Who is the Audience for This Movie?

People who like movies that center on a main character fighting with his inner demons.

What I Liked About This Movie

American Psycho is set in the 80’s, which was a time of excess and glamour. Bateman is a product of that era; he has both of those traits in abundance. As a result he feels he has no sense of identity, even though society would probably deem that Bateman has the perfect life. This theme that is explored in this movie is fascinating and handled very well.

This movie probably sounds hilarious so far, right? Parts of it are. Christian Bale manages to always play the character with a comically straight face and fiery intensity. At the height of his madness he intentionally comes of humorous because before his murderous actions he often goes off on tangents about complex social issues. For the most part you are unsure if you should laugh or not, but I did.

A movie with gratuitous violence and sex is not often made by women. If this movie were made by a man it would easily be labeled as misogynistic. If you do watch this movie it is very interesting to keep in mind that it was in fact by a woman.

What Didn’t Work For Me

Structurally, American Psycho uses an editing style that feels a bit disjointed. There is a central storyline that ties the film together but there are many events that sort of pop in and out. Some of these events do help build the character but end becoming overkill by the time the movie begins its descent towards the ending.

Christian Bale’s acting may outshine everyone else in this movie but most of the time the other actors look like they are not even trying to bring the same intensity to their roles. I did like Christian Bale’s performance but I could have definitely done without the numerous ass shots he has in this movie.

Should You Watch This Movie?

American Psycho is an interesting movie. If you can handle very graphic scenes then this movie should intrigue you.

My Rating (Out of 13)