Adam J. Whitlatch's Blog, page 5

"Cold Cosmos - Last Night On Earth" Review

Oh, man. Let me start off by saying I LOVE SCIENCE FICTION WESTERNS!!! I grew up on shows like Bravestarr, so any story that puts cowboys into space is right up my alley. The story starts off normal enough, with our hero Idiom Lee fighting bear-like creatures and cheating at cards, but soon the story blasts off, and Idiom finds himself in WAY over his head in an adventure reminiscent of Guardians of the Galaxy and Firefly. The book features a colorful cast of characters with delightfully clashing personalities. I'd be hard pressed to choose a favorite, but I found the enigmatic shade Rhuldan to be the most intriguing, and Sarge definitely brought the biggest smile to my face. I'm hooked, and I cannot wait for the next installment in this series. I just hope the entire main cast returns for the sequel! James Peters has a talent for both humor and action. I should specify that I didn't actually read Cold Cosmos, but actually listened to the Audible edition narrated by David Swanson. Swanson's performance (and it IS a performance, not a simple narration) is stellar! The only place it's lacking is in his female voices, but I'm willing to let that slide considering the amount of accents and vocal effects he juggles in this production. If you're hankerin' for a good ol' rootin'-tootin', six-gun-shootin' space opera, this one's for you. You can purchase Cold Cosmos - Last Night On Earth on Amazon and Audible.

Help Kathryn Get To DC!

Hi, folks! A young lady who is very special to me is raising money for a school trip to Washington, DC in the spring, and she could really use your help! Kathryn's mom has raised all but $865 of the full $1415 needed. There's still time to make the payments, but with the holidays quickly approaching, she estimates that she'll need some help with the last $500. Kathryn's a remarkable young lady, and this trip is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her. It would be a shame if she couldn't join her classmates. Even the smallest contribution helps. You can contribute to Kathryn's GoFundMe Campaign here. The full trip itinerary is available to view on the campaign. My thanks in advance to all contributors!

Weller 2 Complete!

I have some exciting news for Weller fans! Last night, I finally finished writing the first draft of The Weller - Fear of the Dark, the long-awaited sequel to my debut novel. Now phase two begins, which will include commissioning cover art and extensive editing. I plan to take a couple months to let my brain "reset" itself, that way when I begin editing, the book won't be as fresh in my mind, and I can spot errors easier. During that time, I'll be working on another project that has sat on the back burner for far too long: War Machines - Book II of the Temujin Saga.

Rest assured, Weller fans, the hard part is over. I'm hoping that Fear of the Dark will be ready for publication in time for Demicon in May. Fingers crossed!

