Also includes a behind-the-scenes interview with Justin Theroux about 80s hedonism. He wears a 1938 Platinum Breguet Minute Repeater worth over $217,000. In Australia and New Zealand, as of 2010, it is sold shrink-wrapped and classified R18. Bateman tells her he thought it was "hip," and she tells him it couldn't be, because Donald Trump goes there. He tells Bateman he's leaving, that he's had enough, and then jumps off the balcony, charges through the crowd and disappears out the door. When he arrives however, the apartment is bare, cleared of all possessions, and the gruesome mess left in the wake of his murders is gone. Edit, When comparing business cards with his co-workers, Bateman tells them that the font in which his card is written is Silian Rail.This is not a real font, the name was invented by Bret Easton Ellis for the novel. That's not Reed Robinson." None of them care that he has just confessed to being a serial killer because it just doesn't matter; they have more important things to worry about. And it's funny, it's making fun of that, and I find that to be so powerful in the book, it's just outright mockery of male behavior. [the complete article is available here] As he has an extensive exercise and beauty routine to make himself look good and young. American Psycho is a 2000 horror film directed by Mary Harron, who co-wrote the screenplay with Guinevere Turner.Based on the 1991 novel by Bret Easton Ellis, it stars Christian Bale as Patrick Bateman, a New York City investment banker who leads a double life as a serial killer. Analysis. I would much prefer to see him skinned alive, a rat put up his rectum, and his genitals cut off and fried in a frying pan, in front of - not only a live audience - but a video camera as well. Bateman always tries to make himself out to look more important than everyone else around him, such as during the business card scene, where he tries to show off his card to look important and cool. A further example is when Bateman reluctantly attends a U2 concert with Evelyn. But there is also the suggestion (as in Fight Club (1999)) that Bateman's escaping from his life by re-imagining it, which is the only way for him to assert control. Yet due to run time, and content wise, there is much that is different from the novel.Some Minor Differences are,The character of Donald Kimble is a man around Bateman's age, 27, or 28. External Reviews These are the major differences between the film and it's source material. What work do you do? This is a highly unusual narrative technique, suggestive of a sizable shift in consciousness and focalization, and an altogether different narrative perspective. Mistaken identity is now working on different two levels; Allen's mistaking of Bateman for Halberstram, and Halberstram's mistaking of someone else for Bateman.Another small example of mistaken identity is seen when Bateman enters the first office building towards the end of the film, where he is called Mr. Smith by the security guard. He's desperately trying to stand out as an individual, which is arguably why he's killing people, and he can't get noticed. Is that you?," to which Bateman dead-pan replies, "No Luis, it's not me, you're mistaken. The idea being that he gets so hysterical he's just straight up begging somebody to listen to him confessing to all these crimes, and there's still no reaction, and it's almost like he gives up. However, nowhere in either the film or the novel is the exact nature of Bateman's job explained, nor do we ever see him actually doing any work.According to Mary Harron on her DVD commentary, the lack of specifics and failure to identify his exact role are thematically important and offer a commentary on Bateman's psychological state; LitCharts Teacher Editions. "B: "Why not you stupid bastard? PDF downloads of all 1699 LitCharts literature guides, and of every new one we publish. This theory is examined in more detail below. TIME and Spy, a satirical journal built upon a mockery of all things 80s (in a similar vein to the novel), obtained drafts of the novel and ran with the story, with Spy referring to it as "misogynistic barbarism. Meanwhile, Davis goes to see his father and tells him that he knows about the company, and, shocked and horrified, Ferguson staggers to a chair and attempts to sit down. But the most important thing he says is that there's no catharsis, and that's what we come to expect conventionally from character and character development; they come to this point and they're changed forever, they are no longer the person that we met, but the disturbing thing about this story, and the way we intended it is that we start just where we left off. On a more analytical level, videotapes could also function as something of a status symbol (Bateman is so rich and cool, he can rent huge amounts of videotapes whenever he wants, and most nights, that's exactly what he does). It is usually categorized and diagnosed by a set of behaviors. Of course brokers work very hard, but this isn't a realistic portrayal of office life. Patrick Bateman is a wealthy investment banker in his 20's in the late 1980's. We follow him as he and his friends live a life of vanity, drugs, and a lot of violence. His best friend is Simone de Reveney, a multi-billionaire and the largest refiner of Russian gold in the world.Over the course of the emails, it is revealed that in 1991, Bateman