Textual analysis

American psycho:


Title Graphics
What?
American psycho, directed by Mary Harron, stars Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe and Jared Leto. It was produced by Lions Gate films, is an Edward R. Pressman production and was made in association with Muse Productions and Christian Halsey Solomon.

When?:
The titles are shown over the film of different dishes of food being prepared. The perfection with which the food has been prepared links into the idea of the main character, Patrick Bateman, being obsessed with his own perfection. 


Sound?
At the start of the film there is only classical, calm music playing which creates a calm atmosphere, which is expected as it follows the pattern from the title sequence.

Camera:
There are long pans and smooth movements of the camera and there are no sudden jolts. This also adds to the calmness of the scene.

Mise en Scene
The room and the bathroom is all white and it gives a very clean impression and it can be seen that he cares a lot about cleanliness.

Characters:
We are introduced to the main character called Patrick Bateman and he is shown doing his daily facial cleansing and you can see he is very obsessive as he talks the audience through his routine. You then see him doing his exercise and you can see that the character cares a lot about his appearance.

Genre:
It is a mystery, crime and horror film.

Narrative:
There is a voice over of the main character as he describes to the viewers the routine of skin care he carries out each morning. This is said in a calm voice.

Editing
The cutting of the scenes is smooth an there isn't much contrast in the shots, which creates a relaxed atmosphere in his home.

Target Audience
The target audience is a younger audience but above 15 as that is the rating and they would be horror seeking and not squeamish.

Overall effects
It is calm and it creates a contrast with the rest of the film which is quite quick paced and it makes you feel shocked at the sudden change of atmosphere and pace in the films opening.