/5I'm not a fan of the film adaptation of American Psycho, but I am a huge fan of stories about fictional serial killers and privy to the fact that novels are often nothing like the films that they spawn, so I decided to give Bret Easton Ellis' novel a read. Having finished it late last night/early this morning, I can definitely say that reading the novel is a wholly different experience than watching the movie... but I don't think I can honestly say that I'm overall more impressed with the novel. I enjoy the premise of the story, I appreciate that Ellis was willing to write a piece so shocking and explicit that it leaves most writers and readers out of their element, but, quite frankly, I am not very impressed with this novel at all.
American Psycho (the novel) is a collection of "notes" recounting events in the life of Patrick Bateman, an extremely wealthy businessman on the surface, and a psychopathic murderer behind closed doors. Over the course of the novel, Patrick murders coworkers, prostitutes, and small dogs, consumes human flesh, starts a shootout on the street; he does a lot of crazy things... but one of the problems with the story is that he does a lot of totally boring things too. Ellis constantly goes into an extreme amount of detail about what brands, fabrics, and colours characters are wearing, and not in an interesting, detailed way, but as if he is ticking items off some drab, internal list. I understand that this is meant to be a social commentary, but it gets extremely old after the first four or five times and I found myself skimming through these sections rather than reading them. There are pages upon pages about Bateman and his friends making dinner reservations, reviewing 1980's albums, eatting at restaurants, basically talking about nothing... there is such a huge contrast between Bateman's normal, everyday life and his escapades as a serial killer. I understand that this can probably be noted as one of the charming aspects of this novel, but I dislike it. It makes the whole thing seem very disjointed, and the calm sections of the novel just drag on and on in a boring drone. Adding to this, the novel doesn't really have a plot. This is a story begging for a conclusion or a summative event that makes the whole piece worthwhile, but there isn't one: the novel just continues, continues, continues, and then ends. I still feel as if I should be reading it, but I'm not: I'm done. As it was, however, the novel doesn't seem to be.
I actually am borderline perplexed about the fact that this novel is so highly praised by critics, or, for that matter, was published at all. Its content is extremely explicit. The violence depicted is not your normal brand of splatter; it is actually surprisingly disgusting and somewhat difficult to read. There are two particular chapters that come to mind when I touch on this subject. In one, Bateman heats a woman's eyeballs with a lighter until they pop, and proceeds to drills a tunnel into her mouth with a circular drillbit. In another, he inserts a plastic habitrail filled with cheese into a woman's genitals, allowing a rat to crawl inside her and eat her entrails while she is still alive and alert. I would go so far as stating that I greatly enjoy reading violent novels, but American Psycho is just disgusting. As a publisher, I wouldn't have touched this novel with a ten foot pole, and I don't see how anyone with a weaker constitution than me or less of a penchant for violence could have stomached reading.
Lastly, I'd like to comment on Ellis' writing style. He is undoubedtly a talented, intelligent writer. In some segments of the novel, his choice of language and anologies are stunning to read; however, this is not a trend that extends to the whole novel. Most of the story is written in very vague terms, and the whole thing is virtually void of description, aside from the yawn-worthy listings of suit cuts and shirt brands. Only material items are described (and very blandly), never surroundings, characters, concepts, feelings... there is nearly zero imagery, aside from strange, randomly added passages that have no apparent importance to the larger picture. Ellis obviously has a lot of potential that is untapped in American Psycho, and I'm guessing is likewise untapped in his sequential novels.
Lastly, I'd like to comment on Ellis' writing style. He is undoubedtly a talented, intelligent writer. In some segments of the novel, his choice of language and anologies are stunning to read; however, this is not a trend that extends to the whole novel. Most of the story is written in very vague terms, and the whole thing is virtually void of description, aside from the yawn-worthy listings of suit cuts and shirt brands. Only material items are described (and very blandly), never surroundings, characters, concepts, feelings... there is nearly zero imagery, aside from strange, randomly added passages that have no apparent importance to the larger picture. Ellis obviously has a lot of potential that is untapped in American Psycho, and I'm guessing is likewise untapped in his sequential novels.
This book is prided as being stunning in its use of post-modernism. I've always hated when artpieces are praised for being "post-modern:" this can basically mean anything at all. This sort of "open-minded" praise is the reason that a mounted toilet or a man painting a portrait in bacon grease is considered "art" - this quality can be applied to absolutely anything. I don't believe that use of "symbolism," attempting to confuse readers or viewers, or disguising straightforward concepts as utter nonsense makes an artpiece worthy of praise, and in the modern age, too many novels and films suffer from this discrepency.
American Psycho could have been a great novel, but instead it is mediocre at best. Although it is generally interesting to read and inarguably daring, it is a disjointed reading experience without conclusion, it is not exceptionally well written, and the content is nearly offensively vulgar. Would I recommend this novel? Probably not. It was somewhat entertaining, but doesn't have many redeeming qualities beyond that. This novel is okay, but it isn't good, and it definitely isn't great.
American Psycho could have been a great novel, but instead it is mediocre at best. Although it is generally interesting to read and inarguably daring, it is a disjointed reading experience without conclusion, it is not exceptionally well written, and the content is nearly offensively vulgar. Would I recommend this novel? Probably not. It was somewhat entertaining, but doesn't have many redeeming qualities beyond that. This novel is okay, but it isn't good, and it definitely isn't great.
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