Lester Burnham

E322781

Lester Burnham is the disillusioned middle-aged suburban father and narrator in the film "American Beauty," whose midlife crisis drives the movie’s darkly comic and tragic exploration of desire, conformity, and freedom.

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All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Lester Burnham canonical 5

Statements (41)

Predicate Object
instanceOf fictional character
film character
appearsIn American Beauty
associatedWithMotive red roses
befriends Ricky Fitts
centralTheme conformity
desire
freedom
midlife crisis
suburban disillusionment
characterArc from passive conformity to rebellious self-assertion
createdBy Alan Ball
deathSceneLocation his kitchen
directedBy Sam Mendes
experiences job resignation
marital breakdown
midlife awakening
sexual obsession with Angela Hayes
filmGenreContext black comedy
drama
filmProductionCompany DreamWorks Pictures
firstAppearanceYear 1999
gender male
hasChild Jane Burnham
killedBy Colonel Frank Fitts
maritalStatus married
narratesFrom after his death
narrativeRole protagonist
unreliable narrator
narratorOf American Beauty
nationality American
occupation advertising executive
portrayedBy Kevin Spacey
pursues authenticity
personal freedom
receives posthumous narrative insight in the film’s ending monologue
residence suburban United States
screenTimeFocus primary
spouse Carolyn Burnham
symbolizes crisis of the American middle class
rejection of consumerist values

Referenced by (5)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

American Beauty character Lester Burnham
Ricky Fitts neighborOf Lester Burnham
Angela Hayes associatedWithCharacter Lester Burnham
Carolyn Burnham spouse Lester Burnham
Carolyn Burnham associatedWith Lester Burnham