 = American Beauty ( 1999 film ) = 
 
 American Beauty is a 1999 American drama film directed by Sam Mendes and written by Alan Ball . Kevin Spacey stars as Lester Burnham , a 42 @-@ year @-@ old advertising executive who has a midlife crisis when he becomes infatuated with his teenaged daughter 's best friend , Angela ( Mena Suvari ) . Annette Bening co @-@ stars as Lester 's materialistic wife , Carolyn , and Thora Birch plays their insecure daughter , Jane . Wes Bentley , Chris Cooper , and Allison Janney also feature . The film is described by academics as a satire of American middle @-@ class notions of beauty and personal satisfaction ; analysis has focused on the film 's explorations of romantic , and paternal love , sexuality , beauty , materialism , self @-@ liberation , and redemption . 
 Ball began writing American Beauty as a play in the early 1990s , partly inspired by the media circus around the Amy Fisher trial in 1992 . He shelved the play after realizing the story would not work on stage . After several years as a television screenwriter , Ball revived the idea in 1997 when attempting to break into the film industry . The modified script had a cynical outlook that was influenced by Ball 's frustrating tenures writing for several sitcoms . Producers Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen took American Beauty to DreamWorks ; the then @-@ fledgling film studio bought Ball 's script for $ 250 @,@ 000 , outbidding several other production bodies . DreamWorks financed the $ 15 million production and served as its North American distributor . American Beauty marked acclaimed theater director Mendes ' film debut ; courted after his successful productions of the musicals Oliver ! and Cabaret , Mendes was , nevertheless , only given the job after 20 others were considered and several " A @-@ list " directors turned down the opportunity . 
 Spacey was Mendes ' first choice for the role of Lester , though DreamWorks had urged the director to consider better @-@ known actors ; similarly , the studio suggested several actors for the role of Carolyn until Mendes offered the part to Bening without DreamWorks ' knowledge . Principal photography took place between December 1998 and February 1999 on soundstages at the Warner Bros. backlot in Burbank , California , and on location in Los Angeles . Mendes ' dominant style was deliberate and composed ; he made extensive use of static shots and slow pans and zooms to generate tension . Cinematographer Conrad Hall complemented Mendes ' style with peaceful shot compositions to contrast with the turbulent on @-@ screen events . During editing , Mendes made several changes that gave the film a less cynical tone than the script . 
 Released in North America on September 17 , 1999 , American Beauty was positively received by critics and audiences ; it was the best @-@ reviewed American film of the year and grossed over $ 356 million worldwide . Reviewers praised most aspects of the production , with particular emphasis on Mendes , Spacey , and Ball ; criticism focused on the familiarity of the characters and setting . DreamWorks launched a major campaign to increase the film 's chances of Academy Award success ; at the 72nd Academy Awards the following year , the film won Best Picture , Best Director , Best Actor ( for Spacey ) , Best Original Screenplay , and Best Cinematography . It was nominated for and won many other awards and honors , mainly for the direction , writing , and acting . 
 
 = = Plot = = 
 
 Lester Burnham is a middle @-@ aged advertising executive and magazine writer who despises his job . He is unhappily married to Carolyn , a neurotic yet fiercely ambitious real estate broker ; their teenaged daughter , Jane , abhors her parents and has low self @-@ esteem . The Burnhams ' new neighbors are retired United States Marine Corps Colonel Frank Fitts and his near @-@ catatonic wife , Barbara . Their teenaged son , Ricky , constantly films his surroundings with a camcorder , collecting hundreds of recordings on videotapes in his bedroom . His job as a part @-@ time bar caterer serves as a front for his secret marijuana dealing . Col. Fitts is a strict disciplinarian who previously sent Ricky to a military school and briefly committed him to a psychiatric hospital . Jim Olmeyer and Jim Berkley , a gay couple who live nearby , welcome the family to the neighborhood ; the homophobic Col. Fitts angrily asks Ricky " why these faggots have to rub it in your face . " 
 Lester becomes infatuated with Jane 's vain friend , Angela Hayes , after seeing her perform a half @-@ time dance routine at a high school basketball game . He starts having sexual fantasies about Angela , in which red rose petals are a recurring motif . Carolyn begins an affair with her married business rival , Buddy Kane . When Lester 's boss , Brad , tells him that he is to be laid off , Lester instead blackmails him for $ 60 @,@ 000 and quits his job . Lester takes a minimum @-@ wage job at a fast @-@ food restaurant , trades in his Toyota Camry for his dream car , a 1970 Pontiac Firebird , and starts working out after he overhears Angela tell Jane that she would find him sexually attractive if he got in shape . He begins smoking marijuana supplied by Ricky . The girls ' friendship wanes after Jane starts a relationship with Ricky . Jane and Ricky bond over what Ricky considers the most beautiful imagery he has filmed : a plastic bag being blown in the wind . 
 Lester discovers Carolyn 's infidelity , but reacts indifferently . Buddy ends the affair , fearing an expensive divorce . Col. Fitts becomes suspicious of Lester and Ricky 's friendship when he finds his son 's footage of Lester lifting weights while nude , which Ricky captured by chance , leading him to believe that Ricky is gay . After spying on Ricky and Lester through Lester 's garage window , the colonel mistakenly concludes the pair is sexually involved . He later confronts and beats Ricky for the supposed affair and accuses him of being gay . Ricky falsely admits the charges and goads his father into kicking him out of their home . Meanwhile , Carolyn is sitting in her car in the rain , taking a gun out of the glove box while a voice on the radio talks about not being a victim . Ricky goes to Jane 's bedroom , finding her arguing with Angela about Angela 's flirtation with Lester . Ricky convinces Jane to flee with him to New York City and assures Angela that she is ugly , boring , and ordinary . 
 Col. Fitts confronts Lester and attempts to kiss him ; Lester rebuffs the colonel , who tearfully flees . Carolyn puts the gun in her handbag , shouting , " I refuse to be a victim ! " Lester finds a distraught Angela sitting alone in the dark ; she asks him to tell her she is beautiful . He does , and they kiss . 
 Carolyn drives through the rain , rehearsing a confession to Lester . Just as Lester and Angela are about to have sex , she admits that she is a virgin , and Lester changes his mind . He instead comforts her and the pair bond over their shared frustrations . Angela goes to the bathroom and Lester smiles at a family photograph in his kitchen . An unseen figure raises a gun to the back of his head , a gunshot sounds , and blood sprays on the wall . Ricky and Jane find Lester 's body , while Carolyn breaks down crying in the closet . A bloodied Col. Fitts returns home , where a gun is shown to be missing from his collection . Lester 's closing narration describes meaningful experiences during his life ; he says that , despite his death , he is happy because there is " so much beauty " in the world . 
 
 = = Themes and analysis = = 
 
 
 = = = Multiple interpretations = = = 
 
 Scholars and academics have offered many possible readings of American Beauty ; film critics are similarly divided , not so much about the quality of the film , as their interpretations of it . Described by many as about " the meaning of life " or " the hollow existence of the American suburbs " , the film has defied categorization by even the filmmakers . Mendes is indecisive , saying the script seemed to be about something different each time he read it : " a mystery story , a kaleidoscopic journey through American suburbia , a series of love stories ; [ ... ] it was about imprisonment , [ ... ] loneliness , [ and ] beauty . It was funny ; it was angry , sad . " The literary critic and author Wayne C. Booth concludes that the film resists any one interpretation : " [ American Beauty ] cannot be adequately summarized as ' here is a satire on what 's wrong with American life ' ; that plays down the celebration of beauty . It is more tempting to summarize it as ' a portrait of the beauty underlying American miseries and misdeeds ' , but that plays down the scenes of cruelty and horror , and Ball 's disgust with our mores . It cannot be summarized with either Lester or Ricky 's philosophical statements about what life is or how one should live . " He argues that the problem of interpreting the film is tied with that of finding its center — a controlling voice who " [ unites ] all of the choices " . He contends that in American Beauty 's case , it is neither Mendes nor Ball . Mendes considers the voice to be Ball 's , but even while the writer was " strongly influential " on set , he often had to accept deviations from his vision , particularly ones that transformed the cynical tone of his script into something more optimistic . With " innumerable voices intruding on the original author 's , " Booth says , those who interpret American Beauty " have forgotten to probe for the elusive center " . According to Booth , the film 's true controller is the creative energy " that hundreds of people put into its production , agreeing and disagreeing , inserting and cutting " . 
 