Halloween III: Season of the Witch - 31/31 Days of Halloween

It's time, kids! It's Halloween! So put on your masks and gather 'round the television, because I have a special treat for you this evening. Today's movie is a bit of a black sheep in its franchise, and it's reception is extremely divisive among fans. After the runaway success of the slasher classic Halloween in 1978, the studio wanted John Carpenter to make a sequel. To say he was reluctant would be putting it lightly, but finally, Halloween II was released in 1981, putting what everyone assumed to be a permanent end to the series' antagonist Michael Myers. But what to do with this lucrative franchise? John Carpenter and Debra Hill returned on one condition, that the third installment NOT be a sequel to Halloween II. After all, the series was called Halloween, not "Michael Myers." Working from the premise of going forward with a different Halloween-themed story every year, the result was today's film: Halloween III: Season of the Witch. As the film opens, a man named Harry Grimbridge is running from his life from assassins in suits. He collapses in a service station, begging for help and clutching a jack-o-lantern Halloween mask. He is taken to the nearest hospital, where he is treated by Dr. Dan Challis (played by Tom Atkins). Grimbridge issues a grim warning to Challis, "They're going to kill us all!" One of the silent, suited men murders Grimbridge in the middle of the night, and Challis watches in horror as the assassin commits suicide by self-immolation. Challis and Grimbridge's daughter Ellie team up to investigate the strange murder. Together, using the jack-o-lantern mask as a clue, they travel to Santa Mara, a predominantly Irish community and home of Silver Shamrock Novelties, the maker of the mask, along with two other popular masks dominating the market. From the moment they arrive in Santa Mara, it's clear that something is terribly wrong. After another guest in their motel dies horribly and is taken away by Silver Shamrock employees, Challis and Ellie decide to visit the Silver Shamrock Factory and see just what's going on in Santa Mara, and what it has to do with Henry Grimbridge's death. Halloween III: Season of the Witch gets a bad rap from fans. Even before I became a fan of the series, I was warned to stay away from it. Fans felt betrayed, because Michael Myers was reduced to a mere cameo on a TV screen. And I'll admit, when I first watched it when I was seventeen, I wasn't impressed with it. It stuck out like a sore thumb. But let's put Michael Myers aside and look at Halloween III on its own merits. Despite all of the fan backlash, Halloween III is a good movie! It's not a slasher like its predecessors, but it has plenty of gruesome kills and genuine suspense. Its plot is suitable for the season! Frankly, if this movie had simply been titled "Season of the Witch" with no ties to the Halloween franchise whatsoever, I'm confident it would be considered a beloved classic. One of the biggest complaints (aside from Michael Myers' absence) is how the plot delves sharply into science fiction territory with its clockwork men and the high-tech delivery system for Silver Shamrock's murderous signal. Maybe I'm biased because sci-fi is my genre, but that doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I really love how the villain (played brilliantly by Dan O'Herlihy) used technology to exploit and amplify ancient magic. Again, I stress my assertion that were it not for the Michael Myers controversy, this film wouldn't get anywhere near the hate it does. Besides... let's be honest, folks. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers and Halloween: Resurrection were both far, far worse than this movie. I don't think I have to spell out my verdict for you. Halloween III: The Season of the Witch is a fantastic science fiction/horror flick that serves as a fun palate cleanser between Michael Myers films. If you haven't watched this one yet, I urge you to give it a shot. Gather 'round the television with your candy, put on your mask and... Oh, man... not this commercial again. Turn it off. Turn it off! Stop it! Stop it! STOP IT!! STOOOOOOOP IIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!!! See you next year, fiends. Happy Halloween!

House on Haunted Hill (1959) - 30/31 Days of Halloween

We're winding down now, kiddies. There's only one day left of our month-long fright fest. Hmm... how should we finish this year off? Feel free to leave a suggestion in the comments. Who knows? You might just pick our final film. This morning I realized, to my horror (see what I did there?) that I haven't reviewed any classic black and white films this year! At first I considered doing Dracula since I recently acquired the Dracula Legacy Collection on DVD, but I know you're all probably sick of vampires at this point, so I'll spare you the bloodsuckers until next year. I also realized I hadn't reviewed anything starring Vincent Price this year, and I knew that needed to be rectified immediately. Luckily, Tubi came to my rescue with a film I hadn't ever had the pleasure of watching before. I've seen its 1999 remake, but that doesn't really count, does it? Hell no! Vincent Price is simply not outdone. So without any further ado, let's venture up to 1959's House On Haunted Hill. As the film opens, we're treated to an introduction from the floating heads of Watson Pritchard, the owner of the eponymous house, and Frederick Loren, a millionaire who has rented the notorious haunted house to throw a party on his fourth wife's behalf. Loren has invited five people to the party, including Mr. Pritchard, and has offered them $10,000 if they manage to stay an entire night in the house... and stay alive. None of the guests know Loren personally, but they all have one thing in common... they need the money. Once the guests have arrived, Pritchard leads them on a tour of the house, including an acid pit in the wine cellar where a previous occupant was murdered. Pritchard insists there are seven ghosts that haunt the house, but nobody takes him seriously, that is until Loren's wife Annabelle is found dead upstairs, swinging from a noose. Trapped in the house until morning with no way to summon help, the party guests arm themselves for a long night in the House on Haunted Hill. I'm sure by 1950s standards, this film was positively terrifying, but today it comes off as a quirky mystery with some cheap scares. Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting the film down, but like many classic films, audiences have outgrown its more horrific elements. I found the first half of the film to be far more frightening and suspenseful than the latter half. When Nora encounters the "spectre" in the cellar, those were genuinely some of the best scares I've seen in a black and white film. After the doors are locked, the movie becomes less of a ghost story and more of a whodunnit. I do have to commend the filmmakers for putting severed heads in the movie, though. I'm surprised that got past the censors in 1959. The subplot of Loren's and Annabelle's martial problems irritated me at first. My initial reaction to the film was that this was all a needlessly convoluted way to... let's say, work out their marital issues. I really can't say much without spoiling the entire film, so forgive me for being vague here. But upon ending the movie, I can appreciate the acrobatics of it all. I can't say I'm entirely satisfied with the "haunting," and the film's climax is downright silly, but that's part of the winking charm of a Vincent Price movie. Overall, while House On Haunted Hill is severely dated, it's still a worthwhile thriller and murder mystery. There's plenty of chills and intrigue to keep fans of classic horror on their toes. Just don't put too much stock in Pritchard's drunken ramblings, particularly his grim warning at the end about you being the ghosts' next victim. I mean, there's no such thing as gho-- WHAT WAS THAT!?

