This video is for actors who wanna practice acting from some of the great movies of all times. In this scene, Lester goes to Ricky's room to buy some drugs which he smoked with him a night before and he really enjoyed it.
The line about working all summer to buy an 8-track and saying it was the great is almost a tear jerker, especially when you reach middle age. When you're young, you long for the money; when you're old, you'd kill to have the time back. It's so melancholy. My favorite line of the film.
Do you think when you are 80 you'll look back on where you are now with nostalgia and say your life was great? Enjoy what you have now. That said, I def get what you are saying though!
Hammering Hank shake is all the leaf trimmings and weed dust collected be the people who grow it, pretty decent if your vaping it but pretty shitty to smoke cause it's mostly stems and leaf
Back in the late 90s weed was really expensive and shitty for some reason. It was a strange time to be a teenage pot head. Thats from personal experience.
I am 32 and have no kids yet but in some point we are all Lester. Back in time wanted to have Ricky's attitude. And I Still do ! Regards from Argentina
@@MrSprinkles6921 I'm not so sure. In 1999, Kevin was a hollywood star making plenty of money and with plenty of job opportunities lying ahead. You could even argue that at 40, he had his whole life ahead of him until it came to a screeching halt 5 yrs ago with that sexual scandal. He must not be too happy now. He's in his 60s and his acting career is pretty much over. At least he's rich so he doesn't have to worry about a meal or a home. I bet today he feels like Lester.
When I was in high school i worked weekends and only made minimum wage (back when that was $5.30 a hour), but had no real expenses, so it was all profit and I just partied and bought whatever i wanted. Now I'm working 46 hours a week and make a lot more money, but because of monthly payments like rent, student loans and car payments, i'm barely scraping by. Somehow it seems like i've gone backwards.
Cateranrebel Regardless of how difficult expenses and other things would be for a married man with kids. I'd rather be that man than what I am now. A single man.
Man its stories like these that discourage me from going to college. Student debt and a ton of payments. I feel Like I would be a lot happier working minim wage living in a one room apartment. People find success without getting a higher education and don't have to worry about student debt or working for long hours in a shitty desk job. Still I probably should go to college. Everyone around me is talking about how they got into amazing Universities, and I'm sitting in the corner not knowing what I want to do with my life.
+Luis R. - It's a tough choice man, because college is way more expensive than it used to be. And the student loan debt can be scary. My only advice is to go to a community college for a year and see if you find your passion. Maybe you will find out that you love math, or economics, or history or whatever. College makes you a better person, I think. But if you like working with your hands, or have a talent for sales, then go for that too. Take it from a middle aged man: you need to enjoy what you do for a living, regardless of what it costs.
Probably was. G13 was used to synthesize some cannabinoids to test them in their G programm. You can look it up in Wikipedia. G13 probably was some afghan landstrain crossed with some other local potent strain. The goal was a high thc content to get a better yield when extracting. Even back then, they knew about ethanol extraction
I think Ricky was smart that it seemed like he sold his weed to mostly adult, upper middle class people. People who had money but didn't really know the true cost of a bag of pot anymore. So he probably had a lot of the "jacked up" costs coming in installments. And coming from mature, adult professionals who weren't going to rat him out or get caught and blab Ricky's name like high school kids would.
@@Aman1012a buddy of mine did something similar in the day. He would say that his one client was a Doctor at John's Hopkins who would pay 400 for an ounce
They just didn’t research the true cost of pot in a 1999 year setting… if he woulda said the shake bag was 100 and the 2nd stuff (the more powerful) was like 500 it woulda been more believable…I was 29 in 1999 and still smoked pretty frequently, and when I heard them prices I remember thinking well , Hollywood messed this scene up with the prices cause no weed was that expensive. I remember hearing about 400- a ounce for good primo green, which I still wouldn’t buy cause it was too expensive, I got 1/2 ounces of really good green for 45-50 back then…2000 a ounce, yeah ok ??
@@toddprater14 I think he just ripped Lester off knowing he had been out of the game a very long time. Ricky was obviously unhappy with his home life and was saving up money to move away as soon as possible.
