Christian Bale’s portrayal of banker and serial killer Patrick Bateman in the psychological horror film American Psycho is hard to forget. It is often thought of as his greatest ever performance, even compared to the likes of The Dark Knight and The Machinist. The supporting cast of the film was also made up of current A-listers, including Reese Witherspoon, Jared Leto, and Willem Defoe. American Psychowas adapted from the controversial 1991 novel of the same name by Bret Easton Ellis, though not without some major tweaking in certain areas.
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Much of the dialogue in the book was kept the same way in the film, but there were a couple of differences between the two. While the novel drew much backlash, the movie was well-received by both audiences and critics. The film changed many key aspects of the Bret Easton Ellis book, and comparing the differences between the American Psycho book and movie reveals that the character played by Christian Bale could have gone in a much more divisive direction.
10 Bateman’s Admission About His Sanity
Jean Wasn’t Drawn In Bateman’s Madness In The Book
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Patrick Bateman’s mental state is a core theme of both versions of American Psycho. However, the book and movie explore it in slightly different ways. In the Brett Easton Ellis novel, after committing a number of murders, Bateman comes to the realization that he indeed does have a mental problem. In the 1991 book, he calls an escort to his apartment and while she is leaving, he confesses to her how he thinks he is losing his mind.
In the 2000 movie adaptation by writer/director Mary Harron, the same conversation happens, only that the escort is replaced with Bateman’s secretary Jean. For most of the movie, Jean expresses feelings of attraction towards Bateman, and he knows this, so he sees her as the perfect person to confess to. Sadly, Jean dies a short while later after getting dissected by a fallen chainsaw.
9 Homophobia
Christian Bale’s Patrick Bateman Was Stripped Of His Bigotry
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Patrick Bateman in American Psycho is one of the most controversial movie characters of the 21st century. However, he shockingly could have been much worse, as the on-page Patrick Bateman is incredibly prejudiced and bigoted in addition to being a sociopathic killer with a tenuous grip on reality. The book version of Bateman is extremely homophobic.
Throughout his thoughts in the Brett Easton Ellis American Psycho novel, Patrick Bateman constantly criticizes gay people, and, on one occasion, he brutally murders an old gay man when he tries to hit on him at Central Park. As if that’s not enough, he goes ahead and strangles the man’s dog to death, too. Christian Bale’s character in the movie kills senselessly too, but he doesn’t have an excessively violent attitude towards gay people. He only uses an expletive against members of the LGBTQ+ community once while chatting with his colleagues.
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8 Obsession With Musicians
The On-Page Bateman Is An Audiophile With A Hyperfocus On Several Artists
Music was a key part of what made the American Psycho movie so celebrated, but it’s an even more integral component of the original Brett Easton Ellis novel, especially when it comes to Patrick Batemen as a character. In the 1991 American Psycho book, the literary version of Bateman is disturbingly obsessed with a trio of then-contemporary musicians. In fact, the book almost threatens to be a commentary about the music industry. It dedicates three full chapters to talking about three specific popular singers at the time, namely: Whitney Houston, Phil Collins, and Huey Lewis.
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By the time Mary Harron’s movie adaptation of American Psycho came out in 2000, most of these singers were no longer as big as they used to be, so the movie leaves all that out. Christian Bale’s version of Bateman does express his love for music on a few occasions – such as when he carries out a particularly gruesome kill while listening to “Hip To Be Square” by Huey Lewis – but he doesn’t show any kind of obsession with celebrities as he does with his murder victims.
Related Hip To Be Square: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About American Psycho
Based on Bret Easton Ellis’ controversial novel, Mary Harron’s American Psycho made a star of Christian Bale. Here’s the movie’s off-screen story.
7 How Bateman Kills Bethany
Patrick Bateman’s Ex-Girlfriend Meets An Even More Brutal Fate In The American Psycho Book
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One of the most brutal kills in the movie version of American Psycho comes when Patrick Bateman murders his ex-girlfriend, Bethany. However, this death was changed significantly from the 1991 Bret Easton Ellis novel, and as shocking as it seems, Mary Harron actually toned down the grizzly killing from the on-page American Psycho. In the book, Bateman meets his ex-girlfriend Bethany for lunch. The two have a very fruitful conversation as opposed to their usual arguments, so Bethany decides to accompany him back to his place.
Once both are back at Patrick’s apartment in the American Psycho book, he kills Bethany with a mace, stabs her repeatedly, then bites her fingers off. He then laughs uncontrollably. The same great reunion date between Patrick and Bethany happens in the movie too, and while also incredibly violent, it’s thankfully less sadistic. It is revealed that Bateman even wrote a poem for Bethany. Back at his apartment, he suffocates her with a plastic bag and shoots her repeatedly with a nail gun. He later confirms this to his lawyer.
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6 The Murder Of A Young Boy
The Patrick Bateman Of The Book Has Almost No Limits To His Violence
There is one particular moment in the American Psycho book which, had it been included in the movie, may have made Mary Harron’s adaptation of the story even more divisive and controversial to the point releasing it may have been difficult. Bateman’s violence knows no limits in the novel. During a visit to the zoo, he slices a little boy’s neck. At the moment, he enjoys it, but he later voices his regret. He criticizes himself for killing the boy, since children have no mistakes to pay for. After that incident, he vows to never commit such an act again.
