|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Bret Easton Ellis' "American Psycho" was perhaps the most
controversial and hotly-debated novel of the last decade. Inciting all manner
of protests for its graphic violence, its intensely dark tone made both the
book and its author the subject of intense criticism.
"Patrick Bateman is a rich, good looking Yuppie working on Wall Street
during the Eighties, vain and shallow in the extreme he dines in the best
restaurants, wears expensive clothes and works out to give himself the perfect
body. The problem is though, that he is psychotic and embarks on a gruesome
series of murders of prostitutes, friends, business rivals and anyone else he
can think of. He also mutilates them and keeps the body parts!
Director, Mary Harron, ensures that the movie isn't all blood and sick
violence, instead it is a wicked black comedy which is as funny as it is
disturbing, full of sharp one-liners and stylised violence. Christian Bale
stars as Bateman and is sensational, few characters have personified an era as
disturbingly as Patrick Bateman.
In the same way that Frankenstein gave us a monster for its time, American
Psycho gives us a monster for the late 20th century. Showing contemporary urban
life through the eyes of a serial killer - forcing viewers to enter his mind
and understand his motives - the movie sets a vision that is both terrifying
and chilling.
Made for $8million, American Psycho took $15million in the US and over 2million
in the UK
|
|