Performances fuel satirical ‘Beauty’
By Emily Pyeatt
Staff writer
“I rule!” says Kevin Spacey, the
sexually obsessed^uburban father in
the intriguing “American Beauty.”
Although “American Beauty” pro
vides a well-known comment on the
constraints of suburbia, the film’s styl
istic elements distinguish it from films
' such as Todd Solondz’s “Happiness.”
The performances of the stellar
cast, the cinematography of Conrad L.
Hall (“Butch Cassidy and the
Sundance Kid”), the directing of Sam
Mendes (“The Blue Room” and
“Cabaret”) and the themes defining
true American beauty contribute to an
intensely humorous and thought-pro
voking film.
Academy Award-winner Spacey
(“The Usual Suspects”) pours himself
into the role of a typical suburbanite
who feels as if life is not what he
planned it to be. His plausible and
humorous performance is sure to stir
talk of awards.
Spacey’s Lester Burnham states
simply at die beginning of the film, “In
a way, I’m already dead.” Throughout
the film, Lester confronts the defeat of
a life lacking the excitement he desires.
Lester’s sexless marriage is tainted
with superficiality by Carolyn
(Annette Bening), his shallow real
estate-agent wife who is absorbed in
the beauty she finds in her rose garden.
Carolyn desperately attempts to culti
vate the perfect home and is driven to
succeed.
Lester’s dead-end job as a maga
zine reporter also troubles him.
Mendes portrays the monotony of
everyday work life by showing Lester
surrounded by bleak fluorescent lights
and cubicles.
Finally, Lester is confronted by the
realization that he lacks a relationship
with his daughter, Jane (Thora Birch).
-,
Him Review
Tin facts
Title: “American Beauty”
Director: Sam Mendes
Rating: R (language, nudity, drug use,
violence, adult content)
Stars: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening,
Thora Birch
Grade: B+
Five Words: A must see cinematic
beauty.
The troubled teen is detached from her
parents and filled with insecurities. The
only thing Jane and Carolyn seem to
agree on is that Lester is a dork.
But when Lester is dragged to
Jane’s dance performance at a basket
ball game, he is completely trans
formed by the image of the teen-age
vixen, Angela (Mena Suvari).
Angela is Jane’s friend and the
object of Lester’s desires. Suvari is
packed with Heather Graham-type sex
appeal, which is a bit too discomforting
coming from a teen-ager. Lester fanta
sizes about Angela swimming in rose
petals, and the fantasies provide the
sexual escape needed to change his life.
Lester is then influenced by neigh
bor Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley). Ricky
reintroduces Lester into the world of
marijuana from his youth and becomes
Lester’s hero by quitting his catering
job with no second thought. This
inspires Lester to take the fate of his job
into his own hands. Thus Lester’s phys
ical and emotional transformation con
tinues.
Perhaps one of the most overlooked
aspects of the film is the Fitts family,
which lives next door to Lester and his
family.
Chris Cooper plays Colonel Fitts, a
military officer who dominates his
family’s “responsibility and structure”
to a point that leaves his wife, Barbara
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Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening play a disillusioned married couple in “American Beauty,” a dark comedic film
about suburban life.
(Allison Janney), incapable of commu
nication. The Colonel trains his family
and self for the conformity of the mili
tary and suburbia. This negatively
influences Ricky, leaving him
detached, just as Jane is from her par
ents.
Jane and Ricky’s relationship pro
vides the necessary escape needed
from family constraints, but it is
Ricky’s character that shines.
Bentley’s performance as Ricky
truly intrigues and captivates. Through
the “eye” of Ricky’s video camera,
audiences are allowed the glimpses of
true beauty.
Tension throughout “Beauty” is
Bif Naked
“I Bificus”
Lava/Atlantic
Grade: B
“I Bificus,” the newest album from
Bif Naked, would sound like a compila
tion to those who didn’t know better.
Her many styles include hard-nosed
punk/ska and typical ’90s rock with
some touching ballads muted in.
By giving props to Madonna, Ricky
Martin, Luciano Pavarotti, the Dalai
Lama and Satan, as well as touring with
Kid Rock and appearing in Lilith Fair
this year, Bif made it obvious that her
inspiration flows from diverse sources.
When she was a child in New Delhi,
India, Bif was adopted by American
missionaries. The family moved
through North America, eventually
making Winnipeg, Manitoba, their
home. She started singing in punk
bands with names such as Jungle Milk,
Gorilla Gorilla, Chrome Dog and Dying
To Be Violent, but Bif has said she felt
creatively bound by the band’s other
created as societal norms are broken
and explored by all characters.
Mendes’ directorial power heightens
this tension.
The influence of the theater is evi
dent in Mendes’ artistic style. Mendes
comes from theatrical roots and makes
his film debut with “American Beauty.”
Hall’s cinematography is stunning
in its minimalist qualities. Characters
are presented in realistic sets that seem
to border the abstract because of the
sets’ simplicity. Overhead shots
throughout the film reveal the same
ness of suburbia. Colors are richly
intense, specifically the shades of - you
guessed it - red, white and blue.
members.
Bif learned the penalties of the rock
‘n’ roll lifestyle, falling victim to alco
hol, drugs and promiscuous sex. But
unlike the sad stories VH1 tells about
burnt-out rock stars, Bif vowed to
change. She no longer drinks, abuses
drugs or eats meat. Instead, she gives
her audiences the message that true suc
cess stems from respecting your body
and environment
“Moment of Weakness,” Bif’s first
video from “I Bificus,” is rather uninter
esting and doesn’t make the listener
wish to hear more. But stopping your
self from listening to this album would
definitely be a mistake.
Bif dabbles in cliche ’90s rock, but
as soon as you move past those unfeel
ing songs, a mix of tough punk/ska
and heartfelt ballads is revealed.
“Chotee” is a hard-punk storybook
about her failed marriage with Jungle
“Beauty,” although impressive,
does present some flaws, mainly the
overdone and cliched views of subur
bia.
For example, the generic, militaris
tic view of gays is found in the
Colonel’s reaction to the neighbor
hood’s gay couple.
Yet, the flaws are few, and
“American Beauty” is an admirable
big-studio Hollywood blockbuster. The
film attempts the extraordinary, man
aging to probe into modem society in a
profoundly intriguing manner.
After all, as one character says in
the film, there is “nothing worse in life
than being ordinary.”
Milk’s drummer. Though the lyrics
aren’t deep, they are painfully honest.
“Any Day Now” combines real
drums, electronic drum beats, key
boards and surprisingly intelligent pro
gramming into a cosmic ballad.
Compared with the boring rock tracks
that surround the song, “Any Day Now”
stands out as a star among the black
clouds.
The most remarkable track on “I
Bificus” is “Lucky,” a dirge that follows
“Moment of Weakness.” Broadway
style percussion, subtle guitars and
expert engineering and mixing turn the
repetitive lyrics of this tune into a mas
terpiece for Bif Naked.
“I Bificus” shares many different
genres on one piece of plastic, some
complete disappointments, others liber
ating in their virtuosity. Almost any
lover of rock music can find a song that
sticks in his or her head for days.
Though the lyrics fall short of introspec
tion, the music of this album holds its
own.
-Andrew Shaw