Shadow of the Vampire - 29/31 Days of Halloween

I know what you're all going to say: "Dammit, Adam! Vampires AGAIN?" What can I say, I love the fanged bastards. There's just an allure to them that I can't escape. Last year, I reviewed Nosferatu the Vampyre (or Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht), a 1979 remake of F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent film Nosferatu, which itself was based on Bram Stoker's novel Dracula with certain details changed to avoid a lawsuit which happened anyway. Confused yet? Stick with me, because this is great. Rather than simply remake Nosferatu again for modern audiences, the filmmakers decided to take the story in an all new direction, putting forth the idea that Murnau's production was so successful due to the director's obsession with perfection, to the point where he hired a real, live(ish) vampire to play the title role. Let's take a look at 2000's Shadow of the Vampire. Our story begins on a film set in Germany, where director F.W. Murnau is completing interior studio shots for his new film, Nosferatu, before moving on to shoot on location in Czechoslovakia. Murnau's secrecy regarding the Czech production causes his producer, cast, and crew significant distress, but he drives them on, madly determined to commit his ambitious vision to film. Before they depart, Murnau informs his crew that the film's villainous vampire will be played by an extreme method-actor named Max Schreck, and that Schreck will only ever appear to the cast and crew in full costume and makeup as Count Orlock, never breaking character. From the moment they arrive in Czechoslovakia, the crew are immediately uneasy, but nothing prepares them for the eccentric Schreck, whose on-set antics disturb everyone he comes into contact with. Over the course of several days, the cameraman  falls severely ill, finally collapsing on set after a particularly intense scene involving Schreck. Murnau struggles to keep his cast and crew together while also doing everything within his power to placate the impatient vampire in his employ. As the final sequence approaches and their deal reaches its conclusion, tensions between Schreck and Murnau escalate. Shadow of the Vampire takes the idea of a remake and turns it completely on its head, making instead a kind of meta-mockumentary. While we know the real Max Schreck wasn't really a misshapen vampire, his performance in the original silent film was so chilling, his appearance so alien, that it makes the idea of Murnau hiring a real vampire for the sake of authenticity an entertaining if not plausible idea. Willem Dafoe is absolutely marvelous as the villainous Schreck. While the 1979 remake's Klaus Kinski gave the Count a colder, more reptilian portrayal than the real-life Schreck did, Dafoe adds a little bit of the demented pervert to the role. Probably my favorite scene in the entire film is when Schreck is drinking and conversing with the film's producers, musing over how sad and lonely Stoker's novel made him feel. For this one, fleeting moment, you begin to feel sympathy for the undead bloodsucker. Not all of the acting in this movie is gold, but Dafoe's definitely shines. Shadow of the Vampire is fun and darkly comedic without resorting to goofiness... well, until Cary Elwes' character shows up, that is. I wouldn't call this Mr. Elwes' finest hour, but I refuse to let that stand in the way of a good film. Is it perfect? Nah, but again... it's fun. I think they could have drawn out Schreck preying on the cast and crew, but maybe that would be meddling with history too much to suspend disbelief. Give this one a watch, but don't think for a second that it's a worthy substitute for the 1922 original or 1979 remake. Don't just settle for the Cliffs Notes, experience them all for yourself.

