Oscillating Truths: A Metamodern Analysis of American Beauty

Unveiling the Layers of Beauty and Decay in the American Dream

Aug 26, 2024

Introduction: An Invitation to Reexamine American Beauty

Last week, I received a request from one of my readers—a thoughtful suggestion that I take a deeper look at American Beauty, a film that has sparked both admiration and controversy since its release in 1999. While I had always appreciated the movie for its striking visuals and complex characters, I hadn’t considered it through the lens of metamodernism until now. This request was a welcome challenge, urging me to revisit a film that, on the surface, seems to be a straightforward critique of suburban life but, upon closer inspection, reveals itself to be a rich tapestry of irony, sincerity, and profound existential questioning.

As I rewatched American Beauty, I found myself drawn into its world in a way I hadn’t anticipated. What struck me most was how the film oscillates between biting satire and heartfelt introspection, capturing the tensions and contradictions that define not just its characters, but our broader cultural moment. This is what makes American Beauty such a compelling piece of cinema—it doesn’t just depict the unraveling of the American Dream; it also invites us to question the very ideals upon which that dream is built.

This reflection is informed by the metamodern framework as articulated by Hanzi Freinacht in works like The Listening Society and Nordic Ideology. Freinacht’s exploration of metamodernism provides a crucial lens for understanding how American Beauty navigates the delicate balance between irony and sincerity, despair and hope, in a world where the search for meaning is both a personal and cultural journey (Freinacht, 2017; 2019).

This request has inspired me to continue a journey I recently began—one where I explore films and television shows through a metamodern lens, uncovering the ways they resonate with the complexities and contradictions of our present era. American Beauty is a fitting continuation of this series, following my exploration of The 'Burbs. Like its predecessor, this film encapsulates the very essence of what it means to navigate the blurred boundaries between reality and perception, despair and hope, in our search for meaning.

In the following analysis, we will dive into the layers of American Beauty, exploring how its characters, narrative, and aesthetics embody the metamodern sensibility. This is not just a film about suburban life—it’s a reflection on the human condition in a world where sincerity and irony coexist in a delicate balance, where beauty can be found in the most unexpected places, and where the search for meaning often leads us down paths that are as enlightening as they are unsettling.

The Suburban Facade: Beauty and Decay

In American Beauty, the American suburb is not merely a setting but a central character in itself. The immaculate lawns, uniform houses, and meticulously maintained appearances are more than just backdrops—they are symbols of a society desperately clinging to a fragile ideal of perfection. This is the essence of the metamodern tension: the simultaneous pursuit of and disillusionment with the "American Dream."

The film taps into the fear that this suburban stability is an illusion, that beneath the surface of any perfectly normal family lies something dark and disturbing. This realization is metamodern at its core: the coexistence of a sincere desire for the ideal and a profound suspicion of its reality. The characters’ struggles, particularly Lester Burnham’s, become metaphors for the metamodern subject’s experience of reality as something both alluring and deeply flawed.

Characters as Metamodern Archetypes: Oscillating Between Truth and Illusion

American Beauty presents its characters as complex, multi-dimensional archetypes, each representing different facets of the American suburban experience:

Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey): The Disillusioned Everyman
Lester embodies the metamodern struggle for authenticity in a world that feels increasingly hollow. His journey from passive participant in his own life to someone who actively seeks change is both tragic and liberating.

Sincerity: Lester’s realization that his life has become a series of routines disconnected from any real sense of purpose is deeply sincere. His decision to reclaim his sense of self, whether through quitting his job or pursuing his desires, reflects a genuine yearning for meaning in a world that seems devoid of it.
Irony: The irony of Lester’s character lies in the fact that his pursuit of freedom leads him down a path of self-destruction. His attempts to break free from societal expectations only entangle him further in the absurdities of his life, highlighting the futility of his quest in a world where the pursuit of happiness is often a dead-end.

Carolyn Burnham (Annette Bening): The Perfectionist Unraveling
Carolyn represents the societal pressures to maintain appearances at all costs. Her obsession with success and image reflects a deeper insecurity, one that is painfully exposed as her life begins to fall apart.

