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Interpretations

American Beauty argues the case against conventionality at the same time as expressing the human need for it. It reveals the repression of those who outwardly yearn to fit in, whether they are heterosexual or homosexual.^[40] In this, the film expresses "the death of the nuclear family". Its "art house" appeal allows it to speak to middle class audiences, to whom it instructs a rejection of material attachments. Though it ultimately leads to his death, Lester is first redeemed through the awakening knowledge of his own repression and middle class angst. The film presents the idea that only the wealthy—and those clever enough to style their actions as a sympathetic rebellion—have the freedom to be able to experience the luxury of successfully eschewing material trappings to find an inner self; it overtly attempts to convince its audience into a similar rebellion against their own repression, as its critique of conformity can only be properly understood through pre-existing bourgeois criticism of middle class communities.^[41] Mendes said the film is about imprisonment and escape from imprisonment—a "rites of passage". He intended the opening scenes to portray a boring day, to show the drabness of Lester's existence through his gray, nondescript workplace and characterless clothing, and to set up stock characters from whom the outer layers would be peeled over the course of the film. Lester is a trapped man; the early shot of him in a shower cubicle depicts a "jail cell", the first in a series of shots that have the character trapped behind bars or within frames: in his work cubicle and car, behind a white picket fence and a window frame, and his reflection behind columns of numbers on a computer monitor. His voice over is a throwback to Sunset Boulevard (1950), which is also narrated by a dead character in retrospect. Mendes felt it evoked Lester's loneliness. The early scene of the Burnhams' leaving for work and school—which was not in the original draft of the script—was inserted at a late stage in production to show the low point that Carolyn and Lester's relationship had reached.^[23]

The first of several personal turning points for Lester is the sexual awakening he has as a result of meeting Angela; he states in voiceover that he feels as if he has awakened from a coma and begins to discard the responsibilities and trappings of the comfortable life that he despises.^[23][41] Later, at a party with Carolyn, Lester is at his "lowest ebb" when he meets Ricky. In another turning point, the two share a joint outside the party; according to Mendes, Lester's "soul is released" and he begins to overtly rebel against Carolyn. The next significant turning point for Lester is the scene in which Carolyn discovers him masturbating; his spontaneous outburst of anger towards her is the first time he can say out loud what he thinks about her. A further awakening occurs in Ricky's bedroom, where Lester has gone to buy cannabis; Lester is almost childlike, while Ricky behaves as the adult. In common with the other instances of nudity in the film—such as when Jane allows Ricky to see her topless through her bedroom window—in the scene towards the end of the film in which Lester and Angela almost have sex, Angela's nudity is an expression of her extreme vulnerability. It is also a final turning point for Lester, as after she confesses her virginity he ceases to think of her as a sex object, but as a daughter figure. He hugs her close and "wraps her up". Mendes called it "by far the most satisfying end to [Lester's] journey there could possibly have been". In Lester's final scenes, Mendes wanted to convey that Lester was at the end of a "mythical quest". For example, after Lester gets a beer from the fridge, the camera pushes in toward him, then stops facing a hallway down which Lester walks "to meet his fate". He achieves closure, and is happy that Jane is happy. As he stares smiling at a photo of his family, the camera pans slowly away from Lester to the kitchen wall, onto which blood spatters as a gunshot rings out; Mendes used the slow pan to reflect 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 in places it is least expected.^[23]

"American Beauty affirms taboos against incest,^[42] while drawing comparison with those against homosexuality, a recurrent theme in Ball's work.^[43] Rather than making a distinction between these taboo desires, American Beauty focuses on the violent repercussions of their denial.^[44] The film implies twin incestuous desires:^[40] Lester's pursuit of Angela is a manifestation of his longing for his own daughter,^[45] and Colonel Fitts' repressed homosexuality—a result of his masculinity and previous military homosociality—manifests in the severe, sexualized discipline with which he controls Ricky; "longing looks" accompany Fitts' attack upon his son.^[40] Fitts is a representation of Ball's father,^[46] whose unfulfilled homo-erotic desires led to his own unhappiness.^[47] Ball rewrote the character several times, each time delaying the revelation of his homosexuality, which feminist author and academic Sally R. Munt says is a possible expression of Ball's deferment of his own incest fantasies.^[44] Fitts' unconventional behavior is presented humorously, but this is eventually replaced by a depiction of the "erotic, tender, yet murderous violence" within him. As a critique of "narcissistic conformity", the film presents a desire even its gay characters to fit in.^[40] Jim and Jim, the Burnhams' neighbors, are a satire of "gay bourgeois coupledom". In effect, they are "the same";^[48] depicted humorously, Jim and Jim are clones that replicate suburban respectability,^[40] and are presented as no less guilty of happily investing in the conformity that the film criticizes in heterosexual relationships.^[49] Despite their desire for conventionality, they are clearly "glad to be gay", a contradiction that may seem strange to heterosexual audiences.^[40]

Sound

As well as presenting actions to the audience, films will present the observation of these actions. For example, a "point of view" shot shows objects or actions from a character's perspective.^[50] This promotes observation from an almost invisible action to one that can be characterized through sound and music in the same way as a straightforward depiction of screen activity.^[51] American Beauty goes further than scoring a perception of space to score observations of time. One example is the gymnasium scene, in which Lester first encounters Angela. As the cheerleaders perform the half-time routine, "sexual desire, sight, and music" converge to depict Lester's growing fixation on Angela. External narrative time slows to represent his "voyeuristic hypnosis"; objects and people fade until Lester imagines Angela's performance is for him alone.^[52] The music becomes similarly discordant, replacing the traditional narrative underscore of the pep band's rendition of "On Broadway" with a percussive composition that lacks melody or progression. The non-diegetic score does not just reflect the narrative stasis, it is a fundamental component of its creation and continuance.^[53] The effect is music that conveys a single moment stretched to an indeterminate length, during which the onlooker determines the pace and scope of the observation and so sees nothing less than they require.^[54] The aural sensations are more reminiscent of visual ones; in this way, both Lester and the score stare at Angela. The sequence ends with the sudden reintroduction of "On Broadway" and teleological time.^[55]

Authorial intent

The DVD edition provides new avenues of interpretation for viewers of the film;^[56] the surface enhancements of DVD editions—promotional and marketing material, improved technical facets—offer but one type of reconstruction. Others come through extensive commentaries from writers and directors.^[57] Though they might not necessarily be the most reliable analyzer of their own work,^[58] self-conscious filmmakers can offer a reorientation that in effect offers viewers a "new edition" of the film;^[57] the commentary can also highlight the limitations of holding authorial intent paramount over other interpretations.^[58] American Beauty's commentary provides a clear disconnect between intent and chance.^[59] Throughout, Mendes and Hall attempt to offer insight into their intent with particular scenes, but often Hall will contradict Mendes' praise of his work; what Mendes sees as thematic choices, Hall explains as accidental based on practical lighting considerations or simple pleasing imagery. One example is a scene in which Hall shot Spacey in a way that Mendes believed intentionally diminished Lester; Mendes says, "Conrad's added something so beautiful to the shot ... the way the light hits Lester ... it pulls him down away from the wall ... [Hall has] also done something very crucial, [cutting] his feet off at the bottom of the frame." Mendes believed the shot "effectively diminishes Lester both by cropping him and pushing him down the frame, making him even less authoritative in the face of Brad, the consultant, who is consistently shot from below." Hall corrects Mendes by saying that the shot was constructed without such an intent, and that it came about merely because he wanted the ceiling lamp in the frame; the independent intents of the filmmakers do not converge, yet their applications collide.^[59]