 = = = Imprisonment and redemption = = = 
 
 Mendes called American Beauty a rite of passage film about imprisonment and escape from imprisonment . The monotony of Lester 's existence is established through his gray , nondescript workplace and characterless clothing . In these scenes , he is often framed as if trapped , " reiterating rituals that hardly please him " . He masturbates in the confines of his shower ; the shower stall evokes a jail cell and the shot is the first of many where Lester is confined behind bars or within frames , such as when he is reflected behind columns of numbers on a computer monitor , " confined [ and ] nearly crossed out " . The academic and author Jody W. Pennington argues that Lester 's journey is the story 's center . His sexual reawakening through meeting Angela is the first of several turning points as he begins to " [ throw ] off the responsibilities of the comfortable life he has come to despise " . After Lester shares a joint with Ricky , his spirit is released and he begins to rebel against Carolyn . Changed by Ricky 's " attractive , profound confidence " , Lester is convinced that Angela is attainable and sees that he must question his " banal , numbingly materialist suburban existence " ; he takes a job at a fast @-@ food outlet , which allows him to regress to a point when he could " see his whole life ahead of him " . 
 When Lester is caught masturbating by Carolyn , his angry retort about their lack of intimacy is the first time he says aloud what he thinks about her . By confronting the issue and Carolyn 's " superficial investments in others " , Lester is trying to " regain a voice in a home that [ only respects ] the voices of mother and daughter " . His final turning point comes when Angela and he almost have sex ; after she confesses her virginity , he no longer thinks of her as a sex object , but as a daughter . He holds her close and " wraps her up " . Mendes called it " the most satisfying end to [ Lester 's ] journey there could possibly have been " . With these final scenes , Mendes intended to show Lester at the conclusion of a " mythical quest " . After Lester gets a beer from the refrigerator , the camera pushes toward him , then stops facing a hallway down which he walks " to meet his fate " . Having begun to act his age again , Lester achieves closure . As he smiles at a family photo , the camera pans slowly from Lester to the kitchen wall , onto which blood spatters as a gunshot rings out ; the slow pan reflects the peace of Lester 's death . His body is discovered by Jane and Ricky . Mendes said that Ricky 's staring into Lester 's dead eyes is " the culmination of the theme " of the film : that beauty is found where it is least expected . 
 
 = = = Conformity and beauty = = = 
 
 Like other American films of 1999 — such as Fight Club , Bringing Out the Dead , and Magnolia , American Beauty instructs its audience to " [ lead ] more meaningful lives " . The film argues the case against conformity , but does not deny that people need and want it ; even the gay characters just want to fit in . Jim and Jim , the Burnhams ' other neighbors , are a satire of " gay bourgeois coupledom " , who " [ invest ] in the numbing sameness " that the film criticizes in heterosexual couples . The feminist academic and author Sally R. Munt argues that American Beauty uses its " art house " trappings to direct its message of nonconformity primarily to the middle classes , and that this approach is a " cliché of bourgeois preoccupation ; [ ... ] the underlying premise being that the luxury of finding an individual ' self ' through denial and renunciation is always open to those wealthy enough to choose , and sly enough to present themselves sympathetically as a rebel . " 
 Professor Roy M. Anker argues that the film 's thematic center is its direction to the audience to " look closer " . The opening combines an unfamiliar viewpoint of the Burnhams ' neighborhood with Lester 's narrated admission that he will soon die , forcing audiences to consider their own mortality and the beauty around them . It also sets a series of mysteries ; Anker asks , " from what place exactly , and from what state of being , is he telling this story ? If he 's already dead , why bother with whatever it is he wishes to tell about his last year of being alive ? There is also the question of how Lester has died — or will die . " Anker believes the preceding scene — Jane 's discussion with Ricky about the possibility of his killing her father — adds further mystery . Professor Ann C. Hall disagrees ; she says by presenting an early resolution to the mystery , the film allows the audience to put it aside " to view the film and its philosophical issues " . Through this examination of Lester 's life , rebirth and death , American Beauty satirizes American middle class notions of meaning , beauty and satisfaction . Even Lester 's transformation only comes about because of the possibility of sex with Angela ; he therefore remains a " willing devotee of the popular media 's exaltation of pubescent male sexuality as a sensible route to personal wholeness " . Carolyn is similarly driven by conventional views of happiness ; from her belief in " house beautiful " domestic bliss to her car and gardening outfit , Carolyn 's domain is a " fetching American millennial vision of Pleasantville , or Eden " . The Burnhams are unaware that they are " materialists philosophically , and devout consumers ethically " who expect the " rudiments of American beauty " to give them happiness . Anker argues that " they are helpless in the face of the prettified economic and sexual stereotypes [ ... ] that they and their culture have designated for their salvation . " 
 The film presents Ricky as its " visionary , [ ... ] spiritual and mystical center " . He sees beauty in the minutiae of everyday life , videoing as much as he can for fear of missing it . He shows Jane what he considers the most beautiful thing he has filmed : a plastic bag , tossing in the wind in front of a wall . He says capturing the moment was when he realized that there was " an entire life behind things " ; he feels that " sometimes there 's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can 't take it ... and my heart is going to cave in . " Anker argues that Ricky , in looking past the " cultural dross " , has " [ grasped ] the radiant splendor of the created world " to see God . As the film progresses , the Burnhams move closer to Ricky 's view of the world . Lester only forswears personal satisfaction at the film 's end . On the cusp of having sex with Angela , he returns to himself after she admits her virginity . Suddenly confronted with a child , he begins to treat her as a daughter ; in doing so , Lester sees himself , Angela , and his family " for the poor and fragile but wondrous creatures they are " . He looks at a picture of his family in happier times , and dies having had an epiphany that infuses him with " wonder , joy , and soul @-@ shaking gratitude " — he has finally seen the world as it is . 
 According to Patti Bellantoni , colors are used symbolically throughout the film , none more so than red , which is an important thematic signature that drives the story and " [ defines ] Lester 's arc " . First seen in drab colors that reflect his passivity , Lester surrounds himself with red as he regains his individuality . The American Beauty rose is repeatedly used as symbol ; when Lester fantasizes about Angela , she is usually naked and surrounded by rose petals . In these scenes , the rose symbolizes Lester 's desire for her . When associated with Carolyn , the rose represents a " façade for suburban success " . Roses are included in almost every shot inside the Burnhams ' home , where they signify " a mask covering a bleak , unbeautiful reality " . Carolyn feels that " as long as there can be roses , all is well " . She cuts the roses and puts them in vases , where they adorn her " meretricious vision of what makes for beauty " and begin to die . The roses in the vase in the Angela – Lester seduction scene symbolize Lester 's previous life and Carolyn ; the camera pushes in as Lester and Angela get closer , finally taking the roses — and thus Carolyn — out of the shot . Lester 's epiphany at the end of the film is expressed by rain and the use of red , building to a crescendo that is a deliberate contrast to the release Lester feels . The constant use of red " lulls [ the audience ] subliminally " into becoming used to it ; consequently , it leaves the audience unprepared when Lester is shot and his blood spatters on the wall . 
 
