changed America afterward but people are still deeply unsatisfied with their perfect little so called American Dream lives. This film captures that feeling perfectly. And the garage scene has got to be one of the most underrated suspense sequences I’ve ever seen. In a decade of Best Picture history epics like Braveheart, Forrest Gump, and Titanic to have one set in quiet little suburbia say so much about characters with such stupid little lives speaks volumes of its greatness.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/18/25

Full Review

Niklas L

An absolute masterpiece and my favourite movie. That plastic bag has got that beauty, and the rest of the movie too! This movie could not be improved.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/12/25

Full Review

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Sam Mendes

Director

Kevin Spacey

Lester Burnham

Annette Bening

Carolyn Burnham

Thora Birch

Jane Burnham

Wes Bentley

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Mena Suvari

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American Beauty: Trailer 1

2:53

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Synopsis

Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is a gainfully employed suburban husband and father. Fed up with his boring, stagnant existence, he quits his job and decides to reinvent himself as a pot-smoking, responsibility-shirking teenager. What follows is at once cynical, hysterical, and, eventually, tragically uplifting.

Director: Sam Mendes
Producer: Bruce Cohen, Dan Jinks
Screenwriter: Alan Ball
Distributor: DreamWorks SKG
Production Co: DreamWorks Pictures, Jinks/Cohen Company
Rating: R (Language|Drug Content|Strong Sexuality|Violence)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 1, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $130.1M
Runtime: 2h 2m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, SDDS, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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