American Beauty

 

 

 So last semester for my film class we had to write an essay on American Beauty. I was going through my Google Drive Docs and found this so I thought I'd share.

Rachel Riojas

Film 1

Prof. Flood

2/28/2014

   

    American Beauty, written by Alan Ball and directed by Sam Mendes, employs metaphors throughout the film to epitomize desire, anger, lust, youth, and vitality.  Our protagonist is Lester Burnham, played by Kevin Spacey. His self discovery and inevitable death are the backdrop of of American Beauty, and the ripple effect of Lester’s epiphany is what unfolds before our eyes. The story takes place in a quiet suburban town, Lester, his wife Caroline, played by Annette Bening, and his daughter Jane, played by Thora Birch are all very unhappy. At a high school basketball game, where Jane is a cheerleader, Lester finds himself entranced by one of Jane’s friends Angela, played by Mena Suvari. Suddenly the mood changes, from feeling humorous pity for Lester’s pathetic existence, to experiencing an almost violent intrigue for Lester’s new burst of life.  Thus beginning his journey from unhappy husband, to a man hopeful and free from encumbrance, despite the chaos that surrounds his now imprevisible family, and finally, to man with no future. The images have become iconic for their paradigmatic structure, and the metaphors within the film bring the frivolity and allurement of fantasy into a seemingly ordinary setting.

One of the strongest images overall is the use of the color red, which echos in everything from the color of lips to front door of our main characters house, to the color of Lester’s work suit and slip. The color red is symbolic for a number of things, the most obvious being anger, desire and hate. A common metaphor throughout the film is utilized by red roses, which in different scenes, represents different aspects of Lester’s attitude toward a certain character or possibly just his mood. The first red rose we see is in his wife Caroline’s garden, to which he remarks with just the right amount of boredom in his voice, “See the way the handle on those pruning shears match her gardening clogs? That’s not an accident.” The red roses surrounding Caroline represent an image that she is projecting of perfection. To her, to be successful one must project the image of success, and clearly Lester sees beyond the fake image she broadcasts and finds her attempts pathetic.  The first metaphor of the red roses is that of false perfection and suburban boredom. The second use is far more erotic. During the dance sequence in which Lester has his epiphany and is overwhelmed with desire for Angela, we see her alone on the basketball court, dancing seductively for Lester. Of course this is all clearly imagined by Lester, and his day-dream is heightened even more when Angela unzips her cheerleading sweater, only to have red rose petals, as opposed to breasts, emerge from her clothing. With this image we see new symbolisms arise. The red roses no longer represent the mundane falsehood that is Lester’s “pretend life”, but instead represent desire. Not just Lester’s desire for Angela, but also Lester’s desire for something different. Desire for life and maybe even love. The red roses appear again and again for Lester, each fantasy involving a sexual situation with him and Angela. These red roses not only appear in Lester’s apparitions, but also in his waking life. The red roses that once belong in Caroline’s garden sit in elegant glass vases in almost every room of the house. This is meant to signify for the viewer, that to Lester, his hallucinations involving the sensual red rose petals are just as real to him as the roses sitting in front of  him on the kitchen table. For Lester there is no separation between real life and fantasy.

    The roses represented for Lester vitality, sex obviously, but also what Angela represented.  Indeed Angela herself is a metaphor for something lacking in Lester’s life, which is why he soon becomes almost obsessed with her. She epitomizes what Lester no longer has in his life and that is to be desirable. It is clear to Lester that his wife and daughter do not need him. To them he is about as useful as a ripped up sponge. When he encounters Angela, his fantasies not only include her usually naked and covered with roses, but needing him. Above all, Lester wants to be needed. What seems almost ironic is that in the end, outside of Lester’s fantasy, Angela does need him. Probably in an unhealthy way, but she expresses that desire for him and the relief on his face makes the viewer not disgusted at the prospect of this older gentleman sleeping with a young virgin, who also happens to be his daughter’s best friend, but almost happy for him. He seemed to finally get his answer, he is good enough.

    The conclusion to the film seems to fit nicely. Our protagonist finally reaches a state of absolution, and we feel comforted by the fact that he seemed to die happy. He is sitting in front of a vase of red roses when his brains get blown out, having just refused sex with Angela. We see him smile and look peaceful, even before death. The metaphor of the roses could be discussed till the end of time, because they represent so many things to the various characters. So could the color red, which like previously stated, was used a lot throughout the film. It supposed to represent life. Not just the idea of sex and desire or hatred and anger, but life itself. How it can be complicated and simple and beautiful and ugly. How our liveliness can depend so much on a kind gesture, or a misunderstanding. A gun in a hand or roses in a vase.