 = = = Sexuality and repression = = = 
 
 Pennington argues that American Beauty defines its characters through their sexuality . Lester 's attempts to relive his youth are a direct result of his lust for Angela , and the state of his relationship with Carolyn is in part shown through their lack of sexual contact . Also sexually frustrated , Carolyn has an affair that takes her from " cold perfectionist " to a more carefree soul who " [ sings ] happily along with " the music in her car . Jane and Angela constantly reference sex , through Angela 's descriptions of her supposed sexual encounters and the way the girls address each other . Their nude scenes are used to communicate their vulnerability . By the end of the film , Angela 's hold on Jane has weakened until the only power she has over her friend is Lester 's attraction to her . Col. Fitts reacts with disgust to meeting Jim and Jim ; he asks , " How come these faggots always have to rub it in your face ? How can they be so shameless ? " To which Ricky replies , " That 's the thing , Dad — they don 't feel like it 's anything to be ashamed of . " Pennington argues that Col. Fitts ' reaction is not homophobic , but an " anguished self @-@ interrogation " . 
 With other turn @-@ of @-@ the @-@ millennium films such as Fight Club , In the Company of Men ( 1997 ) , American Psycho ( 2000 ) , and Boys Don 't Cry ( 1999 ) , American Beauty " raises the broader , widely explored issue of masculinity in crisis " . Professor Vincent Hausmann charges that in their reinforcement of masculinity " against threats posed by war , by consumerism , and by feminist and queer challenges " , these films present a need to " focus on , and even to privilege " aspects of maleness " deemed ' deviant ' " . Lester 's transformation conveys " that he , and not the woman , has borne the brunt of [ lack of being ] " and he will not stand for being emasculated . Lester 's attempts to " strengthen traditional masculinity " conflict with his responsibilities as a father . Although the film portrays the way Lester returns to that role positively , he does not become " the hypermasculine figure implicitly celebrated in films like Fight Club " . Hausmann concludes that Lester 's behavior toward Angela is " a misguided but nearly necessary step toward his becoming a father again " . 
 Hausmann says the film " explicitly affirms the importance of upholding the prohibition against incest " ; a recurring theme of Ball 's work is his comparison of the taboos against incest and homosexuality . Instead of making an overt distinction , American Beauty looks at how their repression can lead to violence . Col. Fitts is so ashamed of his homosexuality that it drives him to murder Lester . Ball said , " The movie is in part about how homophobia is based in fear and repression and about what [ they ] can do . " The film implies two unfulfilled incestuous desires : Lester 's pursuit of Angela is a manifestation of his lust for his own daughter , while Col. Fitts ' repression is exhibited through the almost sexualized discipline with which he controls Ricky . Consequently , Ricky realizes that he can only hurt his father by falsely telling him he is homosexual , while Angela 's vulnerability and submission to Lester reminds him of his responsibilities and the limits of his fantasy . Col. Fitts represents Ball 's father , whose repressed homosexual desires led to his own unhappiness . Ball rewrote Col. Fitts to delay revealing him as homosexual , which Munt reads as a possible " deferment of Ball 's own patriarchal @-@ incest fantasies " . 
 
 = = = Temporality and music = = = 
 
 American Beauty follows a traditional narrative structure , only deviating with the displaced opening scene of Jane and Ricky from the middle of the story . Although the plot spans one year , the film is narrated by Lester at the moment of his death . Jacqueline Furby says that the plot " occupies [ ... ] no time [ or ] all time " , citing Lester 's claim that life did not flash before his eyes , but that it " stretches on forever like an ocean of time " . Furby argues that a " rhythm of repetition " forms the core of the film 's structure . For example , two scenes have the Burnhams sitting down to an evening meal , shot from the same angle . Each image is broadly similar , with minor differences in object placement and body language that reflect the changed dynamic brought on by Lester 's new @-@ found assertiveness . Another example is the pair of scenes in which Jane and Ricky film each other . Ricky films Jane from his bedroom window as she removes her bra , and the image is reversed later for a similarly " voyeuristic and exhibitionist " scene in which Jane films Ricky at a vulnerable moment . 
 Lester 's fantasies are emphasized by slow- and repetitive @-@ motion shots ; Mendes uses double @-@ and @-@ triple cutbacks in several sequences , and the score alters to make the audience aware that it is entering a fantasy . One example is the gymnasium scene — Lester 's first encounter with Angela . While the cheerleaders perform their half @-@ time routine to " On Broadway " , Lester becomes increasingly fixated on Angela . Time slows to represent his " voyeuristic hypnosis " and Lester begins to fantasize that Angela 's performance is for him alone . " On Broadway " — which provides a conventional underscore to the onscreen action — is replaced by discordant , percussive music that lacks melody or progression . This nondiegetic score is important to creating the narrative stasis in the sequence ; it conveys a moment for Lester that is stretched to an indeterminate length . The effect is one that Stan Link likens to " vertical time " , described by the composer and music theorist Jonathan Kramer as music that imparts " a single present stretched out into an enormous duration , a potentially infinite ' now ' that nonetheless feels like an instant " . The music is used like a visual cue , so that Lester and the score are staring at Angela . The sequence ends with the sudden reintroduction of " On Broadway " and teleological time . 
 According to Drew Miller of Stylus , the soundtrack " [ gives ] unconscious voice " to the characters ' psyches and complements the subtext . The most obvious use of pop music " accompanies and gives context to " Lester 's attempts to recapture his youth ; reminiscent of how the counterculture of the 1960s combated American repression through music and drugs , Lester begins to smoke cannabis and listen to rock music . Mendes ' song choices " progress through the history of American popular music " . Miller argues that although some may be over familiar , there is a parodic element at work , " making good on [ the film 's ] encouragement that viewers look closer " . Toward the end of the film , Thomas Newman 's score features more prominently , creating " a disturbing tempo " that matches the tension of the visuals . The exception is " Don 't Let It Bring You Down " , which plays during Angela 's seduction of Lester . At first appropriate , its tone clashes as the seduction stops . The lyrics , which speak of " castles burning " , can be seen as a metaphor for Lester 's view of Angela — " the rosy , fantasy @-@ driven exterior of the ' American Beauty ' " — as it burns away to reveal " the timid , small @-@ breasted girl who , like his wife , has willfully developed a false public self " . 
 
