Many people do not seem to be satisfied with their current situation. They are driven by envy, a desire to have what others do not. Moreover, the promises of materialism are ingrained in our culture, such as having a good-paying job, a perfect home, and/or a family. In reality, they do not feel happy. The American Beauty was released in 1999. The film revolves around a suburban couple; Lester and Carolyn are the husband and wife. Jane is their daughter. American beauty is a film that shows a stereotypical American suburb family.
Facades are external appearances that conceal a less pleasing reality. The facade is created by a person who’s unhappy but doesn’t want others to know. The film has a main theme that is addressed by all characters. Carolyn Burnham’s obsession with her career is a clear denial of the lifestyle she lives. She believes success will bring her happiness. Ironically, although she lives a very successful life, her possessions and success are not fulfilling. She tries hard to be happy with her job as a realtor, but ends up failing to sell any houses. Carolyn repeatedly tells herself in the opening scene of the film that she is going to sell her house. The scene is made more emotional by a close-up shot of her crying in the house. She was unable to sell the house. She tells Lester to “Act happy” at the party where they were both attending. This is to give people the impression that they have a successful relationship.
Angela Hayes’s image is that of a beautiful, confident girl whom everyone admires and finds appealing. She’s just insecure, so she constantly criticizes others for being unadorned or dull. In an ironic scene, she has a disagreement with the girl, and at the end says, “I hate it when people take out their insecurities onto me”, which she actually does. Jane agrees when Ricky asks her to join him in New York. Angela storms off when she hears this. Ricky responds by calling out Angela’s flaws. In the scene that follows, we see Angela sitting on the staircase, crying, in darkness, while the camera is behind the bars. The blueish tint was added to further emphasize her sadness.
Ricky’s dad, Colonel Fitts, is also a character who struggles between appearance and reality. He is shown to be a homophobe and not supportive of homosexuals from the beginning. It is clear that he has a very hostile attitude towards homosexuals. He may be confused about his sexuality, but he wants to project a manly image. In one scene, he believes his son Lester has a sexual affair with Ricky. Ricky then goes to Lester’s house and gives him more marijuana. He confronts Lester, and it is clear that the colonel’s son has confirmed his homosexuality. The Colonel finally breaks down in tears after Ricky leaves. It would appear that the Colonel was infuriated at this point, but after he is comforted he realizes that a sexual confusion is the real reason for his rage. Lester rejects Fitts due to their obvious misunderstanding. The situation gets worse and the colonel is in denial. Unwilling to face the truth, he kills Lester. The movie shows that not everything is as it seems. People pretend to be happy most of the times due denial, fear and complications. Untruthfulness can lead to terrible results.
Happiness plays a major role in people’s lives and this film definitely lacks it. You can see that at the beginning, there are many more unhappy people than happy ones. Lester’s narration in the movie begins with the line “in some ways, I’m already deceased”. In the beginning of the movie, when Lester is narrating, he says “in a way, I’m already dead”. His daughter doesn’t want to be around either parent, and his wife and he are not on the best of terms. He also has a job that he does not enjoy. In the scene, they are all eating together. Later, when she tells him to smile at the event they’re attending, he responds that he feels happy with a sarcastic voice. In response to his wife’s wishes, he kisses and tells her that they are in a good relationship. But they don’t. After realizing that he wanted Jane’s best friend, Jane becomes his spark to happiness. He decides to change his life to become happier. You wonder what other things you could do. Angela asks Lecter how he’s doing near the end of his life. He replies that he’s great. Then he realized he’d finally kept his happiness. Ricky continues to tell the story of his life, even after he has died. He realizes how beautiful life is and feels grateful for it. Jane, who let Ricky in her life, finds happiness. Ricky always felt happy. He viewed the world as beautiful and that’s why it was important to him to film everything. Carolyn found happiness with buddy, but she let it go because of her success ideals. Happiness is essential to everyone. Life would be dull and boring without it. Each character is able to find their own form of happiness. Some characters already possess it, while others are working towards it. No matter what your age is, you can still achieve bliss.
The life is filled with many surprises. It can be complicated, overwhelming, and even confusing. Particularly when you are trying to get what you want. In this movie, we see what it feels like to try to keep up a fake face and not deal with the truth. We also see that change can be necessary to achieve true happiness. This is what life is all about, the ability to reach your goals, achieve the things you want, and not be unhappy. The movie shows that life is too short to not live it fully.
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