Summary

• Patrick Bateman's absurd quotes add dark humor to the twisted commentary on affluence and avarice in 'American Psycho'.
• Christian Bale's iconic portrayal as Bateman drives the film, blurring lines between horror and bleak comedy.
• The film explores Bateman's facade, unreliability as a narrator, and his descent into madness through memorable quotes.

A biting satire, the best American Psycho quotes gave audiences some scathing commentary on materialism and the empty pursuit of it. When American Psycho was released in 2000, it went down as something of a box office bust, but audience opinions have changed pretty drastically over the past two decades. Now cherished as an ultra-bleak comedy, American Psycho blends horror and hedonism to create a twisted and affecting commentary on affluence and avarice. However, much of what makes the film so compelling comes from Christian Bale's iconic turn as Patrick Bateman.

Constantly spouting absurd philosophies and making very blunt threats that somehow fall on deaf ears, Patrick Bateman's many ridiculous quotes make the movie. Adapted from Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name, the movie follows Bateman as he drifts through life, complete with a perfect job, fancy apartment, and good looks. It's his slow descent into madness from the ennui of his hollow existence that gives fans such quotable dialogue. Whether he's waxing poetic about slaughtering people or his love of Huey Lewis and the News, there's always a demented logic housed in the best Patrick Bateman quotes.

20 "In The Morning, If My Face Is A Little Puffy, I'll Put On An Ice Pack While I'm Doing My Stomach Crunches – I Can Do A Thousand Now."

Patrick Bateman On His Morning Routing

While American Psycho attacks American capitalism above all else, it is also an indictment of yuppie culture in the 1980s and an unwillingness to believe that anything is good enough. Patrick Bateman is always trying to be better than everyone around him and always wants to improve his social stature. This yuppie-centric obsession includes what they own, what they possess, and how they look. It is to the point where they will often brag to the point of overcompensating.

As Patrick runs down his daily routine, it also seems that he is probably lying.

Patrick reveals everything he does every day to make sure that he always looks the best he possibly can. He wants his face, his body, his hair, and his attire to be better than everyone around him. In this quote, as Patrick runs down his daily routine, it also seems that he is probably lying as well. Saying he can do "a thousand" crunches is just a way to ensure it is more than anyone else he knows.

19 "I'm Trying To Listen To My New Robert Palmer Tape, But Evelyn (My Supposed Fiancée) Keeps Buzzing In My Ear."

Patrick Bateman On His Frustration With Interruptions

Patrick Bateman lives mostly in his own mind. He has co-workers and acquaintances. He goes on dates and even has a girlfriend. However, what American Psycho shows is that he never really listens to anyone around him, and no one listens to him. Patrick sits there while people talk and has his own inner conversations going on in his mind. He clearly doesn't care about anyone around him.

This was proven numerous times, from his meetings at work to his dinners with Paul and Evelyn. However, it was laid out clearly in the car ride where Evelyn was talking to Patrick about something important to her, and he was only concerned about wanting to hear the new "Robert Palmer tape." He doesn't understand why she wants to talk so much when he just wants to live inside his own head.

18 "I Like To Dissect Girls. Did You Know I'm Utterly Insane?"

Patrick Bateman its His Mental State

Patrick Bateman has confessed to his crimes more than once. He told Evelyn what he had been doing; he even called his own lawyer and told him what he was doing. However, no matter how many people he tells, no one listens to him, and he keeps on killing without anyone caring enough to stop him. He even tells Paul, and when his co-worker doesn't respond, Patrick ends up killing him later in the movie.

There is also the idea that this conversation was all taking place in his mind

This quote occurs when the two men are having dinner together, and Patrick its that he likes to "dissect girls." However, the biggest part of this American Psycho quote is when Patrick says, "I'm utterly insane." It was one of the first times he itted something was wrong with him. However, as with other confessions, there is also the idea that this conversation was all taking place in his mind and never actually came out of his mouth.

17 "Well, You Can Always Be Thinner... Look Better."

Patrick Bateman On Striving For Perfection

Jean (Chloë Sevigny) is one of the rare victims who escapes Patrick Bateman's target. She is Patrick's secretary, and he brings her to his apartment to kill her. He had already killed Paul Allen and a model, whose head he stored in his freezer. However, just as he is about to kill her with a nail gun, Patrick gets a message from Evelyn on his answering machine and chooses to let Jean live.

Much like when he prepared to kill Paul, he also did a lot of talking when he was getting ready to kill Jean. Patrick its to her that he is on a diet. When she asks why, because he "looks great... so fit... and thin," Patrick dismisses her. He delivered this quote, and she questioned his willpower. This led to another great quote, where Patrick said, "I'm not very good at controlling it anyway."