 = = Production = = 
 
 
 = = = Development = = = 
 
 In 1997 , Alan Ball resolved to move into the film industry after several frustrating years writing for the television sitcoms Grace Under Fire and Cybill . He joined the United Talent Agency , where his representative , Andrew Cannava , suggested he write a spec script to " reintroduce [ himself ] to the town as a screenwriter " . Ball pitched three ideas to Cannava : two conventional romantic comedies and American Beauty , which he had originally conceived as a play in the early 1990s . Despite the story 's lack of an easily marketable concept , Cannava selected American Beauty because he felt it was the one for which Ball had the most passion . While developing the script , Ball created another television sitcom , Oh , Grow Up . He channeled his anger and frustration at having to accede to network demands on that show — and during his tenures on Grace Under Fire and Cybill — into writing American Beauty . 
 Ball did not expect to sell the script , believing it would act as more of a calling card , but American Beauty drew interest from several production bodies . Cannava passed the script to several producers , including Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen , who took it to DreamWorks . With the help of executives Glenn Williamson and Bob Cooper , and Steven Spielberg in his capacity as studio partner , Ball was convinced to develop the project at DreamWorks ; he received assurances from the studio — known at the time for its more conventional fare — that it would not " iron the [ edges ] out " . In an unusual move , DreamWorks decided not to option the script ; instead , in April 1998 , the studio bought it outright for $ 250 @,@ 000 , outbidding Fox Searchlight Pictures , October Films , Metro @-@ Goldwyn @-@ Mayer , and Lakeshore Entertainment . DreamWorks planned to make the film for $ 6 – 8 million . 
 Jinks and Cohen involved Ball throughout the film 's development , including casting and director selection . The producers met with about 20 interested directors , several of whom were considered " A @-@ list " at the time . Ball was not keen on the more well @-@ known directors because he believed their involvement would increase the budget and lead DreamWorks to become " nervous about the content " . Nevertheless , the studio offered the film to Mike Nichols and Robert Zemeckis ; neither accepted . In the same year , Mendes ( then a theater director ) revived the musical Cabaret in New York with fellow director Rob Marshall . Beth Swofford of the Creative Artists Agency arranged meetings for Mendes with studio figures in Los Angeles to see if film direction was a possibility . Mendes came across American Beauty in a pile of eight scripts at Swofford 's house , and knew immediately that it was the one he wanted to make ; early in his career , he had been inspired by how the film Paris , Texas ( 1984 ) presented contemporary America as a mythic landscape and he saw the same theme in American Beauty , as well as parallels with his own childhood . Mendes later met with Spielberg ; impressed by Mendes ' productions of Oliver ! and Cabaret , Spielberg encouraged him to consider American Beauty . 
 Mendes found that he still had to convince DreamWorks ' production executives to let him direct . He had already discussed the film with Jinks and Cohen , and felt they supported him . Ball was also keen ; having seen Cabaret , he was impressed with Mendes ' " keen visual sense " and thought he did not make obvious choices . Ball felt that Mendes liked to look under the story 's surface , a talent he felt would be a good fit with the themes of American Beauty . Mendes ' background also reassured him , because of the prominent role the playwright usually has in a theater production . Over two meetings — the first with Cooper , Walter Parkes , and Laurie MacDonald , the second with Cooper alone — Mendes pitched himself to the studio . The studio soon approached Mendes with a deal to direct for the minimum salary allowed under Directors Guild of America rules — $ 150 @,@ 000 . Mendes accepted , and later recalled that after taxes and his agent 's commission , he only earned $ 38 @,@ 000 . In June 1998 , DreamWorks confirmed that it had contracted Mendes to direct the film . 
 
 = = = Writing = = = 
 
 Ball was partly inspired by two encounters he had in the early 1990s . In about 1991 – 92 , Ball saw a plastic bag blowing in the wind outside the World Trade Center . He watched the bag for 10 minutes , saying later that it provoked an " unexpected emotional response " . In 1992 , Ball became preoccupied with the media circus around the Amy Fisher trial . Discovering a comic book telling of the scandal , he was struck by how quickly it had become commercialized . He said he " felt like there was a real story underneath [ that was ] more fascinating and way more tragic " than the story presented to the public , and attempted to turn the idea into a play . Ball produced around 40 pages , but stopped when he realized it would work better as a film . He felt that because of the visual themes , and because each character 's story was .. " intensely personal " , it could not be done on a stage . All the main characters appeared in this version , but Carolyn did not feature strongly ; Jim and Jim instead had much larger roles . 
 Ball based Lester 's story on aspects of his own life . Lester 's re @-@ examination of his life parallels feelings Ball had in his mid @-@ 30s ; like Lester , Ball put aside his passions to work in jobs he hated for people he did not respect . Scenes in Ricky 's household reflect Ball 's own childhood experiences . Ball suspected his father was homosexual and used the idea to create Col. Fitts , a man who " gave up his chance to be himself " . Ball said the script 's mix of comedy and drama was not intentional , but that it came unconsciously from his own outlook on life . He said the juxtaposition produced a starker contrast , giving each trait more impact than if they appeared alone . 
 In the script that was sent to prospective actors and directors , Lester and Angela had sex ; by the time of shooting , Ball had rewritten the scene to the final version . Ball initially rebuffed counsel from others that he change the script , feeling they were being puritanical ; the final impetus to alter the scene came from DreamWorks ' then @-@ president Walter Parkes . He convinced Ball by indicating that in Greek mythology , the hero " has a moment of epiphany before [ ... ] tragedy occurs " . Ball later said his anger when writing the first draft had blinded him to the idea that Lester needed to refuse sex with Angela to complete his emotional journey — to achieve redemption . Jinks and Cohen asked Ball not to alter the scene right away , as they felt it would be inappropriate to make changes to the script before a director had been hired . Early drafts also included a flashback to Col. Fitts ' service in the Marines , a sequence that unequivocally established his homosexual leanings . In love with another Marine , Col. Fitts sees the man die and comes to believe that he is being punished for the " sin " of being gay . Ball removed the sequence because it did not fit the structure of the rest of the film — Col. Fitts was the only character to have a flashback — and because it removed the element of surprise from Col. Fitts ' later pass at Lester . Ball said he had to write it for his own benefit to know what happened to Col. Fitts , though all that remained in later drafts was subtext . 
 Ball remained involved throughout production ; he had signed a television show development deal , so had to get permission from his producers to take a year off to be close to American Beauty . Ball was on @-@ set for rewrites and to help interpret his script for all but two days of filming . His original bookend scenes — in which Ricky and Jane are prosecuted for Lester 's murder after being framed by Col. Fitts — were excised in post @-@ production ; the writer later felt the scenes were unnecessary , saying they were a reflection of his " anger and cynicism " at the time of writing ( see " Editing " ) . Ball and Mendes revised the script twice before it was sent to the actors , and twice more before the first read @-@ through . 
 The shooting script features a scene in Angela 's car in which Ricky and Jane talk about death and beauty ; the scene differed from earlier versions , which set it as a " big scene on a freeway " in which the three witness a car crash and see a dead body . The change was a practical decision , as the production was behind schedule and they needed to cut costs . The schedule called for two days to be spent filming the crash , but only half a day was available . Ball agreed , but only if the scene could retain a line of Ricky 's where he reflects on having once seen a dead homeless woman : " When you see something like that , it 's like God is looking right at you , just for a second . And if you 're careful , you can look right back . " Jane asks : " And what do you see ? " Ricky : " Beauty . " Ball said , " They wanted to cut that scene . They said it 's not important . I said , ' You 're out of your fucking mind . It 's one of the most important scenes in the movie ! ' [ ... ] If any one line is the heart and soul of this movie , that is the line . " Another scene was rewritten to accommodate the loss of the freeway sequence ; set in a schoolyard , it presents a " turning point " for Jane in that she chooses to walk home with Ricky instead of going with Angela . By the end of filming , the script had been through 10 drafts . 
 