married Jean, his former secretary (played by Chlo Sevigny in the film), although by 2000 they are going through a nasty divorce, battling for custody of their eight-year-old son, Patrick Bateman Jr. (who Bateman refers to as PB, and says he is an intellectual prodigy, uninterested in childish distractions). A Stephen Hughes said he saw him at a restaurant there, but I checked it out and what happened is he mistook a Herbert Ainsworth for Paul. He gets his hair cut every twelve days by the best hairstylist in New York. Is there any explicit violence toward animals shown in this movie? Bloodstained Kleenex will lie crumpled by the side of the bed along with an empty carton of Italian seasoning salt I picked up at Dean & Deluca. It is still banned completely in Queensland. So although it's supposed to have a surreal feel, it's real.Again, this theory ties into the film's social critique. These are: Patrick crossing his arms during the jump-rope scene, and Patrick doing a moonwalk to hide his ax before killing Paul Allen. What did Patrick Bateman do with the coat hanger? Edit, Mistaken identity is a major theme in both the film and the novel, and some fans argue that it is in the recurring cases of mistaken identity wherein lies the true meaning of the film.In the novel, the phrase "someone who looked exactly like" or variations thereof, occur continuously; time and again Bateman encounters people who may or may not be the person he thinks they are. Donald Kimball (played by Willem Dafoe in the film) is now the Police Commissioner and has become a good friend of Bateman. Edit, There are five deleted scenes on the Killer Collector's Edition DVD. Wolfe responds by telling him there was no ad in the Times. Bale's father, David Bale married feminist activist Gloria Steinem in 2000. What are the differences between the R-rated cut and the unrated cut of the film? In this sense then, Bateman serves as a metaphor, as do the very real murders. "C: "That's simply not possible. (film) American Psycho is a 2000 film about a young, well-to-do man who isn't quite as normal as he seems and secretly is a serial killer. Bateman also reveals that he still does the occasional line of coke and is still taking Xanax. (p. 107). "C: "Bateman killing Allen and the escort girls, that's fabulous, that's rich. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. Its almost as if hes blacked out while narrating. "B: "Maybe he did, huh? It is simply another component of his psychosis, which also includes fantasies of killing and torture. Similarly, in the novel, when Bateman arrives at a club called Tunnel, he looks around and muses to himself "Everyone looks familiar, everyone looks the same" (p. 61). Patrick Bateman : Well, actually, that's none of your business, Christie. Bateman, McDermott, Bryce and Van Patten are sitting at a table and McDermott looks across the room and asks, "Is that Reed Robinson over there," to which Bryce replies, "Are you freebasing? Edit, Yes. The women are uninterested in small talk; this is as much a transaction for them as it if for Bateman. Why isn't it possible? This theory is supported by the novel, where it is strongly implied that Wolfe knows about the murders and realizes that Bateman is involved (p. 369).This interpretation is best explained by actress/co-screenwriter Guinevere Turner on her DVD commentary;To me, the more disturbing part about this scene is that here's this real estate agent who really doesn't give a fuck what happened in this apartment and knows damn well what kind of state it was in. Written by Mary Harron and Guinevere Turner, based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis. And whilst that is a perfectly valid interpretation, as Harron indicates above, it is not entirely what the filmmakers were attempting to achieve. The actor Christian Bale portrays a wealthy investment banker, Patrick Bateman, who is driven by ambition and murder in the film American Psycho. It's ambiguous in the novel whether or not it's real, or how much of it is real, and we decided, right off the bat, first conversation about the book, that we hate movies, books, stories that ended and "it was all a dream" or "it was all in his head". In Brisbane, the novel is available to those over 18 from public libraries only; bookstores are not allowed to carry it, although they can order copies for a private buyer if one makes a specific request. The vapid society they have created is a place where no one has any real interaction with anyone else; they all talk to one another, they all hear one another, but they don't listen to one another. It ends up being an indictment of machismo and misogyny. The information shared above about the question what did patrick bateman do to christie and sabrina, certainly helped you get the . For instance, the book shows how the excesses of the 1980s were manifested in warped relations, not only between men and women but also among men. Marcus Halberstram (played by Anthony Lemke in the film) has left the United States after being implicated in the still unexplained disappearance of Paul Owen (Paul Owen is called Paul Allen in the film where he is played by Jared Leto). The novel's graphic descriptions of the murder and sexual mutilation of women continued to be attacked as inexcusable and Ellis received numerous death threats and hate mail. From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. Completely