American Psycho

Mary Harron (2000, USA) based on a Bret Easton Ellis novel

Cast : Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Josh Lucas

Plot:
Patrick Bateman (Bale), A young, Wall Street yuppie struggles to keep his sanity in the world of excess & decadence that was NY in the 80s. He seems normal in apparence, but to fill the void of his existence, he takes great pleasure in murdering whoever displeases him, be it co-workers, friends, whores. But is this reality or his imagination?

Appreciation: 9/10
This is a gem. One of the very few good american movies in a long time. Simply put, it's delirious, full of sarcasm about the materialistic 80s society, and above all it's stylistically gory. It does that all very well. The rest don't matter.
I'm not going to talk much about the plot and how good it is or could have been, nor will I compare it to the book which I haven't read anyways. The key here is irony. If you realize how this is an accurate display of the 80s you can't help but be amused.
Bale gives a good performance, especially when going nuts, and the scenes where he puts on music and convincingly starts on with passionate and elaborate monologues about some artists just before killing his victims are absolutely delightful. That huge red mess he's provoking when slashing his victims is a nice contrast to the ultra-neat& cleanliness of his place (and general environment). Speaking of which, the photography is a bit neat for the period of time it depicts, but it gives a good look and atmosphere to the movie. It's really the exact opposite of zombie movies that always seem so dirty. This is what big budget horror movies should be all about. Not crap like "I know what you did last summer" and such..
It's been a while that I've seen it now so I can't say much more about it, but I sure will rent it and enjoy it as much as I did the first time on the big screen.

Other suggestions: Kakashi, any movie by Dario Argento (Bird with the crystal plumage, Opera, Phenomena)