American Beauty (1999)
Directed by Sam Mendes · Cinematography by Conrad Hall
R122 min62 frames
Drama
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Stills, screencaps & shots from American Beauty
16 of 62 frames — the full set is searchable by lighting, lens, shot size, color and mood with a free account.
American Beauty — official trailer
What is American Beauty about?
Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation with his daughter's attractive friend.
American Beauty is a 1999 American black comedy and psychological drama film directed by Sam Mendes in his feature-film directorial debut, and written by Alan Ball. Kevin Spacey stars as Lester Burnham, an advertising executive who experiences a midlife crisis after becoming infatuated with his daughter’s teenage best friend, played by Mena Suvari. Annette Bening stars as Lester's materialistic wife, Carolyn, and Thora Birch plays their insecure daughter, Jane. Wes Bentley, Chris Cooper, Peter Gallagher, and Allison Janney co-star. Academics have described how beauty and personal satisfaction are perceived by the American middle class; further analysis has focused on its treatment of romantic and paternal love; sexuality, materialism, and self-liberation.
Second paragraph from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where can you watch American Beauty?
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Who stars in American Beauty?
Who made American Beauty?
What does the cinematography of American Beauty look like?
Across 60 sampled frames, American Beauty builds its coverage from medium shots (55% of the sample), with wide compositions (25%) carrying much of the rest. Cinematographer Conrad Hall keeps 60% of it in soft, low-key light. 58% of the frames play at night or in the failing light of dusk. Anamorphic glass shapes the frame. Focus stays shallow in 67% of the frames, isolating subjects from their surroundings. The production design places the film in the 1990s.
What is the color palette of American Beauty?
The dominant colors across the sampled frames of American Beauty (1999) are #2f2f30, #101010, #4f4f52, #cececd, #747475, #f5f4f3 — measured from the per-frame color data FrameThrower extracts for every film.
#2f2f30#101010#4f4f52#cececd#747475#f5f4f3
See the full American Beauty colour palette — every hex with its share, plus warmth, saturation and luminance.
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Techniques in this film
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