@@sebcast3173 For your information I took this photo two days ago after a massage session with a doctor in order to relax my body and mind so I can manage to relieve stress . As you can tell by the photo I was wearing a kimono as well as I felt very comfortable and relaxed . I’ve chosen this picture because I think that everybody should go for a massage session sometimes because we live in a world made of stress and pollution and I guess those two things have a very bad influence on people . I’ve chosen this photo as my profile pic because I really want to impact attitudes in a good way . This photo is a way to make people understand if they just take it easy life is becoming a little less complicated and so much better ! No need to be in a hurry or to be upset because everything is coming in due time . And don’t forget if some things don’t happen it is just because they hadn’t to happen 👌🏻
"Never underestimate the power the denial" he says as he charges him 2 grand for a tiny bag of weed. He's definitely intentionally overcharging him because he knows how impressionable Lester is. That was always clear to me. That Ricky is smart enough to know Lester would pay for it, and if he didn't, he'd still make 300 quid off him at least.
Agree. The kid reminds me of people I used to know. Smart people who seem like they're upright or looking out for you but are actually wolves. And yeah, they tend to brag openly about it, as if they're naive or innocent of it. For the kid, he's a victim of his abusive father that goes along creating more victims.
There’s the naivety of being too young, but then also the naivety of being too old and certain experiences you wouldn’t of had as kid that makes you sucker when you’re older. Like older people getting scammed on the internet because sure maybe they knew about scammer in irl situations but don’t understand it when it comes to the internet. Same thing with the outrageous price Ricky was charging Lester, too old to have some drugs before and with disposable income.
This scene always kills me. $2000/oz and he hands him a dimebag containing two rectangular prisms. $300 for "totally decent" shake lmao. Were the writers not into pot?
not worth 2 grand but that's hasj lol that's probably around half an ounce of hasj worth probably 100 bucks in europe where i'm from but i've heard it can get insane in america probably closer to 500 there so not the 2grand but still worth a lot
@@kjanvink1981 Hash is more expensive in North America, that's true, but there isn't anything in the scene to suggest it's hash aside from the shape of the package. From the context, I'm pretty sure the scene is trying to convince you it's flower. Also, the prices per gram (at least in Canada) tend to scale down as you buy higher quantities. $500 for an oz of hash is too much even today, let alone when the movie came out.
Charlie from Starkville, Mississippi maybe the stuff you had. Back in the 90s I had a friend who got medical grade and I’ve never seen bud like that ever before. The skunk smell alone was like 100 times more than what I’ve seen today. It had so much thc and so dense it looked like a huge white biscuit from all the crystals and it was supposed to be g-13
First saw this when I was 31 and his struggle impacted me alot. Now I am 52 and retired early as planned. Great movies like this and Fight Club, and great people I met along the way, helped me wake up from running the rat race and struggling in the muck. What a relief.
@@CB-rv2lj Not necessarily. There are stressful, but good paying corp jobs in Tech, Finance where one can retire in 10-15 years. Assuming they save and invest.
I love how, in the scene before this, Lester managed to stay under Ricky's dad's radar by asking about the movie they talked about at the party. "Yo, Ricky! I was wondering if I could...the movie we talked about!" 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣
Runs a high dollar marijuana business out of his bedroom and fakes out drug tests with children's "clean" piss he gets from a buyer who's a nurse for a pediatrician. Ricky is one smart dude.
I've never seen this movie but every time I watch clips of it, I'm completely drawn into the scene. I can tell this is great film, not many movies have this effect on me!
Well the actuality is that we're all made of drugs. Serotonin makes you happy. Melatonin makes you sleepy. Dopamine gives you pleasure. Oxytocin gives you feeling of love. Cortisol gives you stress. DMT gives you dreams. Shit just goes on and on.
Wes Bentley killed it. So many people are like Ricky, the “weird” kid is is more logical and lucid than anybody else. Lester instantly sees his younger self in him, and even idolizes him a bit as the “cool kid” after watching him quit his job so coldly.
Fitts keeps the family in a constant state of fear. Ricky has been to military school, as well as a psych ward. His father also beats him. So for him to be standing in his bedroom pitching different kinds of weed, in a manner more in keeping with a car salesman, does not ring true.
I feel like with the amount of money Ricky has saved, he's been planning his way out for a while. Maybe the pure hatred for his father overrides the fear too.
@@unstableordinance not if you don't actually inhale it. What I was saying was he just put it in his mouth and immediately blew it out. He didn't breathe in.
