American Psycho looks like a movie about a rich, psychotic murderer but that’s just the surface. The real horror isn’t the violence, it’s the world that enables it. Patrick Bateman is not just a character, he’s a walking metaphor, a living representation of 1980s consumer culture, masculinity, and the emptiness of modern identity.
This movie isn’t about what happens, it’s about what it means.
At its core, American Psycho is an assault on materialism. The world of Patrick Bateman is one where people are defined not by their thoughts, morals, or personalities, but by what they own.
Think about the obsessions that drive every character in the film:
The business cards aren’t just paper, they’re a measure of status and power.
The restaurant reservations aren’t about food, they’re about being seen in the right place.
The clothing brands aren’t about fashion, they’re about proving wealth and exclusivity.
Metaphor: The business cards represent how society reduces people to branding. Everyone in Bateman’s world is a product, not a person.
Nobody in Bateman’s world has real interests, real passion, or real depth. Their entire existence revolves around outperforming one another in meaningless competitions. Bateman, in many ways, is the perfect product of this system, he’s rich, attractive, successful. But inside, he’s completely empty. This is why the business card scene is so important. It’s not just about jealousy, it’s about the fragility of identity in a world where worth is based on superficial details. When Bateman sees that Paul Allen’s card is slightly better than his, he spirals into a full-blown existential crisis.
This extends to his relationships, his job, even his murders. They aren’t driven by emotion. They’re just another status game. Bateman kills Paul Allen not out of rage, but because Paul Allen “wins” in the game of status. He has the better card, the better apartment, the better restaurant reservations, so Bateman erases him.
But No one even notices.
Throughout the film, Bateman struggles with one question: does he even exist?
He has a name, a job, a reputation, but does he have an actual identity?
Bateman isn’t a real person, even to himself. He doesn’t have passions, deep thoughts, or genuine emotions. All he has is the performance of being Patrick Bateman. This is why mirrors are such a dominant symbol in the movie.
But the more he searches for validation of his existence, the more he realizes there’s nothing there. His obsession with status, beauty, wealth is supposed to make him feel superior, but instead, it makes him feel like a ghost in his own life. This ties into the film’s brilliantly ambiguous ending.