Tucker and Dale VS Evil - 28/31 Days of Halloween

Who doesn't love a good slasher flick? A mismatched group of teens in the woods, unwashed hillbillies, a dilapidated cabin, doom-saying local weirdos? It's a recipe we've seen cooked up time and time again. It's a tried and true formula that's served the genre well since circa 1980, but let's face it... it gets a little stale after a while. I wanted some thing a little lighthearted for today's movie, and I was pleasantly surprised when today's movie popped up in my Netflix recommendations. It's been on my watchlist for a while, but I just never got around to it. Well, today's the day. As discussed in my earlier review of Scream, sometimes what a tired, repetitive genre needs is to have somebody come along and turn it on its head, give the old cliches a tongue-in-cheek twist to put audiences on the edge of the seats again, and that's exactly what 2010's Tucker and Dale VS Evil set out to do. The movie starts off with a short clip of found footage in which a camera crew are murdered by a mysterious killer. The timeline then shifts to three days prior as a car full of college students is driving into the woods for a weekend getaway. After a near accident with a couple of hillbillies in a pickup truck, the kids once again encounter the hillbillies, but their impression of the rough-looking duo is off... way off. Tucker and Dale are two friends on a trip to fix up Tucker's recently purchased vacation home on the lake. When one of the college students catches Dale's eye, Tucker encourages his friend to be confident and talk to her, but the socially awkward Dale only frightens the kids, and they leave. Later that night, the kids are sitting around a campfire when one of the boys, Chad, tells an urban legend about a local murder. Unmoved by his tale, the others decide to go skinny dipping in the nearby lake, where Tucker and Dale happen to be fishing. Tucker and Dale accidentally scare one of the girls, Allison, and she falls into the water and hits her head. When Dale tries to get the teens' attention, they mistake his intentions and run away in fear. The two fishing buddies rescue Allison and take her back to the cabin, where they nurse her back to health while her friends' imaginations run away with them. Convinced the two hillbillies are psycho killers, and spurred on my Chad, the teens launch a rescue mission to retrieve Allison, but instead set off an unbelievable set of events that leaves both the teens and Tucker and Dale shaking in terror. I'm honestly not sure what's more hilarious about this movie, the way the teens manage to comically kill themselves in stereotypical slasher fashion, or Tucker's and Dale's reactions to it. All things considered, I think the two good ol' boys did a pretty good job of keeping their wits about them. It was all I could do not to set myself when they calmly tried to explain their situation to the Sheriff while holding the legs of a mutilated half-corpse. The circumstances are so damned absurd that you can't really blame them for not knowing how to handle the situation, I mean... really... who would believe them!? All the conventional slasher stereotypes are here. We've got the token black dude, the girl who close to wear stripper heels camping, the dude whose dad won't let anybody drive the car but him, and the womanizing prick with the popped collar. Aside from Allison and Chad, none of the teens are really memorable enough to bother learning their names, but isn't that kind of the point? Tucker and Dale VS Evil teaches a valuable lesson in critical thinking and not judging a book by its cover. Too bad none of these walking, talking stereotypes will live long enough to benefit from the lesson. I've tried to keep this review as vague as possible when it comes to the real meat of the action, because I don't want to ruin any of the spectacularly hilarious carnage. It really has to be seen to be believed, so I highly recommend you crack open an ice-cold can of PBR and give Tucker and Dale VS Evil a watch on Netflix. Keep the first aid kit handy in case you bust a gut laughing.

