For this year’s 31 Nights of Horror Challenge, the Day 10 prompt was City Slickers. There are only a couple of movies that fit that genre, namely Jason when he goes to New York or maybe you could count Escape from New York as a horror, it is directed by the master of horror himself, John Carpenter. We went with American Psycho (2000).
Storyline
It’s the late 1980s. Twenty-seven year old Wall Streeter Patrick Bateman travels among a closed network of the proverbial beautiful people, that closed network in only they able to allow others like themselves in in a feeling of superiority. Patrick has a routinized morning regimen to maintain his appearance of attractiveness and fitness. He, like those in his network, are vain, narcissistic, egomaniacal and competitive, always having to one up everyone else in that presentation of oneself, but he, unlike the others, realizes that, for himself, all of these are masks to hide what is truly underneath, someone/something inhuman in nature.
In other words, he is comprised of a shell resembling a human that contains only greed and disgust, greed in wanting what others may have, and disgust for those who do not meet his expectations and for himself in not being the first or the best. That disgust ends up manifesting itself in wanting to rid the world of those people, he not seeing them as people but only of those characteristics he wants to rid.
Our Thoughts on American Psycho
Oh, the movies of the new millennium… While this film portrays the excess of the 1980s and seems to have a satirical bent on what society thinks of Wall Street types this is a good movie.
Bale delivers an outstanding performance as Bateman, effortlessly portraying the character’s twisted mind and violent tendencies. His ability to shift from charming and suave to menacing and psychotic in the blink of an eye is truly remarkable. The supporting cast is equally impressive, with standout performances from Willem Dafoe and Jared Leto.
The film’s direction and cinematography are equally impressive, with director Mary Harron creating a bleak and eerie atmosphere that perfectly matches the tone of the story. The use of music and pop culture references from the era also help to transport the viewer to the world of the 1980s.
However, the film’s extreme violence and graphic and sexual nature may be too much for some viewers. The scenes of brutal murder and torture are disturbing and difficult to watch, and the film’s overall message can be somewhat ambiguous.
American Psycho is a highly stylized and well-acted film that will leave a lasting impression on its viewers.
7 out of 10
Trivia
The name Bateman is derived from the main character of the “Psycho” film franchise, Norman Bates.
The Huey Lewis & The News song “Hip to Be Square”, which appears in the film, was initially on the soundtrack album, but it was removed shortly after release because of a lack of publishing rights. The album was recalled and reissued without the song, although some versions of the initial batch had already sold. Over the years, this incident has developed into the myth that Huey Lewis himself refused to allow the song on the album due to the content of the movie.
