american beauty Essay examples

Submitted By hosna123
Words: 694
Pages: 3
Open Document
Psychology
April 30, 2013
The American Beauty The movie, “The American Beauty,” portrays the lives of several upper middle class families who are all in pursuit of the things in life that make them happy, but they are depressed and very much struggling to achieve happiness in their lives. Each of the main characters has their own version of the American dream, meaning their fantasy of how they want their lives to be verses how their lives are in reality. However, as the main characters fantasize about their versions of reality, they actually begin to lose sight of the things that are really important such as family, health, education, dignity and self-identity. During the film, some of the younger characters such as Jane and Ricky are going through very difficult and awkward phases in their lives. Therefore, both of these young characters are trying to discover themselves. However, the inability to relate with and get along with their family members and parents make it difficult for these teens to find serenity and a piece of mind at home. The film shows that the typical teenager faces many challenges in life, and that these challenges are different for everyone. Through these challenges, it is very common for such teenagers to become depressed. It also shows that money and other materialistic items are not always the most important things in life and may not always bring happiness. Ricky, one of the main characters, seemed to be significantly affected by his inability to relate with others and get along with his dad. Ricky is 16 years old, shy, and is new to his school. Ricky does not know anyone, so he has a difficult time meetings friends and fitting in. As a result, Ricky begins to lash out act strange. Ricky becomes anti-social and depressed and begins to use and sell marijuana. Throughout the film, it becomes clear that Ricky is severely depressed. He acts out by isolating himself and breaking the law. Ricky also distrusts and dislikes authority figures and law enforcement.
As Ricky continues to fight with his parents and continue to be dissatisfied with his current life, the teenager becomes further depressed and isolated. The conflicts at home seem to be limiting his personal growth and delaying his discovery of his self-identity (American Beauty, 1999). A diagnosis of depression, according to the DSM-IV-TR criteria for major depressive episodes and major depressive disorders, involves several factors that the individual must display in a two-week period. These behaviors include being depressed most of the day, losing interest in once pleasurable activities, and being isolated from friends and family. In addition,
Show More

Related Documents: american beauty Essay examples

american beauty Essay

American Beauty is the story of Lester Burnham’s life. Lester Burnham is a depressed middle-aged man stuck in a mid-life crisis who thinks of himself as a” “self-described loser, boring, faceless, and easy to forget”. Characters in this movie are his wife Carolyn, a determined real-estate broker who pays very little attention to her husband and their low self-esteem daughter Jane who is embarrassed by her parents. Lester’s life changes the night he goes to a high school basketball game to watch…

Words 688 - Pages 3

Symbolism In American Beauty

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” as they say, and in the film “American Beauty” the director this idea pretty clear. Each character is striving for something they believe will give them happiness, due to them finding it beautiful, and some realize as the journey goes on that perhaps the stuff they want won’t give them true happiness, but rather that everyone can find beauty, even in the most ugly things in life. The symbols and ideas around this, such as the color red and it’s significance…

Words 659 - Pages 3

American Beauty Essay

Notes Alan Ball, the screenwriter of 'American Beauty,' makes riveting use of the color red throughout the film. The first time we see Annette Bening, she's cutting bright red roses. What does the color red mean in this movie? The way Ball uses it, it refers to a concept: the life force, which, by nature, tries to defy the suppressiveness of suburban life. That's why, the first time we meet Annette Bening, she's cutting red roses. She's cutting the life force. Shortly thereafter, we see her emotional…

Words 968 - Pages 4

American Beauty Essay

Hussein Saleh Professor Rodgers English 132-70 30 March.2015 Madness Driven by Homosexuality, Sam Mendes' "American Beauty" American Beauty is a movie that captures one man’s thoughts as he enters middle age. The main character is Lester Burnham; an average man who holds a decent paying job as a magazine executive. The movie starts off introducing Lester’s life, in short, he is in a loveless relationship with his wife Carolyn and his daughter Jane has self-esteem issues. As Lester soon discovers…

Words 834 - Pages 4

Symbols In American Beauty

American Beauty is a film made in 1999 that involves drama and complicated romance. There is a family that the movie revolves around, involving three main characters. The dad and also the narrator, Lester Burnham, the mom, Carolyn Burnham, and their daughter, Jane Burnham. Each character has flaws and failures, and it ends in an unexpected, yet expected, tragedy. Although this movie is filled with conflict, the goal for each character to achieve is happiness. American Beauty has many hidden stories…

Words 668 - Pages 3

Ethical Issues In American Beauty

American Beauty The 1999 movie, American Beauty, is a 5-time academy award winner with a gross domestic earning of about $130 million (Karlyn 89). The movie mentioned above gives a clear picture of an ideal American family as far as the societal norms and morals are concerned. For instance, American Beauty explores the typical behaviors that pose negative impacts on the American morals including the yearning for power, beauty, youths, and respect. In particular, the movie highlights how Lester, his…

Words 648 - Pages 3

Research Paper On American Beauty

The American dream, the thought that every American has the ability to achieve happiness and success (Dictionary), is an unreachable dream as demonstrated in American Beauty by Sam Mendes. American Beauty is an honest portrayal of the American dream, it demonstrates the evolution of the American dream from a fulfilling life aspiration to an obsession with the ‘perfect’ image created by society and in the process of trying to achieve this ideal image the cost becomes much greater than the outcome…

Words 733 - Pages 3

American Beauty Film Analysis

James Mercantante The two movies American Beauty and A Separation are very different in some ways and much the same in other ways. The main characters and plot in these two films are alike, but the filming style and cultures are very diverse. American Beauty is a film about the typical American family but is very satirical, almost like a joke. A Separation is a movie about a couple in Iran struggling to stay together. Directors purposely use those four factors to make the viewer feel for the…

Words 459 - Pages 2

The Color Red In American Beauty

The 1999 film American Beauty, written by Alan Ball and directed by Sam Mendes, focuses on the harsh reality of American families that struggle to find happiness in the search for a reachable dream. It is the cultural tendency to be all work and no play that we may lose ourselves and our families. In 2000, American Beauty was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won five. In September 2008, Empire named American Beauty the 96th "Greatest Movie of All Time" after a poll of 10,000 readers, 150 filmmakers…

Words 1810 - Pages 8

American Beauty - Theme Essay

The theme of beauty, and specifically American beauty, emerges through all of the main characters in the movie. The American Beauty could be the sultry teen Angela, the epitome of blonde American sex appeal. Carolyn's obsessive tending her rose garden is a pervasive and double-sided symbol of beauty, as her flowers are a thin cover for the ugliness in her life. Perhaps the greatest messenger of beauty in the film is Ricky Fitts, the eccentric pot-smoking teenager who through his camera lens perceives…

Words 1605 - Pages 7