Sincerity: Carolyn’s dedication to her career and her home is sincere. She genuinely believes that success and material wealth are the keys to happiness, and she invests everything into this belief.
Irony: The irony of Carolyn’s character is that her relentless pursuit of perfection is what ultimately leads to her breakdown. Her life, meticulously crafted to be flawless, is revealed to be anything but. Her unraveling serves as a critique of the societal pressures that value appearance over substance.

Jane Burnham (Thora Birch): The Rebellious Searcher
Jane represents the teenage struggle for identity in a world that pressures conformity. Her character embodies the metamodern tension between a deep desire for authenticity and the fear of being misunderstood or rejected.

Sincerity: Jane’s discontent with her family and her surroundings is genuine. She sincerely seeks to find her own path, separate from the superficiality and materialism that she sees in her parents. Her relationship with Ricky Fitts is a key part of this journey, as she finds in him a kindred spirit who sees the world differently.
Irony: The irony of Jane’s character lies in her own struggle to break free from the very judgments she makes about others. Her rebellion against her parents’ values is also a search for validation, making her vulnerable to the same insecurities she criticizes in them. Jane’s journey highlights the complex dynamics of self-discovery in a world where finding one’s true self often leads to deeper confusion rather than clarity.

Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley): The Outsider with Insight
Ricky, with his video camera and philosophical musings, acts as a kind of meta-commentator on the world around him. He sees beauty in the mundane and has a deeper understanding of the world’s imperfections, embodying the metamodern sensibility of finding depth in simplicity.

Sincerity: Ricky’s fascination with the beauty in everyday life, whether it’s a plastic bag dancing in the wind or the quiet moments of human connection, is a sincere reflection of his character’s depth. He sees the world in a way that others do not, and his perspective offers a counterpoint to the superficiality of those around him.
Irony: The irony of Ricky’s character lies in his detachment from the world he observes so closely. While he sees beauty where others see banality, he remains an outsider, disconnected from the very experiences he finds so profound. His relationship with Jane Burnham serves as a bridge between his detached observations and a more engaged, emotional existence.

Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari): The Illusion of Perfection
Angela represents the societal obsession with youth and beauty, and the pressure to live up to an ideal that is as unattainable as it is destructive.

Sincerity: Angela’s outward confidence and allure are a mask for her deep insecurities. She sincerely believes that her value lies in her physical appearance, reflecting a tragic understanding of self-worth shaped by societal expectations.
Irony: The irony of Angela’s character is that her perceived perfection is an illusion. Her moment of vulnerability with Lester reveals the fragility behind her facade, underscoring the emptiness of the ideal she has been striving to embody.

Colonel Frank Fitts (Chris Cooper): The Repressed Authority
Colonel Frank Fitts is a significant character representing the destructive effects of repression and denial. His strict, authoritarian demeanor masks deep insecurities and unacknowledged desires, making him a tragic figure within the narrative.

Sincerity: Colonel Fitts’ strictness and discipline reflect a sincere belief in order and control as paramount values. He genuinely believes that maintaining a rigid structure in his household is essential to protecting his family and upholding traditional values.
Irony: The irony of Colonel Fitts’ character lies in the fact that the very values he upholds so rigidly contribute to his own downfall. His repression of his true self and his aggressive denial of any perceived weakness lead to an explosive and tragic climax. His violent reaction to discovering his own suppressed desires highlights the destructive potential of internal contradictions that are left unresolved. The character serves as a critique of the dangers of living in denial, and how repression can manifest in harmful ways.

Buddy Kane (Peter Gallagher): The Hollow Success
Buddy Kane, the “Real Estate King,” represents the superficiality of success in the world of American Beauty. His character is a foil to Lester, embodying the hollowness of a life built entirely on appearances and material gain.

Sincerity: Buddy’s pursuit of success and status is sincere within the context of his values. He genuinely believes that wealth, power, and a well-maintained image are the markers of a successful life. His affair with Carolyn Burnham reflects a sincere but misguided attempt to reclaim passion and excitement in his otherwise empty existence.
Irony: The irony of Buddy’s character lies in the emptiness that underpins his success. Despite his wealth and charisma, Buddy’s life is devoid of genuine fulfillment. His affair with Carolyn is a hollow attempt to escape the monotony of his life, revealing the shallowness of his pursuit of happiness. Buddy serves as a critique of the idea that material success equates to personal satisfaction, highlighting the emptiness that can lie beneath a polished exterior.