 = = = Casting = = = 
 
 Mendes had Spacey and Bening in mind for the leads from the beginning , but DreamWorks executives were unenthusiastic . The studio suggested several alternatives , including Bruce Willis , Kevin Costner , or John Travolta to play Lester , and Helen Hunt or Holly Hunter to play Carolyn . Mendes did not want a big star " weighing the film down " ; he felt Spacey was the right choice based on his performances in the 1995 films The Usual Suspects and Seven , and 1992 's Glengarry Glen Ross . Spacey was surprised ; he said , " I usually play characters who are very quick , very manipulative and smart . [ ... ] I usually wade in dark , sort of treacherous waters . This is a man living one step at a time , playing by his instincts . This is actually much closer to me , to what I am , than those other parts . " Mendes offered Bening the role of Carolyn without the studio 's consent ; although executives were upset at Mendes , by September 1998 , DreamWorks had entered negotiations with Spacey and Bening . 
 Spacey loosely based Lester 's early " schlubby " deportment on Walter Matthau . During the film , Lester 's physique improves from flabby to toned ; Spacey worked out during filming to improve his body , but because Mendes shot the scenes out of chronological order , Spacey varied postures to portray the stages . Before filming , Mendes and Spacey analyzed Jack Lemmon 's performance in The Apartment ( 1960 ) , because Mendes wanted Spacey to emulate " the way [ Lemmon ] moved , the way he looked , the way he was in that office and the way he was an ordinary man and yet a special man " . Spacey 's voiceover is a throwback to Sunset Boulevard ( 1950 ) , which is also narrated in retrospect by a dead character . Mendes felt it evoked Lester 's — and the film 's — loneliness . Bening recalled women from her youth to inform her performance : " I used to babysit constantly . You 'd go to church and see how people present themselves on the outside , and then be inside their house and see the difference . " Bening and a hair stylist collaborated to create a " PTA president coif " hairstyle , and Mendes and production designer Naomi Shohan researched mail @-@ order catalogs to better establish Carolyn 's environment of a " spotless suburban manor " . To help Bening get into Carolyn 's mindset , Mendes gave her music that he believed Carolyn would like . He lent Bening the Bobby Darin version of the song " Don 't Rain on My Parade " , which she enjoyed and persuaded the director to include it for a scene in which Carolyn sings in her car . 
 For the roles of Jane , Ricky , and Angela , DreamWorks gave Mendes carte blanche . By November 1998 , Thora Birch , Wes Bentley , and Mena Suvari had been cast in the parts — in Birch 's case , despite the fact she was underage for her nude scene . As Birch was 16 at the time she made the film , and thus classified as a minor in the United States , her parents had to approve her brief topless scene in the movie . Child labor representatives and they were on the set for the shooting of the scene . Bentley overcame competition from top actors under the age of 25 to be cast . The 2009 documentary My Big Break followed Bentley , and several other young actors , before and after he landed the part . To prepare , Mendes provided Bentley with a video camera , telling the actor to film what Ricky would . Peter Gallagher and Alison Janney were cast ( as Buddy Kane and Barbara Fitts ) after filming began in December 1998 . Mendes gave Janney a book of paintings by Edvard Munch . He told her , " Your character is in there somewhere . " Mendes cut much of Barbara 's dialogue , including conversations between Colonel Fitts and her , as he felt that what needed to be said about the pair — their humanity and vulnerability — was conveyed successfully through their shared moments of silence . Chris Cooper plays Colonel Fitts , Scott Bakula plays Jim Olmeyer , and Sam Robards plays Jim Berkley . Jim and Jim were deliberately depicted as the most normal , happy — and boring — couple in the film . Ball 's inspiration for the characters came from a thought he had after seeing a " bland , boring , heterosexual couple " who wore matching clothes : " I can 't wait for the time when a gay couple can be just as boring . " Ball also included aspects of a gay couple he knew who had the same forename . 
 Mendes insisted on two weeks of cast rehearsals , although the sessions were not as formal as he was used to in the theater , and the actors could not be present at every one . Several improvisations and suggestions by the actors were incorporated into the script . An early scene showing the Burnhams leaving home for work was inserted later on to show the low point that Carolyn and Lester 's relationship had reached . Spacey and Bening worked to create a sense of the love that Lester and Carolyn once had for one another ; for example , the scene in which Lester almost seduces Carolyn after the pair argues over Lester 's buying a car was originally " strictly contentious " . 
 
 = = = Filming = = = 
 
 Principal photography lasted about 50 days from December 14 , 1998 , to February 1999 . American Beauty was filmed on soundstages at the Warner Bros. backlot in Burbank , California , and at Hancock Park and Brentwood in Los Angeles . The aerial shots at the beginning and end of the film were captured in Sacramento , California , and many of the school scenes were shot at South High School in Torrance , California ; several extras in the gym crowd were South High students . The film is set in an upper middle @-@ class neighborhood in an unidentified American town . Production designer Naomi Shohan likened the locale to Evanston , Illinois , but said , " it 's not about a place , it 's about an archetype . [ ... ] The milieu was pretty much Anywhere , USA — upwardly mobile suburbia . " The intent was for the setting to reflect the characters , who are also archetypes . Shohan said , " All of them are very strained , and their lives are constructs . " The Burnhams ' household was designed as the reverse of the Fitts ' — the former a pristine ideal , but graceless and lacking in " inner balance " , leading to Carolyn 's desire to at least give it the appearance of a " perfect all @-@ American household " ; the Fitts ' home is depicted in " exaggerated darkness [ and ] symmetry " . 
 The production selected two adjacent properties on the Warner backlot 's " Blondie Street " for the Burnham and Fitts ' homes . The crew rebuilt the houses to incorporate false rooms that established lines of sight — between Ricky and Jane 's bedroom windows , and between Ricky 's bedroom and Lester 's garage . The garage windows were designed specifically to obtain the crucial shot toward the end of the film in which Col. Fitts — watching from Ricky 's bedroom — mistakenly assumes that Lester is paying Ricky for sex . Mendes made sure to establish the line of sight early on in the film to make the audience feel a sense of familiarity with the shot . The house interiors were filmed on the backlot , on location , and on soundstages when overhead shots were needed . The inside of the Burnhams ' home was shot at a house close to Interstate 405 and Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles ; the inside of the Fitts ' home was shot in the city 's Hancock Park neighborhood . Ricky 's bedroom was designed to be cell @-@ like to suggest his " monkish " personality , while at the same time blending with the high @-@ tech equipment to reflect his voyeuristic side . The production deliberately minimized the use of red , as it was an important thematic signature elsewhere . The Burnhams ' home uses cool blues , while the Fitts ' is kept in a " depressed military palette " . 
 Mendes ' dominating visual style was deliberate and composed , with a minimalist design that provided " a sparse , almost surreal feeling — a bright , crisp , hard edged , near Magritte @-@ like take on American suburbia " ; Mendes constantly directed his set dressers to empty the frame . He made Lester 's fantasy scenes " more fluid and graceful " , and Mendes made minimal use of steadicams , feeling that stable shots generated more tension . For example , when Mendes used a slow push in to the Burnhams ' dinner table , he held the shot because his training as a theater director taught him the importance of putting distance between the characters . He wanted to keep the tension in the scene , so he only cut away when Jane left the table . Mendes did use a hand @-@ held camera for the scene in which Col. Fitts beats Ricky . Mendes said the camera provided the scene with a " kinetic [ ... ] off @-@ balance energy " . He also went hand @-@ held for the excerpts of Ricky 's camcorder footage . Mendes took a long time to get the quality of Ricky 's footage to the level he wanted . For the plastic @-@ bag footage , Mendes used wind machines to move the bag in the air . The scene took four takes ; two by the second unit did not satisfy Mendes , so he shot the scene himself . He felt his first take lacked grace , but for the last attempt , he changed the location to the front of a brick wall and added leaves on the ground . Mendes was satisfied by the way the wall gave definition to the outline of the bag . 
 Mendes avoided using close @-@ ups , as he believed the technique was overused ; he also cited Spielberg 's advice that he should imagine an audience silhouetted at the bottom of the camera monitor , to keep in mind that he was shooting for display on a 40 @-@ foot ( 10 m ) screen . Spielberg — who visited the set a few times — also advised Mendes not to worry about costs if he had a " great idea " toward the end of a long working day . Mendes said , " That happened three or four times , and they are all in the movie . " Despite Spielberg 's support , DreamWorks and Mendes fought constantly over the schedule and budget , although the studio interfered little with the film 's content . Spacey , Bening and Hall worked for significantly less than their usual rates . American Beauty cost DreamWorks $ 15 million to produce , slightly above their projected sum . Mendes was so dissatisfied with his first three days ' filming that he obtained permission from DreamWorks to reshoot the scenes . He said , " I started with a wrong scene , actually , a comedy scene . And the actors played it way too big : [ ... ] it was badly shot , my fault , badly composed , my fault , bad costumes , my fault [ ... ] ; and everybody was doing what I was asking . It was all my fault . " Aware that he was a novice , Mendes drew on the experience of Hall : " I made a very conscious decision early on , if I didn 't understand something technically , to say , without embarrassment , ' I don 't understand what you 're talking about , please explain it . ' " 
 Mendes encouraged some improvisation ; for example , when Lester masturbates in bed beside Carolyn , the director asked Spacey to improvise several euphemisms for the act in each take . Mendes said , " I wanted that not just because it was funny [ ... ] but because I didn 't want it to seem rehearsed . I wanted it to seem like he was blurting it out of his mouth without thinking . [ Spacey ] is so in control — I wanted him to break through . " Spacey obliged , eventually coming up with 35 phrases , but Bening could not always keep a straight face , which meant the scene had to be shot 10 times . The production used small amounts of computer @-@ generated imagery . Most of the rose petals in Lester 's fantasies were added in post @-@ production , although some were real and had the wires holding them digitally removed . When Lester fantasizes about Angela in a rose @-@ petal bath , the steam was real , save for in the overhead shot . To position the camera , a hole had to be cut in the ceiling , through which the steam escaped ; it was instead added digitally . 
 
