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Zephyrus 03-28-02 04:25 AM

American Beauty ending?
 
Just watched AB for the nth time on VCD, and I can't help but wonder about the ending...

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
despite watching the movie countless times, I don't really understand who kills Lester in the end? Was it Caroline? Or his neighbour? They actually had pretty similar (if not exactly the same) guns, and they showed the colonel with gloves and blood all over him... my best theory so far is that Caroline shot Lester, and at the same time, the colonel shot his own wife...


ADMIN EDIT: please use spoiler tags next time. :)

Help? :)

The Silver Bullet 03-28-02 05:02 AM

Um. No.

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
I'm pretty much 100% sure the Neighbour kills Lester. Remember, you see Caroline in the car (I believe, haven't seen it in a while) when the gun goes off, and according to the screenplay anyway (not sure if it's in the film) the Colonel's wife finds the blood soaked shirt in the wash, and simply washes it, not questioning it for a moment...

Zephyrus 03-28-02 05:20 AM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
Well, it's either that or the colonel shot him (which is more obvious)... in that case, I don't get why Caroline had a breakdown at the end, as if she had shot him... dunno, confused :)

Holden Pike 03-28-02 05:24 AM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
The neighbor, Colonel Frank Fitts (Chris Cooper), shoots Lester dead.

The Silver Bullet 03-28-02 05:52 AM

:yup:

bigvalbowski 03-28-02 07:46 AM

I've always thought it was one of the gay guys, probably Scott Bakula.

Look closer...:D

Yoda 03-28-02 10:31 AM

C'mon guys; spoiler tags...I had to add 'em in three times. Yes, I know the title indicates spoilers, but still. :) Anyway, I don't think there's any doubt that...

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
it's the neighbor guy. I'd never heard otherwise until now anyway.

BTW: welcome back, again, Zeph. :D

spudracer 03-28-02 11:01 AM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
As Caroline is walking to the front door you hear the gun shot go off, so she couldn't have killed him. As Frank Fitts walks back over to his house his shirt is covered in blood, how much clearer must it be!?

sadesdrk 03-28-02 12:09 PM

Originally posted by spudracer
WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
As Caroline is walking to the front door you hear the gun shot go off, so she couldn't have killed him. As Frank Fitts walks back over to his house his shirt is covered in blood, how much clearer must it be!?
Yup.:)

mightymose 03-29-02 12:02 AM

There was an alternate ending where the daughter and her boyfriend shot him... even had a trial and everything. I'm glad they dropped that though... The current ending works so much better.

The Silver Bullet 03-29-02 02:50 AM

No, even in the original draft version of the script where the the daughter and sick video camera dude (ha) get convicted it's still...

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
...the neighbour.


The video tape in which Thora asks him to kill Lester is used as evidence which convicts them. But it's still...

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
...the neighbour.

mecurdius 03-30-02 12:16 AM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
I thought it was really really obvious the first time i saw it. They gave no proof that she shot him. anyone would cry after their husband died.

sadesdrk 03-31-02 01:50 PM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
I especially liked how Annette Benning's charactor collapses onto Lester's clothes. My eyes welled up with tears almost instantly at that scene...then of course you start thinking about how he had finally realized what this whole journey into himself was all about...and how in love with his family he really was...the tragedy of his death was just SO overwhelming. I'd have to say this movie was the single movie that had moved me that much.

Sexy Celebrity 03-31-02 02:16 PM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
Look closer, people! The killer is JANINE, the drive-thru manager at Mr. Smiley's. She drove over to Lester's house and she fired him... or, fired at him.

L .B . Jeffries 03-31-02 04:07 PM

I don't get how people would even question the ending it's so straight forward

Originally posted by Holden Pike
WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
The neighbor, Colonel Frank Fitts (Chris Cooper), shoots Lester dead.
exactly

Zephyrus 04-01-02 10:02 AM

WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
Hmm... that's a bit strange, I was of the opinion that the gunshot was heard then Caroline walked out of the house... Of course, the culmination of the whole scene/movie was overwhelming, so that's why I probably missed it... I'll have to go and have a look again.

Although, it seems kinda dumb if your husband has been shot to just collapse upstairs, in his clothes? Not call the cops, see Janie or whatever?

Also, another question... did Frank Fitts shoot him because Lester turned him away, and therefore knew his secret (that he was a closet homosexual)? So basically, Fitts shoots Lester because he can't face up to the fact ("...I would rather puke my guts out...")?


Thanks for the welcome back, again, sorry about the spoilers tag (seriously didn't know they existed... like I said, it's been a while)! Just saw a bunch of white boxes, spent about 15 minutes wondering what they were doing there and where the answers to the post were! ;D :D

sadesdrk 04-01-02 11:59 AM

Originally posted by Sexy Celebrity
WARNING: "American Beauty" spoilers below
Look closer, people! The killer is JANINE, the drive-thru manager at Mr. Smiley's. She drove over to Lester's house and she fired him... or, fired at him.
I think he was joking.:D

The Silver Bullet 04-01-02 08:47 PM

WARNING: "This Thread" spoilers below
We've used quite a lot of spoiler boxes...

Even this post that doesn't have much purpose to be in one is in one.

mecurdius 04-01-02 08:52 PM

WARNING: "threads" spoilers below
WHy dont we just have a huge SPOILERS in front of the name of this thread

The Silver Bullet 04-01-02 08:57 PM

WARNING: "This Thread" spoilers below
This is getting silly.

Are we decided? The closeted next door neighbour of a homosexual colonel is the killer? Yes. Good? Done and done.

Close the thread.


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