American Beauty - Motifs #1 by Claire Woodhall

Carolyn snips the head off a rose at the start of the film and this links to her cutting down the sycamore tree next door. Shows she is interested in fake, material items, not nature

cwoodhall — 2018-03-05 00:38:12 UTC

Is filmed against a red brick wall- could be a reference to Pink Floyd the wall after L notices R has PFloyd in his music collection. The Wall is how we all build walls around ourselves, hiding our emotions, hiding our inner worlds

cwoodhall — 2018-03-05 00:39:51 UTC

2018-03-05 01:22:24 UTC

When cutting to different pictures of Jane and the Burnham family a vase of roses are placed next to the Burnham family portrait to symbolise how the exterior appearance of the family is portrayed to look happy and they love one another. When in actuality there is a lot of resentment and hate within the family

2018-03-05 01:23:12 UTC

Gun

2018-03-05 01:23:55 UTC

Carolyn buys gun

2018-03-05 01:24:00 UTC

Represents his reinvigorated life and personality. After years of being trapped in a grey, boring life, he sells the tired Camry for a 1970 Pontiac Firebird. This represents the complete 180 that his life has done in such a short time and how it can be as simple as trading it in for a new one. All that's required is a little bit of effort

2018-03-05 01:24:30 UTC

Jqne

2018-03-05 01:24:33 UTC

No soul,no romance between Lester and carolyn which is the relationship between the rose and the characters in America beauty.

2018-03-05 01:24:53 UTC

Lester killed by gun🔫

2018-03-05 01:25:24 UTC

Roses are usually seen as a loving gesture on a Valentine’s Day. But in this movie, it represents much more. Pain and passion. Love And lust. You have roses at a funeral. You have roses at a wedding. Pain And passion can be seen in many scenes such as Lester’s fantasies (passionate, lust) and Lester’s end before he dies (pain, loss but love etc).

Forida

2018-03-05 01:25:47 UTC

2018-03-05 01:26:23 UTC

Ricky

2018-03-05 01:26:36 UTC

Carolyn buying and shooting the gun shows her mental  INSTABILITY by shooting off the gun to relieve stress and calm herself down. "I refuse to be a victim"-Carolyn

2018-03-05 01:26:38 UTC

Anger

Guns represent war/revenge.

2018-03-05 01:26:38 UTC

Colonel Frank Fitts= War
Carolyn= revenge “I refuse to be a victim!”

The gun is used to represent how violence is present in order to hide individuals true emotions. As it is easier to become aggressive and closed off other than vulnerable. For example when the character Frank Fitts kills Lester after being denied by him it shows how he would rather use violence than show his true emotions of love and sadness.

2018-03-05 01:26:48 UTC

2018-03-05 01:27:06 UTC

Ricky shows us that there is beauty in everything

2018-03-05 01:27:36 UTC

Represent Lester’s indepedance

2018-03-05 01:27:44 UTC

Beauty can come through the most unusual avenues

The roses represent outer , simple beautfy, as they have a beautiful colour but no scent. Very reminiscent of Angela the plain, basic thot

2018-03-05 01:28:20 UTC

2018-03-05 01:28:25 UTC

*independence.

The little things are the most beautiful things

2018-03-05 01:28:27 UTC

Freak is subjective and the definition can varry from preson to person. This relates to American Beauty as the way people are seen such as Angela is very opinionated and full of preconsived ideas

2018-03-05 01:28:45 UTC

2018-03-05 01:28:52 UTC

The plastic bag is significant as it is something so plain and so overlooked. Much like how we see ourselves. So plain and overlooked. Yet through the eyes of Ricky, he finds beauty within itself and it’s movements. The plastic bag scene definitely shows the theme of beauty and how it only exists in the eyes of the beholder.

Beauty has “forces” that live and breathe in everything created.

2018-03-05 01:28:58 UTC

2018-03-05 01:29:24 UTC

Rickey admires the plastic bag as he references it as beautiful.

Freedom

2018-03-05 01:29:55 UTC

The character Angela is shown to use the word "freak" against Ricky when attempting to dissuade Jane from running off with Ricky. However the term "freak" can also mean how you are not ordinary and are able to fight back against the terms of society. Something which Angela hasn't achieved and is tormented by.

2018-03-05 01:30:15 UTC

2018-03-05 01:31:18 UTC

No one wants to be a freak yet no one to be ordinary

2018-03-05 01:31:19 UTC

Guns are bad m'kay

represents lesters desire for angela

2018-03-05 01:31:26 UTC

Guns represent the violence that many people wish to install in Lester - he is not liked by anyone in the film except Angela

2018-03-05 01:31:52 UTC

2018-03-05 01:32:04 UTC

represents where he changes and finally stands up for himself

Wants*

2018-03-05 01:32:15 UTC

2018-03-05 01:32:26 UTC

Angela embodies the typical standards of American beauty, white, blonde, blue eyes, young, skinny.....

2018-03-05 01:32:40 UTC

“Sometimes there is so much beauty in the world...I can’t take it...” -Ricky

Toxic like the characters relationships

2018-03-05 01:32:50 UTC

Laurence’s arms 🙈

2018-03-05 01:32:55 UTC

"I rule!"

2018-03-05 01:33:03 UTC

2018-03-05 01:33:11 UTC

The car is red. This represents his newfound personality as now he is more cocky andd outgoing, more bold which is why red is the chosen colour.

The dealership ran out of black ones

2018-03-05 01:33:57 UTC

He is having a mid life crisis

2018-03-05 01:34:33 UTC

2018-03-05 01:35:05 UTC

"Will someone pass me the f**king asparagus"-The Big L

People's definition of beauty is badly damaged

2018-03-05 01:35:26 UTC

2018-03-05 01:37:08 UTC

“Can you just not fuck my dad”-Janie

Lester

2018-03-05 01:38:15 UTC

- Brother had 1970’s Thunderbird. Inspired Lester to get the “Thunderbird”

Lester's red car represent his true personality and what he has felt inside when Carolyn and Jane had control over him. It represents his new found confidence to finally stick up for himself and to begin what he truly believes is his own way of how he wants to live his life, instead of being constantly controlled over by his family.

2018-03-05 08:49:13 UTC

Every person in this world has a different meaning of "beauty". Not everyone thinks the same way.

2018-03-05 08:58:19 UTC

The word "freak" is just a word society uses to describe people who are identified as unusual or un-normal to others.

2018-03-05 09:01:21 UTC

Guns are the causes of violence amongst our society

2018-03-05 20:50:01 UTC

Something significant about the plastic bag is that Ricky is the only character in the film that notices the natural beauty of something so simple and uncared for.

2018-03-05 20:50:40 UTC

Roses represents the natural beauty

2018-03-05 20:59:02 UTC