 = = = Editing = = = 
 
 American Beauty was edited by Christopher Greenbury and Tariq Anwar ; Greenbury began in the position , but had to leave halfway through post @-@ production because of a scheduling conflict with Me , Myself and Irene ( 2000 ) ( in which Chris Cooper also starred ) . Mendes and an assistant edited the film for 10 days between the appointments . Mendes realized during editing that the film was different from the one he had envisioned . He believed he had been making a " much more whimsical , [ ... ] kaleidoscopic " film than what came together in the edit suite . Instead , Mendes was drawn to the emotion and darkness ; he began to use the score and shots he had intended to discard to craft the film along these lines . In total , he cut about 30 minutes from his original edit . The opening included a dream in which Lester imagines himself flying above the town . Mendes spent two days filming Spacey against bluescreen , but removed the sequence as he believed it to be too whimsical — " like a Coen brothers movie " — and therefore inappropriate for the tone he was trying to set . The opening in the final cut reused a scene from the middle of the film where Jane tells Ricky to kill her father . This scene was to be the revelation to the audience that the pair was not responsible for Lester 's death , as the way it was scored and acted made it clear that Jane 's request was not serious . However , in the portion he used in the opening — and when the full scene plays out later — Mendes used the score and a reaction shot of Ricky to leave a lingering ambiguity as to his guilt . The subsequent shot — an aerial view of the neighborhood — was originally intended as the plate shot for the bluescreen effects in the dream sequence . 
 Mendes spent more time recutting the first 10 minutes than the rest of the film taken together . He trialled several versions of the opening ; the first edit included bookend scenes in which Jane and Ricky are convicted of Lester 's murder , but Mendes excised these in the last week of editing because he felt they made the film lose its mystery , and because they did not fit with the theme of redemption that had emerged during production . Mendes believed the trial drew focus away from the characters and turned the film " into an episode of NYPD Blue " . Instead , he wanted the ending to be " a poetic mixture of dream and memory and narrative resolution " . When Ball first saw a completed edit , it was a version with truncated versions of these scenes . He felt that they were so short that they " didn 't really register " . Mendes and he argued , but Ball was more accepting after Mendes cut the sequences completely ; Ball felt that without the scenes , the film was more optimistic and had evolved into something that " for all its darkness had a really romantic heart " . 
 
 = = = Cinematography = = = 
 
 Conrad Hall was not the first choice for director of photography ; Mendes believed he was " too old and too experienced " to want the job , and he had been told that Hall was difficult to work with . Instead , Mendes asked Fred Elmes , who turned the job down because he did not like the script . Hall was recommended to Mendes by Tom Cruise , because of Hall 's work on Without Limits ( 1998 ) , which Cruise had executive produced . Mendes was directing Cruise 's then @-@ wife Nicole Kidman in the play The Blue Room during preproduction on American Beauty , and had already storyboarded the whole film . Hall was involved for one month during preproduction ; his ideas for lighting the film began with his first reading of the script , and further passes allowed him to refine his approach before meeting Mendes . Hall was initially concerned that audiences would not like the characters ; he only felt able to identify with them during cast rehearsals , which gave him fresh ideas on his approach to the visuals . 
 Hall 's approach was to create peaceful compositions that evoked classicism , to contrast with the turbulent on @-@ screen events and allow audiences to take in the action . Hall and Mendes first discussed the intended mood of a scene , but he was allowed to light the shot in any way he felt necessary . In most cases , Hall first lit the scene 's subject by " painting in " the blacks and whites , before adding fill light , which he reflected from beadboard or white card on the ceiling . This approach gave Hall more control over the shadows while keeping the fill light unobtrusive and the dark areas free of spill . Hall shot American Beauty in a 2 @.@ 39 : 1 aspect ratio in the Super 35 format , using Kodak Vision 500T 5279 35 mm film stock . He used Super 35 partly because its larger scope allowed him to capture elements such as the corners of the petal @-@ filled pool in its overhead shot , creating a frame around Angela within . He shot the whole film at the same T @-@ stop ( T1.9 ) ; given his preference for shooting that wide , Hall favored high @-@ speed stocks to allow for more subtle lighting effects . He used Panavision Platinum cameras with the company 's Primo series of prime and zoom lenses . Hall employed Kodak Vision 200T 5274 and EXR 5248 stock for scenes with daylight effects . He had difficulty adjusting to Kodak 's newly introduced Vision release print stock , which , combined with his contrast @-@ heavy lighting style , created a look with too much contrast . Hall contacted Kodak , who sent him a batch of 5279 that was 5 % lower in contrast . Hall used a 1 / 8 inch Tiffen Black ProMist filter for almost every scene , which he said in retrospect may not have been the best choice , as the optical steps required to blow Super 35 up for its anamorphic release print led to a slight amount of degradation ; therefore , the diffusion from the filter was not required . When he saw the film in a theater , Hall felt that the image was slightly unclear and that had he not used the filter , the diffusion from the Super 35 – anamorphic conversion would have generated an image closer to what he originally intended . 
 A shot where Lester and Ricky share a cannabis joint behind a building came from a misunderstanding between Hall and Mendes . Mendes asked Hall to prepare the shot in his absence ; Hall assumed the characters would look for privacy , so he placed them in a narrow passage between a truck and the building , intending to light from the top of the truck . When Mendes returned , he explained that the characters did not care if they were seen . He removed the truck and Hall had to rethink the lighting ; he lit it from the left , with a large light crossing the actors , and with a soft light behind the camera . Hall felt the consequent wide shot " worked perfectly for the tone of the scene " . Hall made sure to keep rain , or the suggestion of it , in every shot near the end of the film . In one shot during Lester 's encounter with Angela at the Burnhams ' home , Hall created rain effects on the foreground cross lights ; in another , he partly lit the pair through French windows to which he had added material to make the rain run slower , intensifying the light ( although the strength of the outside light was unrealistic for a night scene , Hall felt it justified because of the strong contrasts it produced ) . For the close @-@ ups when Lester and Angela move to the couch , Hall tried to keep rain in the frame , lighting through the window onto the ceiling behind Lester . He also used rain boxes to produce rain patterns where he wanted without lighting the entire room . 
 
 = = = Music = = = 
 
 Thomas Newman 's score was recorded in Santa Monica , California . He mainly used percussion instruments to create the mood and rhythm , the inspiration for which was provided by Mendes . Newman " favored pulse , rhythm , and color over melody " , making for a more minimalist score than he had previously created . He built each cue around " small , endlessly repeating phrases " — often , the only variety through a " thinning of the texture for eight bars " . The percussion instruments included tablas , bongos , cymbals , piano , xylophones , and marimbas ; also featured were guitars , flute , and world music instruments . Newman also used electronic music and on " quirkier " tracks employed more unorthodox methods , such as tapping metal mixing bowls with a finger and using a detuned mandolin . Newman believed the score helped move the film along without disturbing the " moral ambiguity " of the script : " It was a real delicate balancing act in terms of what music worked to preserve [ that ] . " 
 The soundtrack features songs by Newman , Bobby Darin , The Who , Free , Eels , The Guess Who , Bill Withers , Betty Carter , Peggy Lee , The Folk Implosion , Gomez , and Bob Dylan , as well as two cover versions — The Beatles ' " Because " performed by Elliott Smith , and Neil Young 's " Don 't Let It Bring You Down " performed by Annie Lennox . Produced by the film 's music supervisor Chris Douridas , an abridged soundtrack album was released on October 5 , 1999 , and went on to be nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album . An album featuring 19 tracks from Newman 's score was released on January 11 , 2000 , and won the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album . Filmmaker considered the score to be one of Newman 's best , saying it " [ enabled ] the film 's transcendentalist aspirations " . In 2006 , the magazine chose the score as one of 20 essential soundtracks it believed spoke to the " complex and innovative relationships between music and screen storytelling " . 
 
