As the new university year comes into view, and thousands of fresh-faced freshers descend on the cities they are about to call home, what better movie is there to revisit but the audacious and intoxicating The Rules of Attraction?
Roger Ebert called Roger Avary’s film, based on the Bret Easton Ellis novel, “a skillfully made movie about reprehensible people”. I think the word reprehensible is a bit strong. Yes, some characters in this knotty tale of unrequited love, sex, and adolescent desire are indeed reprehensible. Still others are simply trying to navigate the pitfalls of university life with little success.
The Rules of Attraction could be described as American Pie on speed, as we join Sean Bateman (James Van Der Beek), Lauren (Shannyn Sossamon), Paul (Ian Somerhalder), Victor (Kip Pardue) and a host of others at Camden College’s toxic “End of the World” party, before rewinding several months to see how the events opening the movie unfolded in the past. At breakneck speed, we explore our lead characters’ lives, loves, hopes and disappointments before ending where we began.
Many say your University years are the best in your life, and in many ways, they are. However, romantically, they can also be tricky, as newfound independence, sex, alcohol, drugs, and self-discovery merge into one challenging and intoxicating bubble of hormone-driven decisions. The Rules of Attraction captures that in spades as it explores how sex, attraction and love often sit uncomfortably together, no matter our age!
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