 Like other American films of 1999 — such as Fight Club , Bringing Out the Dead , and Magnolia , American Beauty instructs its audience to " [ lead ] more meaningful lives " . The film argues the case against conformity , but does not deny that people need and want it ; even the gay characters just want to fit in . Jim and Jim , the <unk> ' other neighbors , are a satire of " gay <unk> <unk> " , who " [ invest ] in the <unk> <unk> " that the film criticizes in heterosexual couples . The feminist academic and author <unk> R. <unk> argues that American Beauty uses its " art house " <unk> to direct its message of <unk> primarily to the middle classes , and that this approach is a " cliché of <unk> preoccupation ; [ ... ] the underlying premise being that the luxury of finding an individual ' self ' through denial and <unk> is always open to those wealthy enough to choose , and <unk> enough to present themselves <unk> as a rebel . " 
