Whilst horror is arguably still a relatively male dominated genre, it’s great to see the prevalence of female directors putting out incredible films in recent years. Despite the ladies making waves in the industry, there still seems to be occasional incredulity when successful features are directed by women – as though such instances are exceptions worth highlighting. But exceptional female directed features are nothing new – and a perfect example comes in the form of an adaption of a classic novel that was released at the turn of the millennium.
American Psycho
Director : Mary Harron
Though the theatrical adaption of the novel from Brett Easton Ellis was released in 2000, over 20 years later I still encounter people every now and then who are surprised that American Psycho was directed by a woman.
On the face of it, I can understand why. The film is set in New York City and centres around the yuppies of Wall Street, focusing on the unravelling of sadistic Patrick Bateman (portrayed by Christian Bale). I’d like to think that the surprise isn’t down to a woman making such a successful genre film, but instead due to the treatment of women throughout the feature. Female characters are routinely subjected to violence and abuse, their narratives restricted to the sidelines and their characters disregarded by the predominately male cast.
Whilst this may initially seem an usual theme for a woman to tackle in such a way, the violence within American Psycho doesn’t feel exploitative – instead, Harron allows the satirical subtext to shine through with the feature making more of a point on toxic masculinity and consumerism.
On the surface, Patrick Bateman seems to have it all going for him. A sculpted physique, successful career and beautiful fiancé, but beneath the affluent, polished exterior is a darkness that bubbles close to the surface – threatening to rise and derail his ‘perfect’ life of material achievements. Despite maintaining appearances in public, the audience is quickly introduced to Patrick Bateman behind closed doors – a materialistic, ritualistic narcissist void of emotion who seems to be a physical personification of the textbook definition of ‘psychopath’.
Whilst Patrick displays a carefully crafted exterior to the world, the audience is witness to events behind the curtain that reveal his sadistic impulses and murderous lust.
As the film progresses, the audience begins to question elements of Bateman’s life that may in reality be as false as the emotions he displays in public. Despite his apparent success and standing in society, he is still unable to secure a table at the elusive ‘Dorsia’ restaurant – much to his chagrin, though the restaurant itself is unimportant, the worth being placed solely on its exclusivity.
Whilst American Psycho is based on the novel of the same name, some of the more graphic elements of the book have been removed – with Harron instead choosing to focus on Patrick and his state of mind as opposed to his actions and the violence itself. Although his violent impulses grow, the viewer rarely witnesses the gruesome aftermath. When Bateman murders his colleague violently with an axe, the shot remains fixed on Bateman and the crimson blood that splatters his face after each thwack. Similarly, when the bloodied and traumatised women flee his apartment, there is only the suggestion of what happened – which is powerful enough in and of itself without actually having to see the acts depicted.
Later in the film, one of the women is reluctant to return to Patrick’s apartment – indicating the last time had resulted in her hospitalisation. Whilst we never find out explicitly what happens, we don’t need to be told. In what feels like a clever nod to the female viewers, we already know what men can do to women.
There a lot of subtle elements of American Psycho that will be all too familiar to women watching. On more than one occasion, Patrick begins talking at length about a topic – seemingly unperturbed by his audience’s lack of enthusiasm. In fact, it seems he doesn’t require anyone’s approval – just their attention. Most women will recognise the pained, bored expressions on the women’s faces as they are expected to listen to his monologue, even though they have no interest. But this lack of interest doesn’t break Bateman’s stride because he isn’t trying to impress the women. He doesn’t care what they think. His words are more for himself, a dialogue akin to his fascination with himself in the mirror.
Patrick isn’t the only one guilty of such self absorbed behaviour. The men in his circle all display the same narcissism, and despite their athleticism and apparent success – they are fundamentally undesirable. The women who do remain close seem oblivious to the ambivalence the men show towards them – instead they are focused on the prestige of success.
It’s hardly surprising the men of the film are so often mistaken for each other – a commentary on both the shallow similarities as a result of the culture and the implication of narcissism to such a degree that no one truly acknowledges anyone other than themselves.
Despite Patrick’s increasingly erratic behaviour and questionable actions, no one seems to react. From the bloodstained sheets at the dry cleaners to his increasingly frequent references to murder and serial killers – no one appears to find his words or actions particularly odd.
Does his success and status prevent him being questioned, or is there more at play?
Whilst it is clear that Patrick lies about his status and success to his peers, could it be that he lies to us the viewer too? How much of his murderous actions actually took place?
When it is revealed that the man who Patrick killed is alive after all, there are a number of possibilities.
Is it true that money can buy anything? With Patricks standing, have steps been taken to cover his actions?
Could it be that the man he killed was not the man he thought it was? After all, no one seems to truly know nor care who anyone else is?
Or is it that the events we have witnessed did not actually occur as we saw, instead – playing out only in Patricks mind?
American Psycho beautifully crafts a story of male ego that has so much more to it than what is on the surface. One thing is for certain – Christian Bale absolutely nails Patrick Bateman’s soulless presentation. Admittedly I’m not a huge fan of Bale, finding him a bit one note and emotionless – but ironically these characteristics are exactly what make him great in this role.
The novel has sat on my bookshelf for years, having started it a number of times and never quite committed to seeing it through. I do intend to read it as I’m interested to see the differences between the film and the source material, particularly to see if the same themes come across.
I’d be keen to hear what you think of both the book or the film.
Do you wish the film included more of the violence it alluded to, or do you think the subtlety works?
Let me know what you think!
