American Beauty DVD

American Beauty
Noted theater director Sam Mendes, who was responsible for the acclaimed 1998 revival of Cabaret and Nicole Kidman's turn in The Blue Room, made his motion picture debut with this film about the dark side of an American family, and about the nature and price of beauty in a culture obsessed with outward appearances. Kevin Spacey plays Lester Burnham, a man in his mid-40s going through an intense midlife crisis; he's grown cynical and is convinced that he has no reason to go on. Lester's relationship with his wife Carolyn (Annette Bening) is not a warm one; while on the surface Carolyn strives to present the image that she's in full control of her life, inside she feels empty and desperate. Their teenage daughter Jane (Thora Birch) is constantly depressed, lacking in self-esteem, and convinced that she's unattractive. Her problems aren't helped by her best friend Angela (Mena Suvari), an aspiring model who is quite beautiful and believes that that alone makes her a worthwhile person. Jane isn't the only one who has noticed that Angela is attractive: Lester has fallen into uncontrollable lust for her, and she becomes part of his drastic plan to change his body and change his life. Meanwhile, next door, Colonel Fitts (Chris Cooper) has spent a lifetime in the Marine Corps and can understand and tolerate no other way of life, which makes life difficult for his son Ricky (Wes Bentley), an aspiring filmmaker and part-time drug dealer who is obsessed with beauty, wherever and whatever it may be. American Beauty was also the screen debut for screenwriter Alan Ball. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cast Kevin Spacey as Lester Burnham Annette Bening as Caroline Burnham Thora Birch as Jane Burnham Wes Bentley as Ricky Fitts Mena Suvari as Angela Hayes Chris Cooper as Colonel Fitts Peter Gallagher as Buddy Kane Allison Janney as Barbara Fitts Scott Bakula as Jim Olmeyer Sam Robards as Jim Berkley

Crew David S. Lazan - Art Director Debra Zane - Casting Stan Wlodkowski - Co-producer Alan Ball - Co-producer Julie Weiss - Costume Designer Tony Adler - First Assistant Director E. Carey Dietrich - First Assistant Director Sam Mendes - Director Christopher Greenbury - Editor Tariq Anwar - Editor Thomas Newman - Composer (Music Score) Chris Douridas - Musical Direction/Supervision Naomi Shohan - Production Designer Conrad L. Hall - Cinematographer Dan Jinks - Producer Alan Ball - Producer Stan Wlodkowski - Producer Bruce Cohen - Producer Jan K. Bergstrom - Set Designer Richard van Dyke - Sound/Sound Designer Scott Martin Gershin - Sound Editor Alan Ball - Screenwriter Hilton Ruiz - Musical Performer Bob Beemer - Re-Recording Mixer Robert "Bobby Z" Zajonc - Pilot

American Beauty
A darkly comic critique of suburban stupor with a measured touch of redemption, American Beauty became the most laureled film of 1999. As written by Alan Ball and directed by theatre wunderkind/film neophyte Sam Mendes, the tale of Lester Burnham's final year of life keenly delves into the repressed desires, rampant materialism, skewed values, and gnawing insecurities lurking behind the crisply manicured lawns and meticulously decorated houses lining Any Street, USA. Anchored by Kevin Spacey's gleefully sardonic yet sensitively attuned performance as doomed "seeker" Lester, the superb ensemble cast of adults and teens (including Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Chris Cooper and newcomers Wes Bentley and Mena Suvari) navigate the myriad dysfunctions with wit and flashes of pathos. Complementing the voiced desire for some kind of escape, Lester's and video voyeur Ricky Fitts' search for beauty in the mundane, whether in rose petal-strewn dreams or grainy images of a dancing bag, is given luminous life by veteran cinematographer Conrad L. Hall. Despite the complaint from a few critics that it did not truly "look closer" at the terrain previously covered by The Ice Storm (1997), Happiness (1998), and Blue Velvet (1986), American Beauty garnered several critics' circle prizes and a fistful of Golden Globes on the way to winning the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Cinematography. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
 