Aesthetic Choices: Metamodernism in Visual and Narrative Form

Visually, American Beauty employs a style that mirrors its thematic concerns. The film’s meticulous framing, its use of color to symbolize emotional states, and the juxtaposition of beauty with decay create a visual representation of the metamodern condition. This is a world that feels both real and surreal, familiar yet unsettling—a perfect reflection of the film’s exploration of the dark undercurrents of suburban life.

The iconic imagery of the red rose petals, symbolizing both beauty and danger, encapsulates the film’s central tension. These aesthetic choices are not just stylistic but deeply thematic, reinforcing the idea that beneath the surface of perfection lies a complex web of emotions, desires, and fears.

The film’s score, with its haunting yet whimsical melodies, further enhances this effect, oscillating between reinforcing the characters’ emotional turmoil and undercutting it with irony. Thomas Newman’s score plays a crucial role in setting the tone, with its evocative compositions that perfectly capture the film’s oscillation between sincerity and irony. The result is a cinematic experience that keeps the viewer in a state of constant reflection, never fully committing to one emotional register but instead inhabiting the in-between.

The Metamodern Condition: Embracing Contradiction in the Search for Meaning

At its core, American Beauty is a film about the search for meaning in a world that promises fulfillment but often delivers emptiness. The characters’ struggles with identity, desire, and disillusionment reflect a deeper metamodern sensibility—a recognition that life’s contradictions are not just to be endured but embraced.

The suburban environment, with its perfect homes and hidden dysfunctions, becomes a metaphor for the broader human condition. This duality is central to the metamodern experience, where the pursuit of meaning often leads to the realization that meaning itself is elusive, multifaceted, and sometimes contradictory.

The film’s conclusion—where beauty is both affirmed and questioned—perfectly encapsulates the metamodern ethos. The final moments, where Lester reflects on his life and the beauty he failed to see, suggest that in the metamodern world, truth is not a simple binary but a complex interplay of reality and perception, sincerity and irony. The uneasy balance between these elements is what gives the film its lasting impact, making it a profound reflection of our times.

Conclusion: American Beauty as a Metamodern Masterpiece

American Beauty is not just a critique of suburban life; it is a commentary on the human condition in a metamodern world. It presents us with characters who are deeply flawed yet deeply relatable, and a narrative that is both absurd and profound. Through its exploration of desire, identity, and the search for meaning, the film offers a reflection of our own oscillations between belief and doubt, fear and comfort, irony and sincerity.

In the end, American Beauty invites us to see the beauty in the chaos of our lives, even as it asks us to confront the darkness within. It is a film that, like the metamodern condition itself, embraces contradiction and complexity, leaving us with the unsettling realization that perhaps our greatest fears and desires are not so different from those of Lester Burnham and his family. And perhaps, just perhaps, that’s okay.

As we continue to navigate our own metamodern world, where the lines between irony and sincerity, reality and fiction, are increasingly blurred, American Beauty stands as a reminder that it’s possible to find meaning in the absurd, to embrace both the lightness and the darkness of life. This is the second in a series of explorations into metamodernism in film and television, where I’ll dive into works that, like American Beauty, reflect the complexities of our current moment.

I hope this piece resonates with you as much as the film resonates with me. I invite you, my readers, to join this journey with me. What other films or shows have you found that capture this metamodern spirit? I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions as we explore this fascinating and ever-evolving landscape together. Let’s continue this conversation—because in the end, that’s what metamodernism is all about: the ongoing dialogue, the shared reflections, and the connections we make along the way.

References

Freinacht, Hanzi. The Listening Society: A Metamodern Guide to Politics, Book One. Metamoderna, 2017.
Freinacht, Hanzi. Nordic Ideology: A Metamodern Guide to Politics, Book Two. Metamoderna, 2019.

Note to Readers

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