American Psycho (2000)
American Psycho (2000) [Killer Collector's Edition]
DVD9 | VIDEO_TS | NTSC 16:9 | 01:41:56 | 7,60 Gb
Audio: English AC3 5.1/2.0 @ 448/192 Kbps | Subs: English, Spanish
Genre: Crime, Drama | 4 wins | USA
DVD9 | VIDEO_TS | NTSC 16:9 | 01:41:56 | 7,60 Gb
Audio: English AC3 5.1/2.0 @ 448/192 Kbps | Subs: English, Spanish
Genre: Crime, Drama | 4 wins | USA
Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) is a Wall Street yuppie obsessed with success, status and style with a stunning fiancйe (Reese Witherspoon). He is also a psychotic killer who rapes, murders and dismembers both strangers and acquaintances without provocation or purpose. Based on the controversial novel by Bret Easton Ellis, the film offers a sharp satire to the dark side of yuppie culture in the '80s, while setting forth a vision that is both terrifying and chilling.
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Director Mary Harron (I Shot Andy Warhol) seems to press all the right buttons for this film based on Easton Ellis's fabulous but genuinely horrifying book.
Briton Christian Bale is perfectly cast as Patrick Bateman, the titular anti-hero, a 1980s Wall Street yuppie whose self-obsession rings painfully true. He's exquistely dressed and buffed to perfection, his appearance representing his values. Well, superficially. When he dons an apron and selects a large kitchen knife his inner identity comes to the fore.
American Psycho (2000)
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Where the novel was exquisitely sick, the film version necessarily skips over Bateman's more creative ways of dispatching his victims, and his fantasies. Arguably, this glosses over Ellis' finer points. Harron, who also co-scripted with Guinevere Turner, instead incorporates a fine element of slapstick in lieu of Ellis' more literal stomanch-churning descriptions (so no face-drilling; instead we're treated to the sight of Bale chasing a victim with a chainsaw). Plus, there's the running joke of Bateman admitting to his proclivities in conversation - but as everyone is equally self obsessed, they don't listen and no one hears ("I'm into murders and executions" he declares of his professional concerns).
American Psycho (2000)
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A glimpse of the book's more elaborate satire also shines, though. Bateman's lecture on the superiority of Genesis with Phil Collins as opposed to Peter Gabriel is enough to make anyone scream in absolute terror.
American Psycho (2000)
It may be a tough film to watch, but Mary Harron's American Psycho (2000)–-based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name–-is even tougher to write about. Upon my first viewing of the movie a few years back, I wasn't really sure what to make of it. Was it a tightly-wound social commentary about the excess of 1980s culture? Was it a black comedy, a twisted satire, a horror film…or something else entirely?
American Psycho (2000)
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For obvious reasons, the heated controversy surrounding the original novel's 1991 release almost ensured a film adaptation would never see the light of day. Feminist groups denounced the novel's depiction of violence towards women, leading to an extremely high amount of public backlash and frequent banning of the book (the American Library Association even named American Psycho as #50 in the 'Top 100 most frequently challenged books of the 1990s'). After the dust settled a few years later, the plans for a film adaptation were set in motion. Harron was eventually placed at the helm, with her screenplay (co-written by Guinevere Turner) being chosen over an offering by Ellis himself. It took a few years before the finished product was completed, thanks to a heavily-debated casting process for the leading man (eventually won by Christian Bale of current Batman fame). Like all adaptations, there were trims, additions and alterations to the book; nonetheless, many fans testify that the film does a fine job retaining the heavy tone of Ellis' original vision.
American Psycho (2000)
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For those new to American Psycho in any form, it follows the exploits of one Patrick Bateman (Bale): young, good-looking and wealthy. The year is 1987; the city, Manhattan; in short, a perfect time and place to be all three. Surrounded by a gaggle of interchangeable yuppies in business suits at Pierce & Pierce, the company Bateman's father practically owns, his life consists of exclusive restaurant reservations, platinum credit cards and the occasional line of cocaine. Other than the drugs and alcohol, Bateman is as body-conscious as they come (a lengthy account of his morning routine early in the film is sufficient enough proof). Still, he's anything but happy with his life.
American Psycho (2000)
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Below his surface lies a violent and dangerous streak, showing us an elitist who hates his elite surroundings. His compulsive hygiene and cleanliness habits show us a man who scrubs foolishly at permanent stains. His constant stabs at perfection show us that it can never be reached…and probably shouldn't anyway. Hypocritical offhand remarks towards various social groups and races show us a man who can't hide behind his paranoia. We see a killer emerge; a man who keeps duct tape, axes and nail guns tucked away beside coat hangers and bedsheets. He's transformed into a man who murders out of pure contempt for those around him, often making no genuine effort to hide his thoughts and impulses. We're inside his head for the entire film: we hear his first-person narrative, the pop music in his headphones, and–-most importantly–-everything that everyone else ignores.
We just can't do anything to stop it, and neither can he.
American Psycho (2000)
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The road to DVD has been a bit confusing for American Psycho. It was first released by Universal in regular and unrated versions; the latter added several cursory shots during the infamous "Sussudio" three-way, though the film's total body count remained the same. Both discs went out of print, so Lions Gate released a third version that only offered the theatrical cut. Now, the same studio has brought forth the awfully-titled Killer Collector's Edition, bringing back the unrated version and causing DVD consumers' wallets and heads to simultaneously explode. None of the previous discs offered much in the way of bonus features, and that's what mostly sets this new version apart from the others.
American Psycho (2000)
Special Features:
- Commentary from Director and co-writer Mary Harron
- Commentary from co-writer Guinevere Turner
- American Psycho: From Book To Screen
- 'The Pornography of Killing' video essay by Holly Willis
- The 80's: Downtown
- Deleted scenes with optional director's commentary
- TV Spots and trailers
American Psycho (2000)
No More Mirrors.