Shower Work Kill Shower Work Kill

Rating: 8/10 (16 April 2000)

"American Psycho" focuses on the excessiveness of the business lifestyle of the late 80s. It is an interesting exaggeration on several levels. Because it is such an over the top story, it is a good comedy and a good movie.
Christian Bale plays Patrick Bateman, a typical businessman on wall street. He is a rich yuppie stud with an apartment that looks more like an art work. His daily morning activities include lengthy showers and healthy work outs. Patrick uses at least four or five various soaps and lotions to keep his skin smooth and perfect. His main area of focus is his handsome face. Patrick is also very fit since he tells us that he is able to do 1000 crunches every day. He dresses in fancy suits and goes to work, where we hardly see him do anything different than watch TV or listen to music. His favorite activity is going to expensive restaurants and having cynical conversations about business related topics. His friends are not much different looking than him. In fact, Patrick is mistaken for another man from his company on more than one occasion. This is no coincidence. The person continues to address him incorrectly, believing he is speaking to someone else. Patrick also has a girlfriend played by Reese Witherspoon. He hardly pays any attention to her. He prefers to listen to his walkman. Finally, whenever he finds the time, Patrick is a psychopathic serial killer.
"American Psycho" is very stylish and very well directed by Mary Harron. She creates simple and perfect surroundings appropriate for a man so concerned with his looks. Christian Bale plays the obsessive businessman very well. He gives the film the additional mechanical feel. Everything he seems to say is such a package. Nothing seems human, but rather an excessive and unnatural pose. He talks like an ad for restaurants and like a review of his favorite albums. Nothing seems to separate him from his friends, except for his dark secret. He takes pleasure in killing. And this seems very mechanical as well. Why does he do it? Why does he do anything?
There are some great scenes in "American Psycho." One of them is the shower scene described above. Another excellent scene takes place in an office where Patrick and his friends are comparing business cards. They all carry them around in special metal cases as if they were worth a fortune. As they show them to each other, the cards seem exactly the same. Yet this is a tense scene. The subtle differences (the color of one card is described as "egg shell") create competition. Patrick shows signs of his paranoia as he realizes that his card is not the best one. There is also another good appearance by Jared Leto, who essentially serves the same purpose here as he did in "Fight Club." In my opinion, he is perfect for the role.
And so, Patrick Bateman kills people. It has been criticized that the movie is pointless and there is no motive for all the murders. It doesn't matter. "American Psycho" is a SATIRE. The murders are funny, not always, but often. Patrick bateman is confused himself. He is having an identity crisis. This is the only thing that separates him from anyone else. The murders are an exaggeration just like the rest of his life.
"American Psycho" is a good film that lags at certain times. However, Chirtian Bale gives a great performance in a movie that is very attractive in its mechanical nature. It is such an exaggeration that it cannot be taken seriously like other serial killer movies. This is a comedy that looks good and works well. Overall, an 8 out of 10.