 = = Release = = 
 
 
 = = = Publicity = = = 
 
 DreamWorks contracted Amazon.com to create the official website , marking the first time that Amazon had created a special section devoted to a feature film . The website included an overview , a photo gallery , cast and crew filmographies , and exclusive interviews with Spacey and Bening . The film 's tagline — " look closer " — originally came from a cutting pasted on Lester 's workplace cubicle by the set dresser . DreamWorks ran parallel marketing campaigns and trailers — one aimed at adults , the other at teenagers . Both trailers ended with the poster image of a girl holding a rose . Reviewing the posters of several 1999 films , David Hochman of Entertainment Weekly rated American Beauty 's highly , saying it evoked the tagline ; he said , " You return to the poster again and again , thinking , this time you 're gonna find something . " DreamWorks did not want to test screen the film ; according to Mendes , the studio was pleased with it , but he insisted on one where he could question the audience afterward . The studio reluctantly agreed and showed the film to a young audience in San Jose , California . Mendes claimed the screening went very well . 
 
 = = = Theatrical run = = = 
 
 The film had its world premiere on September 8 , 1999 , at Grauman 's Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles . Three days later , the film appeared at the Toronto International Film Festival . With the filmmakers and cast in attendance , it screened at several American universities , including the University of California at Berkeley , New York University , the University of California at Los Angeles , the University of Texas at Austin , and Northwestern University . 
 On September 15 , 1999 , American Beauty opened to the public in limited release at three theaters in Los Angeles and three in New York . More theaters were added during the limited run , and on October 1 , the film officially entered wide release by screening in 706 theaters across North America . The film grossed $ 8 @,@ 188 @,@ 587 over the weekend , ranking third at the box office . Audiences polled by the market research firm CinemaScore gave American Beauty a " B + " grade on average . The theater count hit a high of 1 @,@ 528 at the end of the month , before a gradual decline . Following American Beauty 's wins at the 57th Golden Globe Awards , DreamWorks re @-@ expanded the theater presence from a low of 7 in mid @-@ February , to a high of 1 @,@ 990 in March . The film ended its North American theatrical run on June 4 , 2000 , having grossed $ 130 @.@ 1 million . 
 American Beauty had its European premiere at the London Film Festival on November 18 , 1999 ; in January 2000 , it began to screen in various territories outside North America . It debuted in Israel to " potent " returns , and limited releases in Germany , Italy , Austria , Switzerland , the Netherlands and Finland followed on January 21 . After January 28 opening weekends in Australia , the United Kingdom , Spain and Norway , American Beauty had earned $ 7 million in 12 countries for a total of $ 12 @.@ 1 million outside North America . On February 4 , American Beauty debuted in France and Belgium . Expanding to 303 theaters in the United Kingdom , the film ranked first at the box office with $ 1 @.@ 7 million . On the weekend of February 18 — following American Beauty 's eight nominations for the 72nd Academy Awards — the film grossed $ 11 @.@ 7 million from 21 territories , for a total of $ 65 @.@ 4 million outside North America . The film had " dazzling " debuts in Hungary , Denmark , the Czech Republic , Slovakia , and New Zealand . 
 As of February 18 , the most successful territories were the United Kingdom ( $ 15 @.@ 2 million ) , Italy ( $ 10 @.@ 8 million ) , Germany ( $ 10 @.@ 5 million ) , Australia ( $ 6 million ) , and France ( $ 5 @.@ 3 million ) . The Academy Award nominations meant strong performances continued across the board ; the following weekend , American Beauty grossed $ 10 @.@ 9 million in 27 countries , with strong debuts in Brazil , Mexico , and South Korea . Other high spots included robust returns in Argentina , Greece , and Turkey . On the weekend of March 3 , 2000 , American Beauty debuted strongly in Hong Kong , Taiwan , and Singapore , markets traditionally " not receptive to this kind of upscale fare " . The impressive South Korean performance continued , with a return of $ 1 @.@ 2 million after nine days . In total , American Beauty grossed $ 130 @.@ 1 million in North America and $ 226 @.@ 2 million internationally , for $ 356 @.@ 3 million worldwide . 
 
 = = = Home media = = = 
 
 American Beauty was released on VHS on May 9 , 2000 , and on DVD with the DTS format on October 24 , 2000 . Before the North American rental release on May 9 , Blockbuster Video wanted to purchase hundreds of thousands of extra copies for its " guaranteed title " range , whereby anyone who wanted to rent the film would be guaranteed a copy . Blockbuster and DreamWorks could not agree on a profit @-@ sharing deal , so Blockbuster ordered two @-@ thirds the number of copies it originally intended . DreamWorks made around one million copies available for rental ; Blockbuster 's share would usually have been about 400 @,@ 000 of these . Some Blockbuster stores only displayed 60 copies , and others did not display the film at all , forcing customers to ask for it . The strategy required staff to read a statement to customers explaining the situation ; Blockbuster claimed it was only " [ monitoring ] customer demand " due to the reduced availability . Blockbuster 's strategy leaked before May 9 , leading to a 30 % order increase from other retailers . In its first week of rental release , American Beauty made $ 6 @.@ 8 million . This return was lower than would have been expected had DreamWorks and Blockbuster reached an agreement . In the same year , The Sixth Sense made $ 22 million , while Fight Club made $ 8 @.@ 1 million , though the latter 's North American theatrical performance was just 29 % that of American Beauty . Blockbuster 's strategy also affected rental fees ; American Beauty averaged $ 3 @.@ 12 , compared with $ 3 @.@ 40 for films that Blockbuster fully promoted . Only 53 % of the film 's rentals were from large outlets in the first week , compared with the usual 65 % . 
 The DVD release included a behind @-@ the @-@ scenes featurette , film audio commentary from Mendes and Ball , and a storyboard presentation with discussion from Mendes and Hall . In the film commentary , Mendes refers to deleted scenes he intended to include in the release . However , these scenes are not on the DVD , as he changed his mind after recording the commentary ; Mendes felt that to show scenes he previously chose not to use would detract from the film 's integrity . 
 On September 21 , 2010 , Paramount Home Entertainment released American Beauty on Blu @-@ ray , as part of Paramount 's Sapphire Series . All the extras from the DVD release were present , with the theatrical trailers upgraded to HD . 
 