Queen of the Damned - 26/31 Days of Halloween

I love vampires, and they've been on my mind a lot lately, invading my thoughts in the form of inspiration for a future sequel to Vengeance For My Valentine. The call to revisit that world is irresistible, much like the title character of today's movie. You might remember that last year I reviewed the movie Interview with the Vampire, based on the novel of the same name by Anne Rice. Despite Anne Rice's initial reluctance to accept the film, she later came around, and the movie was a hit. A sequel was inevitable, and eight long years later, we got it... but it wasn't exactly what Rice fans and fans of the original movie expected. Instead of adapting Interview's follow up, The Vampire Lestat, Hollywood decided to skip straight to the third installment and muck about with Vampire Chronicles canon to give us 2002's Queen of the Damned. As the film opens, we see our hero, the vampire Lestat (played by Stuart Townsend this time around) as he rises from his century-long slumber, roused by the sound of music coming from his old house. He encounters a rock band practicing in the house and invites himself to join them, propelling them to super stardom by exploiting his vampiric abilities and charm. When lyrics in one of Lestat's songs leads a paranormal investigator named Jesse to a vampire bar in old London, she becomes obsessed with Lestat and begins to study one of his early journals, where she learns of how he became a vampire and his chance encounter with the oldest of his kind in the basement of his maker's home. Jesse bites off more than she can chew when she visits the Admiral's Arms, the vampire coven hinted at in Lestat's music. When she's cornered and assaulted by several younger vampires, Lestat rescues her. After a heated exchange, Lestat leaves her, determined to finish his mission to revive the ancients and bring vampires in to the light. Despite warnings from both Lestat and her mentor David, Jesse continues to pursue Lestat, drawn to his world for reasons even she cannot explain. There's a sentiment among book lovers everywhere that Hollywood needs to employ "book slappers" whenever a book is adapted to film. If you're not familiar with the term, a book slapper is a hypothetical position occupied by someone deeply familiar with the source material. Any time the writers or director stray off course, the book slapper will sock them with a (preferably hardcover) copy of the book as hard as they can. It's a true shame that Anne Rice wasn't able to exercise more creative control over this film, because it's an insulting mess to anyone who's ever read even a single entry of The Vampire Chronicles. From the opening monologue delivered in Townsend's horrible accent to the combining of characters and backstories to save running time, the movie got everything wrong. Well... almost everything. There are two redeeming qualities to this film. The first positive about the movie is probably the most controversial. Many fans were shocked when recording artist Aaliyah was cast as the eponymous Queen of the Damned, Akasha. For some silly reason, many white folks were under the impression that ancient Egyptians looked like them, and they were therefore outraged that a person of color was cast. But casting that ridiculousness aside, Aaliyah's performance is by far the best in the film. Her presence conveys the character's regal position and attitudes, and her snakelike movements are often  as hypnotic as they are sensual. Sadly, Aaliyah was killed in a plane crash before the film's release. Then there's probably the most memorable piece of Queen of the Damned's legacy... the soundtrack album. You know, it's really not too often that a film's soundtrack outperforms the film itself, but that's certainly the case here. While Lestat's singing voice in the film was dubbed by Korn's Jonathan Davis, the vampire's songs were re-recorded by other popular contemporary rock artists for the album, and I remember those songs rocking the airwaves for months after the film retreated from theaters back into the shadows. In a time where dial-up Internet was still the norm for many, I remember there being a website devoted entirely to this album prior to its retail release where one could stream it in its entirety. And I did. Over and over and over again. From beginning to end, Queen of the Damned is disappointing. The acting is bad, hindered by horrible writing. The makeup is awful. Why they decided to give every vampire those weird fishscale-green spots in the corners of their eyes, I'll never know, but every vamp in the film looks like they just came from a Saturday night Vampire: The Masquerade LARP session and are on their way to Denny's for some Moons Over My Hammy. And don't even get me started on that stupid blurring effect employed whenever a vampire runs or flies. But even without the cheap special effects, the story drags the source material through the mud and insults the viewers' intelligence with its maddening and unnecessary changes. The movie changes just enough to make it unrecognizable as an Anne Rice story, but not enough to make it in any way original. If you want my recommendation, just skip the movie and head on over to Amazon or your favorite brick and mortar store and pick up The Vampire Lestat to put together all the pieces this steaming pile left out, and then finish up with the real Queen of the Damned. Put on the movie's score and soundtrack for added atmosphere.

