Review of the Rules of Attraction

The Rules of Attraction is a very interesting movie starring James Van Der Beek, Shannyn Sossamon, Jessica Biel, Kip Pardue, Ian Somerhalder, and a few other names in the young adult actor industry. It was released in 2002, and was directed by Roger Avery. The script was written by Avery as well, adapted from a book of the same name by Brett Easton Ellis, who also wrote American Psycho. Interestingly, Van Der Beek's character was the brother of Patrick Bateman, the main character of American Psycho.

The movie is an over-the-top view of college life, love, and relationships. It's rated R and for good reason - this isn't a movie for the kids to see. There's a little nudity, lots of drug use, swearing, violence, suicide, and sexual scenes. The story opens with Lauren, who is drunk and being raped in a dorm room, for example.

What I find the most interesting about this movie is that it is actually shown backwards. The introduction is the last thing that happens in the movie, and the rest of the movie is showing how it got to that. Rewinding is used to show this, also. Sometimes, when you've seen a scene from one point of view, it is physically rewound, everyone walks backwards, and you then see the scene from another character's point of view.

The script itself starts in the middle of a sentence, and ends in the moddle of a sentence. I love that it does this, because it gives a real feeling of the movie being a fleeting moment in these peoples' (the characters') lives.

You can buy this movie at:
Amazon.com
CD Universe
Overstock.com