Color is used to bring out the character's feelings as well. Lester is first seen in cool desaturated colors to suggest a lack of energy and a drained life. As the film continues and Lester goes through a rebirth, we see him develop a brighter outlook on life and the color of his garments go through a rebirth as well. "He turned to yellow, then green and eventually adopts a red and white uniform." Mendes uses this color transformation to show that Lester has remembered the things he wanted in the past. Caroline Burnham goes through a transformation as well. She outwardly appears isolated and controlling, but underneath she yearns for passion and power. Mendes ingeniously shows this in the beginning of the film when Caroline undresses to clean a house. And underneath her drab yellow suit is a crimson red camisole. While she cleans the dark and shadowy house, she is backlit with brightly colored walls. The color red symbolized the true personalities and feelings of two characters in American Beauty.
All the characters in American Beauty have an unmistakable sincerity about them. They all manage to appear as painfully real individuals. Throughout the film their emotions fluctuate, and so does our understanding of what is going on with them. The first character that is encountered in the film is Lester Burnham. He is a 42 year old male, who is unhappily married to Carolyn Burnham. He is a weak-willed advertising writer who secretly loathes his job. Sadly, both at home and at work, Lester feels he is completely unappreciated. His wife and daughter consider him "this gigantic loser," and not really disagreeing, he tells people who've forgotten they've met him, "I wouldn't remember me either." But things take a turn, when Lester is dragged along to see his daughter perform at a cheerleading event. "There on the floor, engrossed in a sub-Fosse pompom routine, he sees his angel.