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This scene is scrapped entirely from the American Psycho movie, and the film is much better for it. The movie version of Bateman makes his views about children clear during a dinner sitting. He states that he wishes adults were as uncorrupted as children. He has this view from the very beginning, as opposed to the book version, which only ends up having this point of view after killing a child.
5 Bateman’s Watch
Product Placement In The American Psycho Book Backfired
In both the movie and the book version of American Psycho, Bateman is very sensitive about his watch. The watch is described as a Rolex Datejust 16013. Like musicians, Bateman is much more obsessed with his watch in the Brett Easton Ellis book than he is in Mary Harron’s version of the story for the 2000 movie. In fact, Bateman mentions his watch a total of 26 times in the American Psycho novel, but a problem emerged from this.
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Apparently, the manufacturer of Rolex watches watch wasn’t happy about the heavy product placement in such a controversial book. The company thus barred the producers from including the watch in the movie. Consequently, a scene where Bateman tells two prostitutes “Don’t touch the Rolex!” in the novel was changed to “don’t touch the watch!” in the movie.
4 Total Number Of Murders
Bateman Is A Much More Prolific Killer On The Page
One of the most notable differences between the book and movie of American Psycho is how many people Patrick Bateman kills in the two versions. Perhaps due to the limitations of time, the movie version of Bateman has way fewer on-screen victims than the book version. In the book, the serial killer murders more than 50 people within a short span of time before the story reaches its conclusion.
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A total of 23 victims can be counted in the American Psycho movie, less than half of the body-count of Patrick Bateman’s literary counterpart. However, a scene where Bateman’s secretary shows up as he is reading a notebook reveals more victims listed. This means that he killed way more people off-screen. The murders that are never shown happen to be the more gruesome ones from the book. This decision was definitely taken to make the film more palatable.
3 The Reasons For Bateman’s Actions
Patrick Bateman Rationalizes His Actions In The American Psycho Novel
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Not only is the number of kills much higher in the American Psycho novel, but the on-page version of Patrick Bateman gives a great deal more clarity when it comes to his motivations. The beauty of the novel is that Bateman gives a reason for everything he has done or he is about to do. Before Bateman murders someone in the book version of American Psycho, he gives a detailed explanation, ranging from the person’s habits to their beliefs. Of course, none of his explanations are justifications for murder, but the reader gets to understand why he making specific decisions.
This isn’t the case for Christian Bale’s interpretation of the character, who leaves a lot of things for audiences to figure out. Even though the plot flows smoothly, “why did he just do that?” is a question any viewer will ask a lot when watching the movie. This marks one of the greatest tone shifts when adapting the American Psycho novel for the screen. The movie version of Patrick Bateman comes across as much more nihilistic, which in turn makes his acts of violence appear near-senseless, giving Mary Harron’s American Psycho an extra layer of thematic depth not present in the Brett Easton Ellis book.
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2 Level Of Violence
Amazingly, The Controversial Movie Is The Toned-Down Version Of The Story
A key reason the American Psycho movie was so controversial on release was the amount of brutal violence present throughout. This is why many fans find it shocking that, compared to the book, Mary Harron’s 2000 film version of Patrick Bateman’s murderous antics are, if anything, tame. The level of violence in the novel is quite disturbing. Even singer Phil Collins, who is mentioned a lot in the book, refused to read it.The violent scenes in the American Psycho book are much more graphic, with entire pages dedicated to describing a single murder.
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As a result of its gruesome content, the novel was banned in several countries. In the American Psycho movie, however, there is nothing that hasn’t been witnessed before in other horror films. The kills are all within the realm of horror movie normalcy, and no scene stretches out more than it should. Some of the murder scenes are even thought of as creative. Movie Bateman also spares some people, while book Bateman doesn’t.
Related 10 Continuity Errors & Plot Holes In American Psycho
American Psycho is a chilling film following the murderous Patrick Bateman, but it’s also filled with continuity errors and plot holes.
1 Donald Kimball’s Age
From Ambitious Up-And-Comer To Jaded Veteran
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Patrick Bateman isn’t the only character that went through changes when Mary Harron adapted the Bret Easton Ellis story or the American Psycho movie. In the American Psycho book, Detective Donald Kimball is described as an ambitious and relentless young law enforcement officer about Bateman’s age. Bateman is 26, so that means Kimball is in his 20s, too. After Bateman kills Allen with an ax, Kimball is the first person to interrogate him about the murder.
Though his age is not stated, the Kimball portrayed in the American Psycho movie is older. The character is played by Willem Defoe, who was in his mid-forties at the time the movie came out. Kimball is presented as a jaded and cynical veteran cop, with wisdom and experience Bateman has to think on his toes to stay ahead of – a vastly different dynamic from the young and ambitious detective in the American Psycho book.
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7/10 8.8/10 American Psycho R
Based on the book of the same name by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho follows Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) an investment banker in New York in 1987 who leads a double life as a serial killer. As investigators circle Bateman after the disappearance of a colleague, he finds himself trapped in a spiral of murder and excess, unable to stop himself from giving in to his increasingly dark urges. Also stars Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Justin Theroux, and Reese Witherspoon.
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*Availability in US Director Mary Harron Release Date April 14, 2000 Cast Jared Leto , Reese Witherspoon , Chloe Sevigny , Willem Dafoe , Justin Theroux , Christian Bale Runtime 101 minutes
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