Synopsis
In late-1980s Manhattan, wealthy investment banker Patrick Bateman carefully maintains the image of a polished, successful professional. Beneath his designer suits and rigid routines, however, lies a growing appetite for violence. As Bateman moves through an indifferent world of status, vanity, and corporate competition, his murders become increasingly disturbing, while the film leaves viewers questioning how much of his brutal double life is real.
Factoids & Trivia
- The film adapts Bret Easton Ellis' controversial 1991 novel, but emphasizes dark comedy and social satire rather than reproducing the book's most extreme material.
- Christian Bale drew inspiration for Bateman's unsettlingly cheerful surface from a Tom Cruise television interview. The performance combines exaggerated friendliness with emotional emptiness.
- Bale followed Bateman's elaborate morning grooming and exercise routine during production to help establish the character's obsessive discipline.
- Most of the film was shot in Toronto, despite being set in Manhattan. Several New York locations were also used for exterior footage.
- Fashion and watch companies placed restrictions on how their products could appear in scenes involving violence. This led to changes from some of the novel's brand-specific references.
- The production had difficulty securing prominent American corporate brands because of the novel's reputation. European fashion and cosmetics companies ultimately supplied much of the film's visual identity.
- Music rights were reportedly one of the production's largest expenses. The soundtrack's use of recognizable 1980s pop songs is central to the film's deliberately comic contrast between polished entertainment and horrific behavior.
- Leonardo DiCaprio and Oliver Stone were briefly attached to the project before departing. The change in direction allowed the production to return to Bale as its lead.
- Released in 2000, the film earned a cult following and became especially influential through widely shared clips, quotations, and online memes.