@@unstableordinance Correct, but that is only if you inhale it into your lungs. In this clip Conan didn't inhale it into his lungs, just into his mouth. You do not get high by just putting the smoke into your mouth.
I remember seeing this and thinking, this guy is telling someone a quarter, if that, is 2 thousand dollars. I wish they had it more realistic with the prices because that's just completely absurd.
@@TonyDanza4Lyfe they didnt need to say it. If you look at whats in the bag its hash lol. Also good chance he's just upselling to privileged which folks who dont know better and he can charge whatever he wants lol
Being 17 with two jobs was something I took for granted. I had money to spend. Back then it was just trivial things. CD's, movies, nights out with my friends etc. Still I could afford it. No rent, car payment, or cell phone bill. Only monthly expense was my car insurance. That was around 120$ a month. Which is definitely a good chunk of $$. Now fast forward. I'm 31 making way more $$. Seems I have less of it to spend. Family and bills. Lester is right. My life was ahead of me. Insane how different life is after a few years.
I was 16 when this movie was in theaters, Kevin Spacey was 39 when they filmed it, which means he was a year younger then I am now when he was in front of the camera, how the hell did that happen
Been working with this 19 year old kid last couple weeks. He doesn't know much but the confidence of "i have my whole life ahead of me" attitude he got is one thing i miss. I think that attitude dies down a bit as we get older. Even though we have gained more experience and skills, the thought of time is limited is pretty sad.
I'd love to live next door to a guy like Ricky. Seems like a good and fair guy to do business with and hang out with. Especially giving it to you on credit. That takes some real trust there. My kind of cool dealer.
This is the film people watch again when they become adults, feel the monotony of life, and consequently get back into weed in search of meaning and direction, or just that feeling they had then they were 18
Turning 30 this year. I worked at Culvers a fast food restaurant from 16 to 22. 6 years of my life. When its brought up in random conversations I say I hated it and that I'd never want to do it again. Which I wouldn't. But looking back on it, it was good. It was life. I experienced it. Thats what this whole movies about and I never realized that. It was great. I bought my own xbox 360 by myself making $5.25 an hour. It cost $300. That was a lot of hours to save up to that much back then. But I did it.
300 for an ounce of shake? Wtf, then following up with a tiny amount of something that doesn't even look like weed for 2 fucking thousand? No way anyone payed that much back then, probably even now.
Someone else commented that Ricky is overcharging Lester because 1) he has more money 2) he's desperate for an escape and 3) he never bothers to negotiate. Know your customers. And always negotiate.
I'm the guy who you aren't. Never married, no kids no alimony no child support, student loans were $49.01 a month and paid off in 1992. I have always done exactly what I wanted to do. As a result by age 48 I had done all I set out to and had zero regrets. That was a decade ago. I have the next 15 years of good health to do even more. This was all an intentional choice. Those of you 20, follow my path Those of you older, you can always change. It is never too late.
1:53 - 2:03 the way he doesn't even look at the other person in the room, he simply zones out to that middle space, that memory world. Sooner or later his last line will hit us all the same way, just different people populating each of our thoughts.
I saw American Beauty when it first came out and I couldn't understand why people raved about it so much. Since then even Sam Mendes has said it received too much praise. I guess I was right all along. I usually am. 😉
Yeah, I had a GF back in 1999 that tried to get me into this movie.I didn't even want to watch the rest of the film after this scene. Fight Club which came out the same year was far superior in my opinion
@@johngotti4286 Right... So the reason it won Oscars for best picture, director, lead actor and screenplay was because of the music and photography... Listen to yourself.
Lester reminiscing about his youth makes it so apparent that, despite being broke as a kid, he was so happy - happier than Rick, even though Rick has a lot of money and material items. People like to think Rick is some sort of hero; the movie isn't saying that at all. Rick is a high school drug dealer who is just as invested in material items as the adults around him. He is no better than them. He is also regularly seen to be inhumane, devoid of any emotion- to the point of being a sociopath. Lester's rebuttal of Ricky saying "that sucks" - "no, it was great" emphasises the fact that the only person in this movie that was happy, was childhood Lester - the only person who had nothing.
Seeing this at 20 I was like "Yeah...whatever, grandad!". Now, at 43, all I seem to do is look back on a life of mistakes and regrets and wish to do it all again.
