American Beauty ending explained: A death that will leave you happy and frightened at the same time

American Beauty (1999) is a comedy film for most of its runtime except for its final moments. Because then, it becomes a murder mystery for a while, and you'd be left thinking, who is the real killer of Kevin Spacey's character, Lester Burnham, the protagonist and the most interesting person in the entire movie?

It is really a moment that is frightening and happy at the very same time, so choose what emotion you want to hold on to when Lester's body lies dead on the table with a bullet through his head. And all because of a misunderstanding, and him unintentionally bringing the true person out of someone.

For those who haven't watched the film, the title might give off an impression that it is about a girl. Well, it briefly is, but it's mostly about the beauty of American life. Life is really beautiful, only if one remembers to open one's eyes.

Who kills Lester in American Beauty?

Kevin Spacey plays Lester in American Beauty. (Image via Jinks/Cohen Company)

At the end of the movie, Lester is shot in the head by the father of Ricky (Wes Bentley), Col. Frank Fitts, played by Chris Cooper. He did that because he thought his son was gay, and Lester was just having fun with him. But it was because Frank's identity was revealed due to a mistake he made in Lester's garage.

Throughout American Beauty, we learn that Frank is really homophobic. He simply despises their way of living. The first signs of this are shown when he is greeted by his new neighbors, Jim Olmeyer (Scott Bakula) and Jim Berkley (Sam Robards), who are actually partners. When the colonel hears "partners," he asks them if they are business partners, which they are obviously not.

Frank's son is a drug dealer in the movie, and a successful one. So he supplies some of those to Lester every now and then after they become friends at a party. Frank has this habit of recording everything, but this one recording that his father sees leaves a bad impression. It is when he has recorded Lester doing some exercise.

But things get heated up when Ricky visits Lester and gets a message while having dinner at his home. Suspicious, Frank watches him from the window. And while Ricky is simply making a marijuana joint and Lester is sitting, from where Frank is looking at them, it seems like Lester is giving Frank a blowjob.

This prompts the colonel to visit Lester in his garage, where he kisses him. Now, at this point, Lester makes it clear that Frank has the wrong idea about him. Frank leaves in embarrassment and anger.

At the same time, American Beauty sees Jane Burnham (Thora Birch), Frank's wife, coming to confront Frank, who had earlier caught her cheating. Though she just wanted to talk, and it didn't seem like she would ever pull a trigger.

However, it is this scene in American Beauty where Frank is just sitting, and a hand comes from behind holding a gun, the camera shifts, and we simply hear the gun sound and blood splattering on the white wall, which creates the air of mystery.

At first, you'll think that she did it. But then Frank enters his house with blood-soaked clothes. And that clears things out.

The smiling face of Lester is just frightening and happy at the same time

The film is mostly comic until the final moments. (Image via Jinks/Cohen Company)

When Lester is lying dead in American Beauty, he is smiling. It is clear in this scene that he has lived his life fully. He is at peace. Interestingly, he is about to have s*x with his daughter's friend, but when she reveals it's her first time, he refuses, and they just share a moment of bonding.

This scene, though, can be frightening to some, especially if they haven't seen American Beauty and are simply watching this scene. Ricky looks at him after he and Lester's daughter find him after hearing the gunshot (they were planning to run away), and leans closer to the dead body. And he smiles. No wonder the actor played Mephisto's son in Ghost Rider (2007).

If you haven't seen the film, try looking at this scene, and you'll see how it feels. It's like a psycho killer staring at his victim with joy.