 = = Critical reception = = 
 
 American Beauty was widely considered the best film of 1999 by the American press . It received overwhelming praise , chiefly for Spacey , Mendes and Ball . Variety reported that " no other 1999 movie has benefited from such universal raves . " It was the best @-@ received title at the Toronto International Film Festival ( TIFF ) , where it won the People 's Choice award after a ballot of the festival 's audiences . TIFF 's director , Piers Handling , said , " American Beauty was the buzz of the festival , the film most talked @-@ about . " 
 Writing in Variety , Todd McCarthy said the cast ensemble " could not be better " ; he praised Spacey 's " handling of innuendo , subtle sarcasm , and blunt talk " and the way he imbued Lester with " genuine feeling " . Janet Maslin in The New York Times said Spacey was at his " wittiest and most agile " to date , and Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun @-@ Times singled Spacey out for successfully portraying a man who " does reckless and foolish things [ but who ] doesn 't deceive himself " . Kevin Jackson of Sight & Sound said Spacey impressed in ways distinct from his previous performances , the most satisfying aspect being his portrayal of " both sap and hero " . Writing in Film Quarterly , Gary Hentzi praised the actors , but said that characters such as Carolyn and Col. Fitts were stereotypes . Hentzi accused Mendes and Ball of identifying too readily with Jane and Ricky , saying the latter was their " fantasy figure " — a teenaged boy who 's an absurdly wealthy artist able to " finance [ his ] own projects " . Hentzi said Angela was the most believable teenager , in particular with her " painfully familiar " attempts to " live up to an unworthy image of herself " . Maslin agreed that some characters were unoriginal , but said their detailed characterizations made them memorable . Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times said the actors coped " faultlessly " with what were difficult roles ; he called Spacey 's performance " the energy that drives the film " , saying the actor commanded audience involvement despite Lester not always being sympathetic . " Against considerable odds , we do like [ these characters ] , " Turan concluded . 
 Maslin felt that Mendes directed with " terrific visual flair " , saying his minimalist style balanced " the mordant and bright " and that he evoked the " delicate , eroticized power @-@ playing vignettes " of his theater work . Jackson said Mendes ' theatrical roots rarely showed , and that the " most remarkable " aspect was that Spacey 's performance did not overshadow the film . He said that Mendes worked the script 's intricacies smoothly , to the ensemble 's strengths , and staged the tonal shifts skillfully . McCarthy believed American Beauty a " stunning card of introduction " for film débutantes Mendes and Ball . He said Mendes ' " sure hand " was " as precise and controlled " as his theater work . McCarthy cited Hall 's involvement as fortunate for Mendes , as the cinematographer was " unsurpassed " at conveying the themes of a work . Turan agreed that Mendes ' choice of collaborators was " shrewd " , naming Hall and Newman in particular . Turan suggested that American Beauty may have benefited from Mendes ' inexperience , as his " anything 's possible daring " made him attempt beats that more seasoned directors might have avoided . Turan felt that Mendes ' accomplishment was to " capture and enhance [ the ] duality " of Ball 's script — the simultaneously " caricatured [ ... ] and painfully real " characters . Hentzi , while critical of many of Mendes and Ball 's choices , admitted the film showed off their " considerable talents " . 
 Turan cited Ball 's lack of constraint when writing the film as the reason for its uniqueness , in particular the script 's subtle changes in tone . McCarthy said the script was " as fresh and distinctive " as any of its American film contemporaries , and praised how it analyzed the characters while not compromising narrative pace . He called Ball 's dialogue " tart " and said the characters — Carolyn excepted — were " deeply drawn " . One other flaw , McCarthy said , was the revelation of Col. Fitts ' homosexuality , which he said evoked " hoary Freudianism " . Jackson said the film transcended its clichéd setup to become a " wonderfully resourceful and sombre comedy " . He said that even when the film played for sitcom laughs , it did so with " unexpected nuance " . Hentzi criticized how the film made a mystery of Lester 's murder , believing it manipulative and simply a way of generating suspense . McCarthy cited the production and costume design as pluses , and said the soundtrack was good at creating " ironic counterpoint [ s ] " to the story . Hentzi concluded that American Beauty was " vital but uneven " ; he felt the film 's examination of " the ways which teenagers and adults imagine each other 's lives " was its best point , and that although Lester and Angela 's dynamic was familiar , its romantic irony stood beside " the most enduring literary treatments " of the theme , such as Lolita . Nevertheless , Hentzi believed that the film 's themes of materialism and conformity in American suburbia were " hackneyed " . McCarthy conceded that the setting was familiar , but said it merely provided the film with a " starting point " from which to tell its " subtle and acutely judged tale " . Maslin agreed ; she said that while it " takes aim at targets that are none too fresh " , and that the theme of nonconformity did not surprise , the film had its own " corrosive novelty " . Ebert awarded American Beauty four stars out of four , and Turan said it was layered , subversive , complex , and surprising , concluding it was " a hell of a picture " . 
 A few months after the film 's release , reports of a backlash appeared in the American press , and the years since have seen its critical regard wane . In 2005 , Premiere named American Beauty as one of 20 " most overrated movies of all time " ; Mendes accepted the inevitability of the critical reappraisal , saying , " I thought some of it was entirely justified — it was a little overpraised at the time . " 
 Currently , the film holds an 88 % score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 180 reviews , with an average rating of 8 @.@ 2 / 10 ; the critical consensus reads , " Flawlessly cast and brimming with dark , acid wit , American Beauty is a smart , provocative high point of late ' 90s mainstream Hollywood film . " Metacritic gives the film a score of 86 , based on 33 reviews , indicating " universal acclaim . " 
 
 = = Accolades = = 
 
 American Beauty was not considered an immediate favorite to dominate the American awards season . Several other contenders opened at the end of 1999 , and US critics spread their honors among them when compiling their end @-@ of @-@ year lists . The Chicago Film Critics Association and the Broadcast Film Critics Association named the film the best of 1999 , but while the New York Film Critics Circle , the National Society of Film Critics and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association recognized American Beauty , they gave their top awards to other films . By the end of the year , reports of a critical backlash suggested American Beauty was the underdog in the race for Best Picture ; however , at the Golden Globe Awards in January 2000 , American Beauty won Best Film , Best Director and Best Screenplay . 
 As the nominations for the 72nd Academy Awards approached , a frontrunner had not emerged . DreamWorks had launched a major campaign for American Beauty five weeks before ballots were due to be sent to the 5 @,@ 600 Academy Award voters . Its campaign combined traditional advertising and publicity with more focused strategies . Although direct mail campaigning was prohibited , DreamWorks reached voters by promoting the film in " casual , comfortable settings " in voters ' communities . The studio 's candidate for Best Picture the previous year , Saving Private Ryan , lost to Shakespeare in Love , so the studio took a new approach by hiring outsiders to provide input for the campaign . It hired three veteran consultants , who told the studio to " think small " . Nancy Willen encouraged DreamWorks to produce a special about the making of American Beauty , to set up displays of the film in the communities ' bookstores , and to arrange a question @-@ and @-@ answer session with Mendes for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . Dale Olson advised the studio to advertise in free publications that circulated in Beverly Hills — home to many voters — in addition to major newspapers . Olson arranged to screen American Beauty to about 1 @,@ 000 members of the Actors Fund of America , as many participating actors were also voters . Bruce Feldman took Ball to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival , where Ball attended a private dinner in honor of Anthony Hopkins , meeting several voters who were in attendance . 
 In February 2000 , American Beauty was nominated for eight Academy Awards ; its closest rivals , The Cider House Rules and The Insider , received seven nominations each . In March 2000 , the major industry labor organizations all awarded their top honors to American Beauty ; perceptions had shifted — the film was now the favorite to dominate the Academy Awards . American Beauty 's closest rival for Best Picture was still The Cider House Rules , from Miramax . Both studios mounted aggressive campaigns ; DreamWorks bought 38 % more advertising space in Variety than Miramax . On March 26 , 2000 , American Beauty won five Academy Awards : Best Picture , Best Director , Best Actor ( Spacey ) , Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography . At the 53rd British Academy Film Awards , American Beauty won six of the 14 awards for which it was nominated : Best Film , Best Actor , Best Actress ( Bening ) , Best Cinematography , Best Film Music and Best Editing . In 2000 , the Publicists Guild of America recognized DreamWorks for the best film publicity campaign . In September 2008 , Empire named American Beauty the 96th " Greatest Movie of All Time " after a poll of 10 @,@ 000 readers , 150 filmmakers , and 50 film critics , the fourth @-@ highest ranked movie from 1999 ( behind Fight Club , The Matrix , and Magnolia ) . In 2013 , the Writers Guild of America ranked the screenplay number 38 on its list of 101 greatest screenplays . 
 The film was nominated for AFI 's 100 Years ... 100 Movies ( 10th Anniversary Edition ) in 2007 . 
 
 