16 "There Is A Moment Of Sheer Panic When I Realize That Paul's Apartment Overlooks The Park... And Is Obviously More Expensive Than Mine."

Patrick Bateman On Always Wanting To Be On Top

Bret Easton Ellis' biggest target in his American Psycho novel is consumerism. Yuppies in the 1980s were an easy mark since it seemed what they owned was more important than anything in their lives. Their clothes, cars, homes, and tech are how they measure their self-worth. That is no more evident than with the business card scene, which was ridiculously competitive for something so minor.

In Bateman's mind, this gives Paul more value than he has.

However, when Patrick breaks into Paul's apartment, it shows how envy can lead to terrible things. Patrick looks out the window of Paul's apartment and realizes it overlooks the park, which means it costs a lot of money and is easily more expensive than Patrick's own apartment. In Bateman's mind, this gives Paul more value than he has, which is a big reason his co-worker has to die. If Patrick can't beat Paul in what they possess, he will just have to be the last man standing.

15 "There Is An Idea Of Patrick Bateman."

Patrick Bateman On How He Views Himself

The movie begins with one of the most famous American Psycho quotes as financier Patrick Bateman describes his habits, his concerns, and his diurnal tasks. The audience quickly learns that while he spends a large part of his day invested in his appearance and his presentation, it's all a carefully curated facade. There's no meaning ascribed to the person he puts forth whatsoever, though every choice is made with the utmost care.

As Bateman explains, there is an "idea of Patrick Bateman," an abstraction that's illusory, completely fabricated for the attention and pleasure of others. Viewers spend the entire movie wondering if they've ever met the real Patrick Bateman. Part of the thrill is trying to understand where his perception of himself ends and his real personality begins with the answer being up to the audience in many ways.

14 "You Like Huey Lewis And The News?"

Patrick Bateman Critiques Music Before A Murder

In one of the most diabolical and amusing moments in the movie, Bateman asks his guest if he likes Huey Lewis and the News before donning a rain slicker and grabbing an axe. He explains the finer points of the band's discography and the monologue perfectly captures the shocking dissonance between the visceral horror he's inflicting and the mundane nature of the words coming out of his mouth.

Of particular ironic significance is his mention of the song "Hip to Be Square," in which he extols the "pleasures of conformity," something that's driven Bateman to his homicide spree. The music in American Psycho does a lot to add to the overall theme but his hilariously ionate defense of this band as he prepares to kill someone is the darkest bit of comedy in the movie.

13 "Impressive, Very Nice. Let's See Paul Allen's Card."

Patrick Bateman Compares Prestige Symbols

The business card scene is certainly one of American Psycho's most memorable; a boldface parable for the fastidious, fickle, and fake nature of Patrick Bateman and those like him. The scene sees Bateman and his co-workers getting worked up over the appearance of their business cards despite the fact that they're virtually identical—and they all have a common misspelling.

It's an amazing scene for a number of reasons, not least of which is Bale's performance as he is shown to be incredibly ionate about such an insignificant thing to the point that he can barely hide his rage at someone having a more impressive card than him. This American Psycho quote holds a special place among the others as it became a meme that paraphrases the quote to draw attention to a reply or response to a particular post.

12 "I Want To Stab You To Death And Play Around With Your Blood."

Patrick Bateman Reveals His Personal Desires

American Psycho often hints at Patrick Bateman's unreliability as a narrator and asks audiences to conclude for themselves if the events depicted actually transpired, and indeed if Bateman is actually a killer — or even a real person — at all. It is part of what a lot of people like about the movie in that there are so many interpretations of what American Psycho really means.

This topic is broached very early on when, after refusing his drink tickets, he accosts a bartender, saying "I want to stab you to death and play around with your blood." She may not have heard these sadistic threats over the overpowering sound of the club, but this is far from the only time Bateman gives his homicidal tendencies away, only for his confessions to be completely ignored as if they didn't really happen.

11 "Hey Paul! Try Getting A Reservation At Dorsia Now!"

Patrick Bateman Mocks His Victim After Murdering Him

Status is a big theme in American Psycho and played to great darkly comedic effect throughout the movie. American Psycho plays on the irony of these men attempting to come across as very powerful with these status symbols only to look increasingly desperate in their attempts to achieve them. The constant keeping up with appearances Bateman has to do is part of the reason his life unravels, both as a professional investment banker and as a serial killer.

One of the biggest gags in the film revolves around getting a reservation at the restaurant Dorsia. Bateman delivers this memorable quote after murdering Paul Allen (Jared Leto) and the fury with which Bale screams the line perfectly encapsulates the movie's blurring of the lines between absurdist comedy and disturbing horror. It also suggests Bateman's main motivation for killing Paul was jealousy.