Alan Ball: Academy, Best Original Screenplay (winner) Alan Ball: British Academy Awards, Best Original Screenplay (nominated) Alan Ball: Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Original Screenplay (winner) Alan Ball: Golden Globe, Best Screenplay (winner) Alan Ball: Toronto Film Critics Association, Best Screenplay [Runner-up] (winner) Alan Ball: Writers Guild of America, Best Original Screenplay (winner) Annette Bening: Academy, Best Actress (nominated) Annette Bening: British Academy Awards, Best Actress (winner) Annette Bening: Golden Globe, Best Actress - Drama (nominated) Annette Bening: Screen Actors Guild, Best Female Actor in a Leading Role (winner) Chris Cooper: Screen Actors Guild, Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role (nominated) Christopher Greenbury: British Academy Awards, Best Editing (winner) Conrad L. Hall: Academy, Best Cinematography (winner) Conrad L. Hall: American Society of Cinematographers, Best Cinematography (winner) Conrad L. Hall: American Society of Cinematographers, Outstanding Achievement Award (winner) Conrad L. Hall: British Academy Awards, Best Cinematography (winner) Conrad L. Hall: National Society of Film Critics, Best Cinematography (winner) Kevin Spacey: Academy, Best Actor (winner) Kevin Spacey: British Academy Awards, Best Actor (winner) Kevin Spacey: Chicago Film Critics Association, Best Actor (winner) Kevin Spacey: Golden Globe, Best Actor - Drama (nominated) Kevin Spacey: Screen Actors Guild, Best Male Actor in a Leading Role (winner) Kevin Spacey: Toronto Film Critics Association, Best Actor (winner) Mena Suvari: British Academy Awards, Best Supporting Actress (nominated) Naomi Shohan: British Academy Awards, Best Production Design (nominated) Sam Mendes: Academy, Best Director (winner) Sam Mendes: British Academy Awards, Best Director (nominated) Sam Mendes: Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Director (winner) Sam Mendes: Chicago Film Critics Association, Best Director (winner) Sam Mendes: Directors Guild of America, Best Director- Feature Film (winner) Sam Mendes: Golden Globe, Best Director (winner) Sam Mendes: L.A. Film Critics Association, Best Director (winner) Sam Mendes: Toronto Film Critics Association, Best Director [Runner-up] (winner) Tariq Anwar: Academy, Best Editing (nominated) Tariq Anwar: British Academy Awards, Best Editing (winner) Thomas Newman: Academy, Best Original Score (nominated) Thomas Newman: British Academy Awards, Best Film Music (winner) Thomas Newman: Golden Globe, Best Original Score (nominated) Thora Birch: British Academy Awards, Best Supporting Actress (nominated) Wes Bentley: British Academy Awards, Best Supporting Actor (nominated) Wes Bentley: Chicago Film Critics Association, Most Promising Actor (winner) Wes Bentley: National Board of Review, Best Breakthrough Performance - Male (winner)

Academy, Best Picture (winner) British Academy Awards, Best Film (winner) Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Picture (winner) Chicago Film Critics Association, Best Picture (winner) French Academy of Cinema, Best Foreign Film (nominated) Golden Globe, Best Film (Drama) (winner) National Board of Review, Best Picture (winner) Screen Actors Guild, Best Performance by a Cast (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English Sound Processing: DTS: Digital Theater Systems (akin to 5.1) DDS: Dolby Digital Surround Additional Features: "American Beauty: Look Closer...": Behind-the-scenes featurette Film commentary with director Sam Mendes and writer Alan Ball Storyboard presentation with commentary by Sam Mendes and director of photography Conrad L. Hall Digital screenplay with corresponding film footage and storyboards Cast and crew biographies Two theatrical trailers Production notes DVD Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1: Cinemascope MPAA Rating: R DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 122 min   DVD Chapters: Scene Index 0. Scene Index 1. The High Point of My Day (Main Title) [4:23] 2. Job Description [5:54] 3. I Will Sell This House Today [3:32] 4. The Gym [5:12] 5. Spectacular [4:46] 6. Welcome to the Neighborhood [2:36] 7. I'm Just Curious [3:32] 8. My Personal Hero [5:49] 9. I Love Root Beer [4:02] 10. America's Weirdest Home Videos [2:37] 11. Choking the Bishop [3:40] 12. I Want to Look Good Naked [3:53] 13. Mom's Mad [1:20] 14. An Ordinary Guy with Nothing to Lose [4:05] 15. The Royal Treatment [4:18] 16. The Most Beautiful Thing [5:12] 17. Pass the Asparagus [4:14] 18. Don't Give Up on Me Dad [4:10] 19. Mr. Smarty Man [:01] 20. Massive Psycholoical Damage [4:20] 21. The Day You Die [5:33] 22. Smile, You're at Mr. Smiley's [3:30] 23. You Like Muscles? [5:46] 24. Our Marriage is Just for Show [6:02] 25. You Couldn't Be Ordinary If You Tried [3:44] 26. I'm Great [6:18] 27. My Stupid Little Life [3:04] 28. End Credits [4:07]