incapable of grasping the idea of someone eating a normal chicken for dinner. And to me you're supposed to be left with a feeling of emptiness, like fear, nothingness, no one's paying attention, nothing matters. He has a manservant named Ricardo who follows him everywhere and is always on hand. Elizabeth is oblivious to her surroundings, having no idea that Christie is a prostitute and assuming that she can just call to purchase drugs whenever shed like. What does Patrick Bateman do in the book? Sean also appeared in a small scene in the American Psycho novel. [p. 157] Another good example is in the restaurant Arcadia where "someone who I think is Hamilton Conway mistakes me for someone named Ted Owen" (p. 262).In the film, the theme of mistaken identity is also important, albeit to a slightly lesser degree than in the novel. She has made a movie that is really a parable of today. This scene is removed entirely from the film.Another major scene from the novel removed from the film, is when Bateman tortures a woman by forcing a Rat into a woman's vagina, and trapping it inside forcing the rat to eat its way out while Bateman chops off her legs with a chainsaw.While there are many more differences between the film and novel. An important aspect of this question is Bateman's destruction of the police car, which explodes after he fires a single shot, causing even himself to look incredulously at his gun; many argue that this incident proves that what is happening is not real, and therefore, nothing that has gone before can be verified as being real either. Summary: American Psycho is a 2000 horror film directed by Mary Harron, who co-wrote the screenplay with Guinevere Turner. PDF downloads of all 1699 LitCharts literature guides, and of every new one we publish. Low rated: 2. I want to die" (p. 295). "No sooner had Simon & Schuster pulled out of publishing the novel however, when, in a controversial move, the president and editor-in-chief of Vintage Books, Sonny Mehta, stepped in and announced that Vintage had purchased the publication rights from S&S. I killed Paul Allen, and I liked it. This functions as part of the film's critique of 80s hedonism - everyone looks alike, no one really knows anyone else, everyone is disconnected; they are all successful and wealthy, they all look great and eat well, they are all cultured and well travelled, but none of them have any kind of individuating characteristics, and none of them take the trouble to really know any of the others. As with the practical explanation of the mistaken identity theme and the Carnes conversation, this would tie it into the film's social critique; everyone looks alike, no one knows anyone else, and no one really listens to anyone else either. Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. There are better ways of taking care of Bret Easton Ellis than just censoring him. You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. Patrick's jaw tightens] Christie : You have a really nice place here, Paul. Though the first round of sex is pleasurable, the second round leaves the women incredibly hurt and distraught. Also includes a behind-the-scenes interview with Samantha Mathis about how the novel is harsher to men than woman. She responded by reading louder and was promptly arrested. Bateman orders "Christie" and Sabrina around, instructing them to go down on each other and stimulate one another to climax. After being released from jail, Baxter visited every bookstore in Santa Cruz and poured blood on every single copy of the novel she could find.This proved to be the last major incident in the controversy surrounding the novel (at least until it was announced that Leonardo DiCaprio was to star in a filmic adaptation in 1998), but such controversy was not limited to the United States. At one point, an extremely confused Bateman asks, "What shape was it cut into?" The book was originally set to be published in hardback by Simon & Schuster in March 1991. "Then, in their last scene together, Kimball tells Bateman that according to Allen's diary he was having dinner with Halberstram the night he died (which is correct insofar as Allen thought Bateman was Halberstram). He breaks countless rules/laws, such as commuting murder, not doing any work at his job, cheats on his fianc and much more. However, for those who know the novels upon which the films are based, there are a number of implicit connections. For example, New York ran a cover story on the novel and on Mehta's purchasing of its publication rights, and CNN read extracts from the novel live on-air.Upon Vintage's acquisition of the rights, feminist activist Tammy Bruce, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW), called for a nationwide boycott of all Vintage and Knopf books, with the specific exception of those by feminist authors, although she did call on such authors to sever their relationships with both companies. As such, if this scene is an hallucination, the question must be are all of his murders hallucinatory? Later, Elizabeth (played by Guinevere Turner in the film) tells him, "I don't have to work, Bateman. Is that true? It clarified that the novel was a critique of male behavior" (Charlie Rose interview).Guinevere Turner: We're not just having a gay old time showing women be killed by a serial killer, we're showing you a character and his panic. 