My Rating: 8.5/10

I’ll be honest, the first time I watched this film, I didn’t fully know what to make of it. It’s one of those movies where you finish it and immediately sit there thinking, “What exactly did I just experience?” But the more I reflect on it, the more I respect what it accomplishes.

This isn’t just a serial killer film. It’s a satire. A dark, razor-sharp satire aimed directly at consumerism, ego, corporate culture, and the emptiness of status obsession. What makes it so effective to me is that the horror doesn’t just come from violence, it comes from how shallow and interchangeable everyone feels. The business card scene alone says more about toxic masculinity and fragile ego than most films do in two hours.

Christian Bale absolutely carries this movie. His performance as Patrick Bateman is controlled chaos. He manages to be charismatic, absurd, hilarious, and deeply unsettling all at once. The way he switches from charming Wall Street elitist to cold, almost mechanical predator is disturbingly smooth. What impresses me most is the precision, every facial expression, every line delivery, every forced smile feels intentional. It’s one of those performances where you can tell the actor fully understood the satire.

Director Mary Harron deserves serious credit as well. The tone is difficult to balance, too serious and it becomes grotesque; too comedic and it undermines the horror. Somehow, she walks that line. The violence is stylized, sometimes exaggerated to the point where you question whether it’s even real, which is exactly the point. The ambiguity surrounding what actually happened adds another psychological layer that I appreciate more with each viewing.

What I personally find fascinating is how empty Patrick is. Beneath the designer suits, skincare routines, and curated playlists, there’s nothing there. He isn’t driven by passion or even true hatred, he’s driven by boredom and insecurity. The film almost suggests that the real horror isn’t the murders, but the hollow identity manufactured by materialism and competition.

If I had a critique, it would be that the film can feel repetitive in its structure. Some of the sequences blur together intentionally, but for certain viewers, that may make the pacing feel uneven. And while I appreciate the ambiguity, I understand why some people find the ending frustrating rather than thought-provoking.

Still, I respect the boldness. I respect that it doesn’t spoon-feed answers. And I respect how confidently it leans into its satire without apologizing for it.

For me, this is an 8.5 out of 10. It’s stylish, disturbing, darkly funny, and anchored by one of the most committed performances I’ve seen. It’s not a conventional horror film, and it’s definitely not for everyone, but if you engage with what it’s actually saying, it’s far more layered than it appears on the surface.