Re-Animator - 27/31 Days of Halloween

If there's one thing I love more than vampires, it's zombies, but unfortunately the genre tends to lose its freshness relatively quickly. After the Dawn of the Dead remake and Shaun of the Dead revived the genre in 2004, the undead have shambled onto screens non-stop, and its gotten old. But that doesn't mean I can't sit in the dark with a bowl of buttery popcorn and enjoy one of the classics from what is unquestionably the genre's heyday. Long before George A. Romero taught us to fear the "Night," there was H.P. Lovecraft, best known for his Cthulhu mythos. In 1921, Lovecraft penned a novellette in six parts called Herbert West - Reanimator, serialized over several issues of the amateur 'zine Home Brew. While Lovecraft himself despised the story and many fans of his work find it to be his poorest work, to this day it remains my favorite of his tales. Today's film is based upon that story, so let's not waste any time. It's not getting fresher. Let's revive 1985's Re-Animator! The film opens with police and medical staff breaking into the office of Dr. Hans Gruber (yippee ki yay, motherfucker) to find the doctor screaming in pain while a medical student named Herbert West holds an empty syringe. Gruber dies horribly, and when a nurse accuses West of murder, he cryptically responds "I gave him life." West transfers to the Miskatonic Medical School in Arkham, where he meets another student named Dan Cain. West rents a room in Dan house despite Dan's girlfriend Meg Halsey's (daughter of the Dean) protests. When Dan's cat dies under suspicious circumstances, West uses his reagent to revive the cat, with disastrous albeit impressive results. Dan tells Dean Halsey of West's experiments, but the Dean is outraged and expels both of the men from the school. Determined to continue their research, West and Dan break into the morgue, but their experiment brings ruin upon them when Dean Halsey interrupts, is killed, and subsequently revived by West. The events attract the attention of West's rival, Dr. Hill, and while Dan struggles to remain in school and salvage his relationship with Meg, West fights to retain control of his discovery as Hill seeks to take credit for himself. 1985 was a fantastic year for zombie movies. It also gave us Romero's Day of the Dead and the dark comedy Return of the Living Dead. Sadly, I think Re-Animator is often forgotten among those two giants, but all three are equally deserving of the praise. I think this is when zombie movies peaked. I mean, how does one top the infamous "head giving head" scene? The movie's only real failing is that it doesn't tell Lovecraft's entire story, and for that reason, I think this movie is best viewed back to back with its sequel Bride of Re-Animator. Some of the effects are unimpressive by today's standards, the twice reanimated cat, in particular. The human zombie effects, however, are top-notch, and subtle things like bulging veins really help to sell the terrible processes brought on by West's unstable reagent. Aside from a crouching David Gale's shoulders giving the headless Dr. Hill the appearance of having some rather impressive child-bearing hips, the effects are really quite... well... effective. The prosthetics employed in the film's gruesome climax are on par with those of the movie's two major competitors, and in some ways far superior. In the years since Re-Animator, Jeffrey Combs has become "that guy from that thing" in science fiction and horror, a staple of B-movies and television guest spots. It's hard to imagine anyone else in the role of Herbert West, and what few attempts there have been have been utterly dreadful. The way he goes from an emotionless, droning delivery to giggles of macabre delight is fantastic. Herbert West is batshit insane, and Jeffrey Combs sells it stupendously. If you want a truly fantastic experience, I recommend listening to the audio version of Herbert West - Reanimator, narrated by Combs himself. My verdict should come as no surprise to anyone with a pulse, whether natural or otherwise. If you like a little science in your reanimation, or if you're looking to dip your toe into H.P. Lovecraft's daunting body of work and aren't sure where to begin, then give Re-Animator a watch. Just don't let your fear go to your head.

