Lester Burnham

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In the film American Beauty, Lester Burnham, a 42 year old suburban father and husband has made a decision to turn his life around. “This is my neighborhood. This is my street. This is my life (1:40)” is how he begins his story of transformation, in a dull, indifferent demeanor. Lester’s sardonic tone indicated his belief, which, despite its lack of being bluntly mentioned, was existentialism. After years of being manipulated by his peers, family, and authorities, Lester finally decides to take control of his own free will, pursuing whatever it is he decides. His family, his wife Carolyn and daughter Jane, always emitted a judgmental atmosphere towards him - “Both my wife and daughter think I’m this gigantic loser and they’re right (3:50).” …show more content…
Ricky and Lester’s relationship has two contrasting positions. From Lester’s perspective, Ricky has become his buddy, his “own personal hero (34:20)”. Whereas, in Ricky’s perspective, Lester is just another client, with a beautifully interesting daughter. After the bonding session behind the restaurant (33:00), Lester begins to see himself in Ricky, yet in reality, Lester’s imagination is simply overpowering his mind once more. While purchasing marijuana from Ricky in his bedroom, he observes his room, white themed with a wall of shelves filled with cassette tapes of his recordings. “When I was 18, I flipped burgers all summer just to buy an eight track; all I did was party and get laid, ….I had my whole life ahead of me (49:30)” Lester tells Ricky with a nostalgic grin devouring his face. And so to abide by his own desires, Lester finds a job flipping burgers at Smiley’s (57:20). Later, Carolyn catches Lester in the garage exercising and smoking marijuana. In response to her seeing him, he exclaims “Uh oh, mom’s mad (50:40)!” His choice of words depicts his transformed mentality. To continue with this state of mind, Lester purchases a toy car and “a 1970 Pontiac Firebird, the car [he’s] always wanted and now [he] has it (1:15:00).” Carolyn finds him sitting on the armchair, blinds slightly revealing natural light, and a mess on the coffee …show more content…
Prior to reducing the distance between them, Lester found his intimate moments with Angela all happening in slow motion (the unzipping at 17:00, the touch at 36:50, and the undressing at 1:46:20). It’s as if he had just hit puberty, lusting for the touch, sight, and scent of any young girl that passed him. After Angela states that “it’s [her] first time (1:47:15)”, Lester snaps back into reality, his imagination escaping him like the rose petals once escaped Angela’s blouse. He realizes his role in life, a suburban father and husband, and he accepts it. Lester’s version of existentialism targets the ideal that a person is best when fighting for their individualism, explaining his rebellion against Carolyn and his manager, that worldly desire is futile, explaining his withdrawal from taking Angela’s virginity, and that human nature is chosen through life choices, explaining his pursuit for transformation. Ultimately, Lester is shot in the head by Ricky’s father who assumed Lester was paying Ricky for sexual pleasure. Before Lester is killed, he is seen sitting at the white kitchen table supporting a vase filled with red roses at the center, surrounded by white walls, holding and admiring a black and white photo of his family and him, happy and adoring. “Man, oh, man, oh, man (1:51:10)” Lester mutters in content and disbelief. From red
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