Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

117 reviews

belladonnashrike's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.75

well that's the MOST disturbing book i've ever read! and probably will ever read!

content warning for literally everything but also for excessive mentions of donald trump

ramble incoming:

something that started to bug me about 3/4 of the way through was how gratuitous the murders of women were...i don't typically read anything that depicts such brutal treatment of women but i read this because i love the film and because i know that at its core, this is a satire, so i ignored my discomfort for most of the book. bateman doesn't necessarily target women and i would say that to generalize his killing patterns, he's mostly opportunistic. he kills easy targets - the unhoused, sex workers, random women he meets at bars, random kids and animals who aren't with a guardian/owner, etc. occasionally he does kill someone he knows personally (such as his ex from college and paul owen), but i wouldn't say he just operates on misogyny. but the only murders that are memorable are those of women. this surprised me because i didn't feel this way when watching the movie and i would say that it's mostly because of the treatment of paul owen/allen: in the film, his death is a spectacle. it's such an iconic scene and is just as over-the-top and lengthy as the rest of bateman's murders. in the book, it's over and done with within a page or two and isn't as memorable as what he did to, say, christie. the only murders (and by association, rapes) that are lengthy and disgustingly descriptive are of women. at first this didn't feel like any bias on the author's part but the more i read the more uncomfortable i became because it just feels like the author was sort of playing out fantasies with some of those heinous acts. maybe it's just because i am automatically suspicious of any man who writes about gender violence in general, but it just felt so off to me at that 3/4 point. in the film, we see him kill men and it doesn't seem like he simply enjoys killing women - the messaging there is that he enjoys murdering people in general. if paul's book death was as gory and over-the-top (and just, so fucking disgusting) like his female victims, i wouldn't think this. if the deaths of other men, such as the homeless man with the dog, were just as descriptive, again, i wouldn't think this. but when the only murders that are written in such a way are that of women victims... it makes one think. the fact that i can't really tell if this is commentary on misogyny or not troubles me.

i think that the book depicts bateman's descent into madness, along with his excessive drug usage (which certainly contributes to his hallucinations and skewed view of reality), much better than the film does. it is also obvious from the first twenty or so pages that these men are constantly being mistaken for someone else, when in the film it's not really blatant until the end scene where bateman is confessing face-to-face with his lawyer discussing paul. i do enjoy the added humor in the film, which i will mostly attribute to christian bale -- he was perfect for this role. so perfect that i did read the book in his voice. 

also, i've heard that people think this book is really boring and complain about it but i think it's obvious that that's the point. bateman and his colleagues live an incredibly boring life, so boring that the specifics of his work are never mentioned. everything is superficial. it's the same reason why everyone is described based on what they're wearing. even when describing attractive women, the most bateman says is "nice tits" and "blonde." everything is pointless! everything is meaningless! the critique that is given on businessmen in the 80s, as well as american consumerism, is perfect. just absolutely on the nose. it's supposed to be a little boring!

i did like this and i am glad i read the source material for the film. i need to think about it some more. but i am uncomfortable with the treatment of women because i just can't decipher the tone there.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Gore, Vomit, Cannibalism, Child death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Murder, Gun violence, and Racism

Moderate: Drug use, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, Racial slurs, Addiction, and Alcohol

Minor: Abortion

jaspercanread's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.25

I hate men!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Cannibalism, Drug use, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Racial slurs, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Murder, Torture, Homophobia, Animal death, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Racism, and Sexism

lish_e's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Homophobia, Vomit, Alcoholism, Sexism, Cannibalism, Addiction, Racism, Sexual violence, Rape, Toxic relationship, Murder, Drug abuse, Gore, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Animal death, Pedophilia, Classism, Infidelity, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Abortion

autumnwhite's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Excrement, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Gore, Violence, Torture, Stalking, Misogyny, Mental illness, Body horror, Death, Sexual content, Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Murder, Abortion, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Infidelity, Homophobia, Hate crime, Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Car accident, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, and Gun violence

icepulsar's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Very dark, brutal. Informative about psychopathy. Critiques people in power who close ranks.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Classism, Transphobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Death, Alcohol, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Vomit, Xenophobia, Biphobia, Blood, Body horror, Homophobia, Addiction, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

paperback_sam's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Child death, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Antisemitism, Body horror, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Drug use, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Sexism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Racism, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Classism, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Torture, Abortion, Murder, Animal death, Blood, Racial slurs, and Misogyny

odderikat's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

So graphic and gory it was hard to read. It was like staring into the eyes of commercial, corporate America while it tries to eat you alive. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Racism, Abortion, Blood, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Excrement, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Cannibalism, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Physical abuse

edelstein's review against another edition

dark funny slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Ellis has a colorful command of language, especially when it comes to the description of mutilated bodies, much to the displeasure of my stomach. As the novel went on I would spend more time scanning through pages with a grimace on my face as he described

the charred, oozing, grafted, gaping holes of the corpses left in Bateman's wake

.  The violence bordered on gratuitous at times but in the world Ellis paints it was never out of place.

The book delivered it's core message well, but was willing to sacrifice the reader's enjoyment for this. No character entered a scene without a handful of paragraphs describing their type of cuffs, tie, coat, the way it was set, and the brands it hailed from, emphasizing Bateman's worldview. Long after the message was delivered, this pattern stayed strong. For the entire novel. It was effective, but again, a  prime culprit of what dragged this novel out to near 400 pages.

All in all, to see where the movie adaptation drew from adds a lot to the viewing experience, but not enough to recommend this to others.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Gun violence, Death, Animal death, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Rape, Misogyny, Hate crime, Sexism, Racism, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Classism, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Panic attacks/disorders, Gore, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Body shaming, Violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Blood, Antisemitism, Animal cruelty, and Addiction

eg_demps's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Mental illness, Gun violence, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Torture, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Death, Abortion, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Infidelity, Murder, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Body shaming, Classism, Child death, Child abuse, Racism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Blood, Gore, Sexual harassment, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Confinement, Sexual assault, Rape, and Racial slurs

sheila_the_glasser's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Cannibalism, Child death, Cursing, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Addiction, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Violence, Alcohol, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Abortion, Classism, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Religious bigotry, Vomit, Blood, Drug use, Torture, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Bullying, and Death