43 in 1999. 17 in 1973. Weed was 20 an ounce in 1973. Carter sprayed the fields, rose to $35 in 1977. Everyone acted as though the world ended. Nickle bag was one finger. 4 fingers for an ounce in a sandwich baggie. No Ziploc then.
I was making $4 an hour in high school and it was plenty of $ to have a decent set of wheels and money in my pocket to hang out with my friends. Life was good, better than good, and the sad part is it took getting old to realize it.
Yeah, but you cant be a teenager for ever, back them we probably lived with our parents and they paid for rent, food and bills. Now once you get older you have kids, you have to buy a home, car(s), bills, etc. Circle of life, just try to enjoy every part of it
Agreed, but the point is that most teenagers don’t realize how good things are until they are much older and look back. My life is good now, but much more complex and difficult.
My first job as a box boy was paying $4.25/hr. I remember my first check was $110 and I thought I was rich at the age of 16. Life was much simpler back then , $1/ gallon of gas , $5 / big mac meal , $4 / movie ticket. Funny thing is that I wanna be an adult when I was a kid and now that I'm an adult. I just wanna go back and be kid again.
Yeah you’re right The father’s sexuality The husband knowing his wife is cheating The girl angela knowing she’s a clueless virgin. The only people in this whole movie who were mentally together were the gay neighbors Jim and Jim Lol
Right, so I just wanna set one thing straight. There is NO way in hell you have that much weed of any decent quality in those bags under a false bottom with a few shirts on it without that room reeking of weed.
$2000 grand is BS for what looks like a quarter. A ounce around here ( Ottawa Canada) goes for $140-$220 from your local dealer ...$100 a ounce during harvest and pounds can be bought for anywhere from $800+ during harvest. Cheapest pound I have bought was last year for $500 or $31.25 cents a ounce Canadian. No the weed was not crap it was outdoor and good. Hydro is of course a completely different ballgame.
That Denial quote might be a good example of foreshadowing. Ricky's dad was in such denial about his sexuality that the extent he went to keep it bottled up truly had "powerful" results
2000$ for some grass, no thx, especially nothing produced by the government. I'd rather smoke weed grown at home by someone who's done it for years, does it with great care and love - and puts out great weed without it costing 2000$.
I bought some $15/gram weed in Vancouver (you can get an ounce of AAA PK for $160-200, just for a price reference) It was fantastic... but I only bought a few grams... I can't ever see myself ever spending more on weed... Unless I happen to have a life altering day much like Lester... then fuck it
Z of a top shelf strain should go for $300-500 depending on where/who you buy. Friend, farmer or dispensary (most expensive). I get an 1/8 of any strain I want for $50 but that's a friend with a MMJ card. 2K for that little but is absurd!
Honestly i blame the director and props. Had he handed him that first bag and said 2k, that’s a lot more believable even if it’s exaggerated. But handing him a gram or two and saying two grand is ridiculous and should’ve been caught. Definitely did not deserve the Oscar
Lotta comments about how depressing it is to get old. That's Life..but the idea is to enjoy adult Life and stop missing your young life. Both are equally great for different reasons. But you need to go ham on that young life first, or else you'll be chasing your coat tail trying to live out stuff you didn't aka mid life crisis. Screw the mid life crisis. It's not a crisis, it's enjoyment..minus the more frequent doctor visits and watching what you eat and not being able to hang young girls anymore and not being able to play sports without pulling something and not having your life in front of you instead of behind you and not being bald and not being fat and AAAHHHHHHHHHHH I fuckin agree with You all. It SUCKS Lol
I actually met Wes Bentley, the actor who plays Ricky (he’s famous now for being on Yellowstone.) I lived in Rogers, AR and worked at a Tex Amex restaurant (Chuys) and I guess his dad lives there and is a preacher at a church in the area. They came and picked up a to go order, I brought it out to them. He had a really thick beard but I had no idea who he was until my coworker freaked out about him from American Horror Story. Him and his dad seemed like really cool guys.
One of my favorite moments ever recorded... but back it up a bit as I LOVE that Alan Ball threw in Pink Floyd.... So basically back to the beginning. SPEC-TAC-ULAR!!!!!
Mine too. I could totally relate... not only to what he said about working all summer, but how he said it with a bit of wistful nostalgia. Best of times when things were just more simple.