14 American Psycho Behind-The-Scenes Facts You Might Not Know None of the people involved in either the original novel or the film had anything to do with the "sequel", and Bret Easton Ellis himself has condemned the film, distancing himself and the makers of American Psycho from it and emphasizing that the film is not a part of the official Bateman mythology. Highest rating: 3. Later, when Bateman is dining with Paul Allen, he tells him "I like to dissect girls. The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. The Novel is very clear that Patrick Bateman is a killer. There are so many questions about American Psycho's loving protagonist that, to this day, fans are still debating for answers. This lends credence to the theory that the entire sequence is a hallucination, which in turn lends credence to the suggestion that much of what we see in the film is also an hallucination.However, if this is the case, and if this sequence does represent pure fantasy, Harron ultimately came to feel that she had gone too far with the hallucinatory approach. What is the significance of returning videotapes? They literally cannot tell one another apart, nor do they particularly want to. How could Paul Allen's apartment have been empty when Bateman returned to clean it up? What is the significance of mistaken identity in the film? They lie quietly on either side of me, sometimes touching my chest, once in a while running their hands over the muscles in my abdomen. Patrick Bateman : I have all the characteristics of a human being: blood, flesh, skin, hair; but not a single, clear, identifiable emotion, except for greed and disgust. (1) Once again, the first theory is a practical one; the apartment is simply up for sale due to the disappearance of its former occupant. or listening to Kenny G on his Walkman; on his dates; during his exercise regime to perfect a lean sculpted body; the occasional murder he commits; his facials; dining out with colleagues; watching horror and porn videos; and constantly looking at himself in mirrors (even during sex), which of course, reveals nothing, and the movie - presented in gleaming wide-screen - is a visual representation of his mindset: sleek, cold, airless, a world where everything is ultimately about style. The second scene involves an ATM machine requesting that Bateman feed it a stray cat. For example; "I was fooling around renting videotapes" (p. 118 - explaining to Evelyn why he didn't take her call); "I've gotta return my videotapes, I've gotta return my videotapes" (p. 151 - during a mental breakdown); "It doesn't give me enough time to return yesterday's videotapes" (p. 229 - during lunch with his brother); "I have to return some videotapes" (p. 265 - trying to excuse himself from a date with Jean, despite it being midnight).On a practical level, the returning of videotapes seems to be Bateman's standard excuse to explain his whereabouts or to get out of something he's not interested in. The way the content is organized, LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in. American Psycho II is an unofficial spin-off which is not considered canon. Of this sequence, Mary Harron comments, You should not trust anything that you see. Mehta refused to meet with them.Ultimately, publication went ahead as planned in early 1991, and the novel instantly became a bestseller. This theory works on the premise that Carnes did have lunch with Paul Allen in London, that there is no issue of mistaken identity, and that Bateman's murder of Allen is purely the product of his own warped mind. He's probably going to hurt or kill the prostitutes, which is why they're trying to get away from him. Directed by Mary Harron. Everybody has a great body." However, throughout the course of the film, we also see business cards belonging to Timothy Bryce, Paul Allen, David Van Patten and Luis Carruthers, all of whom possess the exact same job title, thus suggesting that Vice President is not a particularly unique or important position. Definitions and examples of 136 literary terms and devices. "(2) The second theory is that Bateman isn't really saying such things out loud at all, his outbursts are all internal, but he psychologically manifests them as external. He is a 27-year-old Harvard graduate who now lives in New York City and works on Wall Street as an investment banker. What is the significance of returning videotapes? Here, money and sex are interchangeable in a certain kind of way of looking at the 80s, in which money was the erotic object, it was the source of eroticism in the 80s.American Psycho: From Book to Screen (2005)] Based on Bret Easton Ellis's 1991 novel . It's almost more disturbing now because he knows; he's more aware of what he's doing and he's going to keep doing it anyway. The movie we only get minor tellings of these, and usually it's when he is comparing himself with someone else.When Bateman talks with Paul Allen about Huey Lewis and the News, as well as the escorts about Phil Collins, and Whitney Houston. The final scene in the film marks his reappearance. There is also many similarities or things taken directly from the novel. Part of filling that void is trying to keep up with the Joneses, so to speak. In the book their names are Timothy Price, and Paul Owen. I should have left it more open ended. Guinevere Turner: This is a story about men living in a man's world, competing with each