An "undisputed masterpiece"

Rating: 9/10 (24 February 2003)

Warning may contain spoilers
This movie is (as Bateman said about Hip To Be Square by Huey Lewis and the News) an "undisputed masterpiece". Like Fight Club, it succeeds with wit, dark satire, and a great social comment, against superficiality, conformity, and consumer culture. Mary Harron directs an excellent film, and she and Guinevere Turner convert the book into a marvelous screenplay.
This is a stunning and forthwright criticism on consumer culture, exposing it's mindlessness, ludicrousness, and rediculousness. The characters are immersed in a world of reservations, poular music, clothes fashion, affairs, and drugs. Countless restaurant and clothing brands are mentioned, with frequent appointments that must be met, Who has the best business card is a major obsession as are reservations.(Like they areb really that important) A good moment is when one of Bateman's friends who are among the people he competes with for the best business card, Van Patten, states that he is not really hungry but would like a reservation anyway. Chauvinism is also rampant, 20 years after the women's movement.
The cast is also well picked, Christian Bale is excellent as the crack snorting chauvinist Patrick Bateman whose life seems perfect on the surface with the apartment, limo, job, fiance, and friends, however his life is, in reality dull; repetitious and surrounded by people he envies and dislikes (such as the upstart Paul Allen, and the annoying Luis Carrurthers). In fact his lifestyle robs him of his humanity and his life is mundane; so much so it drives him crazy and derives him of all intellect (apart from brand names, restaurants, and pop-music)and emotion apart from (as Bateman himself tells us) "greed and disghust", his mind is so empty, killing is all he can "do" to fulfill himself.
As for the rest of the cast; Guinevere Turner is excellent as the model Elizabeth, Reese Witherspoon is excellent as the hopeful, and cheerful Evelyn Williams who is yet also a conformist like everyone else in the film, Chloe Sevigny is great as Jean, the innocent secretary and one of the victims of Bateman's chauvinism, and Willem Defoe was well picked as Detective Donald Kimball.
In short a fantastic movie, worthy of an award (I hope it got one), I thouroughly reccomend it, but dn't expect anything light, it is gory and graphic. the best version is on DVD. Watch it.