Masculinity and American Beauty
This 1999 film captures the heart of a problem we still have today
If you weren’t an adult in the year 1999, it’s hard to quite appreciate the impact of the dark comedy American Beauty as it swept into theaters (and swept the 2000 Academy Awards). It boasted an all-star cast, memorable characters, great writing, and a central message of rekindling the passion in one’s life at all costs. It was slickly packaged and marketed and lauded as a savior of intelligent cinema. This was for good reason: the scenes are smart and memorable, the dialogue is savory, and the acting is razor-sharp.
The film’s protagonist, Lester Burnham, brilliantly portrayed by Kevin Spacey, is an emasculated unhappy lump of a middle-aged man. I should note that this was years before the actor’s predations came to light (and ironic given Lester’s inappropriate longings for his daughter’s teenage friend in the film). In addition to exploring the topic of life without joy or meaning, the film takes on our cultural violence, consumerism, privilege, definitions of beauty, the clash of older thinking and newer ways, lying to protect one’s reputation, and ultimately: redemption and death. In his opening monologue, which comprises the first two minutes of the film, our main character reveals that by the end he will be dead. Exquisite.
