The ultimate consumer: he’s well kept because he uses ice packs to reduce puffiness around the eyes. He’s cut and in shape because he wakes up early every morning to perform a grueling routine of crunches and push-ups. He’s health conscious because he makes sure he consumes eight glasses of water every day. He’s well-schooled on pop culture because he owns a compact disc player with a collection of billboard hit cd’s ranging from Phil Collins to Whitney Houston. He’s ambitious because he has earned a high-paying position on Wall Street. He’s relentless because he won’t let anyone block his way to the top. He’s drawn by his manhood because he gets off on porno’s and prostitutes while being engaged to high-class goods. He is an American Psycho because, with extreme confidence, he mutilates, dismembers, and destroys anyone who has acquired more than he has.
Based on Bret Easton Ellis’ controversial novel, American Psycho is a dark look back at the 80’s corporate-clone culture. Director Mary Harron gives us a humorous dose of nostalgia by showing the life of a man gone mad in a world gone crazy. American Psycho plays on the idea that nobody has time for emotion in a society driven by materialism. Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) is young, rich, beautiful, and psychotic. He is the very essence of jealousy and greed that was corporate America. In a decade fueled by politics and a faltering economy, it’s not too difficult to see how Bateman’s thirst for blood could thrive once born.
Once Bateman looses a designer business card contest, the homicidal instincts set in and blood begins to spill. Using every mutilation device imaginable, he cuts, slices, dices, whacks, and chops, leaving a trail of blood so thick it’s amazing he’s made it this far. The disturbing nature of this film, besides the brutality and total disregard for human life, lies in the self-indulgent attitude of this man, as well as the blind eye look at what he has become. If one man can have this attitude, there are surely more to follow.
Christian Bale depicts this modern monster with horrific detail; his smile is enough to send chills down the spine. And in a short-lived supporting role, Jared Leto is remarkable as Paul Allen. Even after he’s gone, the very thought of him tortures Bateman’s psyche, pushing him farther and farther over the edge. The entire concept of this film is overwhelming. The idea of a gruesome slasher flick with intelligence and wit is one difficult feat, one that Mary Harron pulls off like a champ.
Not for the squeamish, American Psycho will disgust and provoke, while shelving out dark humor that’s impossible to ignore.
+ Ashley Adams
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