American Psycho - 25/31 Days of Halloween

I don't remember when I first watched today's film, but I know that once I did, I couldn't get enough of it, watching it several times. And no, I didn't watch it because the graphic content appealed to me, but rather because as a writer, I was fascinated by the mystery, rewatching it to try and pick up on any subtle hints about what's really going on in the main character's messed up world... not to mention his messed up head. I don't care for most fan theories since most of them take incredible and often idiotic leaps of logic for the purpose of being edgy or profound. Meanwhile, I can assure you the writers are laughing their asses off at you. That aside, this movie (as well as the novel of the same name upon which it is based) has spawned countless fan theories as viewers try to unravel the tangled web that is 2000's American Psycho. As the movie opens, we're introduced to our villainous protagonist, Patrick Bateman (played by chameleon method actor Christian Bale). An uptight investment banker, Bateman takes us on a tour of his boring, affluent existence, his vacuous friends and lovers, his taste in music, and even a detailed step-by-step outline of his exhaustive daily morning routine. As we get to know Bateman, his homicidal urges slowly rise closer to the surface as he grows bolder by the day, but his spoken threats are usually lost in the loud, disinterested backdrop of Reagan-era New York City. After Bateman takes his first victim, a homeless black man in an alley, the dam breaks, and he's no longer able to control his homicidal urges. Taking advantage of a case of mistaken identity, Bateman lures his co-worker Paul Allen back to his apartment, which he's prepared with drop cloths and newspaper. While lecturing Allen on the merits of Huey Lewis and The News, Bateman kills Allen with an axe. After Allen, Bateman's violence escalates, and he begins preying on prostitutes and anyone else who offends him, culminating in a bloodbath that leaves him questioning reality. American Psycho is an absolute mind fuck. Of course the most burning question viewers have is, did anything we just watched actually happening? Is it all in Bateman's head? Is Bateman actually licking the walls in some nuthouse somewhere in Queens, rambling about Huey Lewis and Phil Collins to any orderly who will listen? Or did he really kill all (or at least some) of those people, but the yuppies around him are too self-absorbed and delusional themselves to take him seriously? There's ample evidence to support both theories. The cast is made up of enough interchangeable pretty white boys in thousand-dollar suits to sell the notion that Bateman could very well maintain a veil of anonymity. It's clear none of these people actually truly know each other except for those closest in Bateman's inner circle. Bateman is misidentified twice in the film, as two different people, which again calls Bateman's sanity into question. Is he really Patrick Bateman at all? American Psycho has been called an instruction manual for killing women by some critics, and it's true that Patrick Bateman is the poster child for misogyny, but his portrayal in the film is toned down considerably from the novel. The story certainly brings to light the fears and dangers faced by sex workers in America, and unfortunately, that hasn't changed much since the 1980s. If sexual assault and violence against women are triggers for you, I would recommend skipping American Psycho. Overall, American Psycho is a powerful, thought-provoking psychological thriller with plenty of re-watch value if you have the stomach for it. The dark humor will leave you giggling guiltily, and if nothing else, the movie's worth watching to see Christian Bale running down a dark hallway wearing nothing but white sneakers and revving a chainsaw. If you don't mind movies with ambiguous endings and like playing detective and/or shrink, give it a go.