For those who are looking for a horror-thriller you might be disappointed with American Psycho. It’s not an easy film to categorize; is it a psychological thriller, a drama or a horror movie? Well, it’s actually all of the above, but mostly it’s a black comedy/satire about the overwhelming decadence of the 80’s. It’s about a Wall Street yuppie named Patrick Bateman. He’s rich, handsome, smart, obsessed with status and style, and he’s absolutely insane. During the day he can be found at his office at Pierce & Pierce, but oddly enough you never see him doing anything that could be remotely seen as “work”. No, that’s not the REAL Patrick Bateman. The real Patrick Bateman comes out at night when he prowls the empty and desolate streets of New York City, looking for fresh victims; whether they’re homeless men or hookers looking for a big payday. Calling Patrick Bateman the Jack the Ripper of the 80’s wouldn’t be too far off from the truth.

American Psycho isn’t simply about the killing of his victims as it is about the society and lifestyle in which Patrick Bateman is able to exist in; hiding behind a mask of glam, sophistication and wealth, because surely the rich and wealthy must be more civilized than the poor, smelly and barbaric trash that sleeps on the sidewalks and alleyways of the vast and gloomy jungle of New York City, right? That’s exactly what Bateman believes. The people that surround Patrick Bateman in his life are inept, clueless, materialistic and self-absorbed. When Bateman stuffs one of his victims in a large travel bag and drags it outside to the trunk of his waiting limousine he bumps into some friends from work, but instead of asking him what he’s doing late at night and what’s in the bag, they compliment him on what a nice bag he has and immediately ask him where he purchased it. In a world where status, wealth and beauty means everything it’s no wonder that Patrick and his business co-workers all get into an unspoken contest over whose business card looks the best; they might as well be comparing the size of their dicks to determine who’s the “master of the universe”. We’re not supposed to sympathize with any of these characters; we’re not laughing with them, we’re laughing at them, and the whole social elitist culture of Wall Street yuppies. Also, don’t forget the fact that they all dress alike, have the same haircut and often get everybody’s name confused with someone else.

The film is full of 80’s touches, from those oversized “cell phones” (you know, the ones that look like military walkie-talkies), the 80’s pop music of Phil Collins and Huey Lewis and the News, recreational cocaine use, talk of the AIDS virus, tacky glamour night clubs and fancy restaurants that Patrick Bateman, no matter how rich and handsome he is, can never seem to get a table at. The film features a number of entertaining performances, but American Psycho really is a one man show, and that man is most definitely Christian Bale in a star-making (and Oscar worthy) role as the morbidly decadent Patrick Bateman, that leaves the kind of impression that De Niro had in Taxi Driver. It’s a brave and bold performance, and Bale dives head first into it devouring it up without restraint or caution. He IS Patrick Bateman. The film also has star performances from Willem Dafoe as a Detective, Jared Leto as Bateman’s yuppie nemesis, Chloe Sevigny as Bateman’s secretary and Reese Witherspoon as his fiancée.

American Psycho is an interesting movie that looks at the 80’s in a darkly funny context, and easily slips and slides from black humor to horror and back again. And even after watching the film several times I’m still not quite sure exactly what happened in the end. It’s funny, scary, shocking, repulsive and at the same time quite fascinating. I dare you to name another movie that features a metrosexual serial killer running around butt-naked, covered in blood wearing white pumps while chasing after a screaming girl with a chainsaw. American Psycho grows on you more and more, sinking in deeper and deeper - what once started out as hate has seemingly morphed itself into fascination.

- Devin Rodgers