Provocative satire of the 80's

Rating: 7/10 (5 December 2009)

I watched this movie a few years ago and although I respected it, I didn't care for it because it was so superficial. I watched it again, realizing what it was trying to do. This time I liked it a lot better.
Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) is a Wall Street wizard, living the dream life. He's young, successful, and good looking. But everything is not right with Patrick. He is incapable of any emotion "except greed and disgust." He sees himself as a facade ("I am simply not there"). But while living the good life by day, he is a serial killer by night.
For anyone who follows the politics of movie making, "American Psycho" is one of the more notorious. It's yet another example of the MPAA's prudishness getting in the way of film-making. The film was given an NC-17 rating until director Mary Harron was forced to cut a scene where Bateman is having a threesome with two prostitutes. Never mind that it is extremely revealing about his character, nor the fact that they left all of the bloody violence untouched. It's a sex-scene, which is a no-no for the MPAA (none of its members, apparently, have cable television, because if they did, they would notice that there are more explicit sex scenes on weekly TV shows).
But that shouldn't detract from the quality of the film (the unrated DVD has been out for a few years, so there's no need to accept the MPAA's neo-conservative version). The film is well-acted, and often darkly humorous.
Christian Bale burst onto the A list after his dynamite performance as Bateman. His cool, smooth voice belies his capacity for violence. Yet Bateman can change moods instantaneously, and Bale is adept at switching moods at will, even only for a few seconds. The other cast members (Josh Lucas, Justin Theroux, Reese Witherspoon, and so on) are great as his friends and co-workers (or fiancée, as Witherspoon is), who are so superficial and self-centered that they don't know, or care, about Bale's extracurricular activities (and it's not as if he's THAT discreet about it). Samantha Mathis is good as is drugged-out mistress, and Willem Dafoe is solid as the private detective who may or may not be onto Bale.
Mary Harron knows and understands the material. It's a thriller, but also a dark comedy. The humor isn't in your face, but if you really think about it, these characters are completely ridiculous. She's not afraid to show violence, but she also knows that she's not making a slasher movie.
Maybe it's because I'm not a child of the 80's, but I didn't get all the humor. I got the satire about being superficial, but the serial killer aspect eluded me. Still, it's enjoyable enough to recommend.