American Psycho

American Psycho is a postmodern masterpiece, very George Orwell coded. I (and many) interpret it as a critique of a society that replaces authenticity with fabricated images, morality with materialism, and human relationships with transactions. Patrick Bateman’s psyche is only a product of his environment, as Ellis writes »I was simply imitating reality, a rough resemblance of a human being, with only a dim corner of my mind functioning«. Moreover, his fixation on appearances (that he catalogues obsessively in his monologues) fits into Debord’s concept of the spectacle society, where social relations are mediated by images, reducing lived experiences to mere representations. This is best shown in the iconic business card scene, Bateman’s comparison of font and subtle colours symbolizes the emptiness of materialistic validation. His shaking reaction of Paul Allen’s card (It even has a watermark...) exposes his fragile self-worth that’s dependent on superficial markers of success. Another example of his normlessness is the raincoat scene, where he wears a raincoat to prevent his designer suit from stains before murdering Paul Allen with an axe. As he dances to Huey Lewis and the News, we witness his cheerfulness turning into violence. After murdering Paul and spiralling further into violence, he attempts to confess his crimes, seeking accountability and redemption. But his colleagues remain indifferent, ignoring his revelations or misinterpreting them as jokes. This indifference showcases an anomic society that is blind to its moral decay, by remaining oblivious and simply coexisting with violence. The true horror of American Psycho are not the murders (if they even happen at all) but the fact that his persona is a reflection of contemporary society, one that inaugurates a similar void within its people.