other over who has a better tan, who has better clothes. "You want me to floss with it? Otherwise it was amusing. However, before he can fire, he is interrupted by an old woman (Joyce R. Korbin). Mary Harron - American Psycho - This is Sussudio | Genius Bateman is in his apartment with a girl named Elizabeth and the prostitute he calls "Christie". From this point up to the moment he rings Carnes and leaves his confession on the answering machine, there is a question regarding the reality of the film; is what we are seeing really happening, or is it purely the product of a disturbed mind? Luis Carruthers (played by Matt Ross in the film) now works for Bateman, using his contacts in the entertainment industry to Bateman's advantage (as Bateman puts it, "sucking valuable information"). According to his business card, he is a vice president at Pierce & Pierce. Similarly, whether or not Bateman is really "dead" remains an open question. He and his male contemporaries are so weak, so shallow; no one looks good, the women don't look good, the men don't look good, no one looks good. Nothing matters, no one's paying attention, and so he might as well, since the only thing that he seems to feel real about or get excited about is killing people, so he might as well keep doing it; it doesn't matter, no one is going to notice. Henceforth why Bateman says "Don't touch the watch. Similarly, upon saying hello to these people, they usually respond by calling Bateman the wrong name. Yet due to observation and fan theories, it can be narrowed down to two personality disorders. Did Patrick Bateman Actually Kill Anyone In American Psycho Is it official? We can profit off of Ellis' terror and pain, just as he and bookstores are profiting off of the rape, torture, and mutilation of women. Definitions and examples of 136 literary terms and devices. Creating notes and highlights requires a free LitCharts account. Edit, After Bateman has had sex with Christie (Cara Seymour) and Sabrina (Krista Sutton), they are all lying together in bed, when he gets up and moves over to a drawer. Though Christie is reluctant to see Bateman again after being so badly beaten during their previous encounter, he knows that flaunting his money and using alcohol to cloud her judgment will get him just what he wants. Edit, The American Psycho Enhanced Story Presentation, with highlighted dialogue and over 100 screenshots placed in sync with the story. According to the film's official website, the videotape addiction is a metaphor for Bateman's "emotional isolation"; he has no real life himself, no real existence to keep him occupied, so he needs to fill that emptiness by continually immersing himself in the lives of others, i.e. What did Patrick Bateman do to Christie and Sabrina? In the film, the actual font seen on the business card is Garamond Classico SC. The deleted scenes and "The 80s: Downtown" are in 1080p. What does Bateman do to Christie and Sabrina after the first threesome? De Reveney then begins to purchase shares from Davis, and the only way Ferguson can stop him is by revealing his own interests in the company, thus exposing the illegality of his operation. However, the controversy was far from over. This would make the situation identical to when Allen thought he was having dinner with Halberstram when he was in fact having dinner with Bateman. Edit, The R1 Killer Collector Edition's DVD, released by Lions Gate Home Entertainment in 2005 contains the following special features: The unrated version of the film A digitally restored picture and a digitally remastered soundtrack available in 5.1 Dolby Digital EX Feature length audio commentary with co-writer/director Mary Harron Feature length audio commentary with co-writer/actress Guinevere Turner 5 deleted scenes with optional audio commentary by Mary Harron American Psycho: From Book to Screen (2005); a 49-minute "Making-of" documentary made exclusively for the Killer Collector's Edition DVD American Psycho: The Pornography of Killing - An Essay by Holly Willis (2005); a 7-minute video essay by cinema academic Holly Willis The 80s: Downtown (2005); a 31-minute documentary looking at the culture of 1980s New York US Theatrical Trailer and 4 TV SpotsThe R2 UK DVD, released by Entertainment in VIdeo in 2000 contains the same deleted scenes, a short featurette on the fashions in the film, cast and crew filmographies, and the UK Theatrical Trailer. I'm not Davis, I'm Patrick Bateman. We're just making so much fun of him. Halberstram then tells Kimball that he was at a club called Atlantis with Craig McDermott, Frederick Dibble, Harry Newman, George Butler and Bateman himself (which is inaccurate, insofar as Bateman was killing Paul Allen when Halberstram was at Atlantis). As usual, his sexual and sadistic violence has no effect on him, and he goes about his day as normal after. What is the significance of mistaken identity in the film? He uses his money to persuade her to come to his apartment, even though she isnt allowed; Bateman knows his money can get him anything. The acquisition of wealth supersedes all other goals, being successful becomes more important than being moral. American Psycho Ending Explained: Who Did Patrick Bateman Actually Kill? what did patrick bateman do to christie and sabrina Bateman does not describe what happens, but its clear his controlling and dominating nature has turned violent.