American Psycho

"This confession has meant nothing." There is an idea of a Patrick Bateman, but he doesn't know it himself. He thinks he does. If you were to ask Patrick Bateman's internal monologue who he is, he'd probably tell you he's an amalgamation of everything his life consumes: his media, his shower routine, his hi-fi system, his suits. When Patrick sits in his office, listening passionately to Chris de Burgh's "Lady in Red", is he enjoying it, or is he externalising what he wants his life to be? Mary Harron's American Psycho is a truly phenomenal piece of cinema. There are so many reasons why, so where do I begin? The film operates on two very distinct levels that both exist externally to each-other, but also cannot exist without each-other and need each-other to survive. One level is the hilarious, witty comedy that satirizes the greed and shallow nature of 1980s Yuppie culture, and of society in general. The other is a deep and powerful character study about a man trapped in the Venus Flytrap of society. Patrick Bateman works on Wall Street, a successful businessman and apparent Vice President to Pierce & Pierce. He works alongside Paul Allen, Timothy Bryce, Luis Carruthers, Marcus Halberstram and many others. Everyone looks the same: they have slicked back hair, identical suits, identical glasses, although Patrick has a slightly better haircut. They all speak the same, they all laugh the same, they are all mirror images of each-other. They all do copious amounts of drugs, and none of them seem to ever actually work. They all want the Fischer account. They all want the best business card. They all want reservations at Dorsia. Their lives exist as a string of restaurants, night-clubs and offices. Their apartments are all show-room apartments, and numbers count for everything. If my suit has an extra zero on its price, it's nicer. If your suit looks nicer, it doesn't matter. I have the extra zero. This is the world Patrick lives in, and he knows it. No one else knows it, but he does. Because the world is so full of identical businessmen, everyone gets each-other mixed up. Patrick Bateman is called many different names throughout the film, as if no one can remember each-other, as if they all look so similar that they can't tell each-other apart. Patrick is amused by this, but there's a strong disgust beneath his surface. Patrick claims he has no emotions except greed and disgust, but there's certainly a lot more to it. He's desperate to escape this harrowing world he occupies. He can't cope any longer with the vapid nature. It started with innocuous comments that no one notices, but now he kills people. He has to, it's his own retribution, his only escape. It doesn't matter if no one else knows it, he knows it, and he can hold onto it as his little way of breaking out of the prison of the Yuppie lifestyle. But soon it's not enough, and soon, his nightly blood-lust overflows into his days. He can't control it anymore - he wants to get caught. He wants to fit in. He wants to get caught. He wants to fit in. He wants to get caught. His life is a dichotomy, and the film too is a dichotomy. We both abhor and support this man, because we as the audience get to the point in which we ask ourselves: what's worse, the society Patrick lives in, or the fact Patrick kills? Patrick is no longer the enemy, he's the byproduct of the enemy: society. It's not enough, because as Patrick exclaims in his final monologue, and as the final 15 minutes so wonderfully point out, he can't escape. He tries everything he can, but somehow, all of the motifs of his society restrain him, keep him shacked to the boat, stop him from being able to break free and be Patrick Bateman, the reviled serial killer. There's no ambiguity: he looks deep into his lawyers eyes and says, passionately and desperately: "I killed Paul Allen, and I liked it." Even that's not enough, because even then his lawyer doesn't believe him. It's the moment Patrick realises he can't escape, this his power and his wealth and his place in society has surpassed his own ability to break free. There's nothing he can do, he has surpassed everything, so he can now only continue what he's doing. He will be forever doomed to this vapid lifestyle. As the door behind him so wonderfully states, and as the last line of Bret Easton Ellis' novel so eloquently puts it: this is not an exit. There's so much at play here, and the subject matter is a meaty and wonderful topic. It's an important topic, and this is the perfect method of exploring it. The film has so many serious subjects, and yet, it's one of the funniest films I've ever seen. The dialogue is lifted word-for-word from the novel, and it's some of the best dialogue I've ever heard. The actors deliver it all perfectly, topped, of course, by the impeccably sharp and powerful performance by Christian Bale, which will be his career best for the rest of his life. The scenes are hilarious, every line is a witty and intelligently pointed discourse. Every scene is a perfectly crafted set-up and punch-line, and every moment perfectly cements the themes of the film and novel. What's most genius about this film is how it approaches its humour: with absolute seriousness. There was a time when I watched this and saw it as a straight-up thriller. There are many others who also see it that way. IMDb doesn't even list it as a comedy. It's baffling that one of the best comedies of all time might not be seen as a comedy, but that's because of how intelligently it presents its humour. It's so subtle, but all it takes is one little brush of openness to the humour and suddenly the floodgates will open. Accept the film as a comedy, and it will be seen in a vastly different light. It's truly one of the best films of all time. An irresistible score by John Cale and a fantastic 80s soundtrack, amazing performances, amazing dialogue, rich themes and great source material make this film stand out as the masterpiece that it so sorely is. I've watched this countless times but I still keep coming back, it's so endlessly entertaining and captivating. So whilst Patrick might think there's only an idea of a Patrick Bateman, there's more than just an idea of an American Psycho, and you have to watch it to find out what that idea is.