The Rules of Attraction (2002)

The incredibly spoiled and overprivileged students of Camden College are a backdrop for an unusual love triangle between a drug dealer, a virgin and a bisexual classmate.

Director:

Roger Avary

Writers:

Bret Easton Ellis (novel), Roger Avary (screenplay)

Stars:

James Van Der Beek, Ian Somerhalder, Shannyn Sossamon

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Van Der Beek	...	Sean Bateman
Shannyn Sossamon	...	Lauren Hynde
Jessica Biel	...	Lara
Kip Pardue	...	Victor
Kate Bosworth	...	Kelly
Ian Somerhalder	...	Paul Denton
Joel Michaely	...	Raymond
Jay Baruchel	...	Harry
Thomas Ian Nicholas	...	Mitchell
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Rupert
Clare Kramer	...	Candice
Faye Dunaway	...	Mrs. Denton
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Mrs. Jared
Russell Sams	...	Richard
Colin Bain	...	Donald

Storyline

Camden College. Sean Bateman is the younger brother of depraved Wall Street broker Patrick Bateman. He's also a drug dealer who owes a lot of money to "fellow" dealer Rupert Guest, as well as a well-known womanizer, for he sleeps with nearly half of the female population on campus. Lauren Hynde is, technically, a virgin. She's saving herself for her shallow boyfriend, Victor Johnson, who's left the States to backpack across Europe. Her slutty roommate, Lara, has the hots for Victor as well. Paul Denton, who used to date Lauren, is openly bisexual and attracted to Mitchell Allen, who's dating Candice to prove to Paul that he's not gay. Sean loves Lauren. Paul loves Sean. And Lauren may love Sean.

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Plot Keywords:

talking about sex | dancing in underwear | sex scene | sexual pleasure | lesbian | 

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Taglines:

From the Corrupt Minds That Brought You 'Pulp Fiction' and 'American Psycho.'

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content, drug use, language and violent images

Details

Official Sites:

Former Official site for the film - site no longer active. [France] Official Director's site for the film. [United States]

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

11 October 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Rules of Attraction

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,532,410, 13 October 2002

Gross USA:

$6,532,619

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,832,822

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kingsgate Films, Roger Avary Filmproduktion GmbH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

James Franco was the original choice to play Sean. Roger Avary later decided that he played it "too much like the book," and recast the role with James Van Der Beek.

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Goofs

When Sean and Lauren have their final conversation outside in the snow, Lauren's coat is alternately buttoned/unbuttoned between shots

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lauren: and it's a story that might bore you, but you don't have to listen, because I always knew it was going to be like that.

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Crazy Credits

The credits run backwards, starting with the disclaimer ("Any similarity to persons living or dead...") and rolling upwards to end with the cast.

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Alternate Versions

At least one broadcast on British TV removed the girl's suicide entirely, cutting the scene just before she begins slitting her wrist, straight to the subsequent close-up of the dripping tap. This removed the girl's reaction, and caused a very abrupt fade-out of the music. This is far more than the BBFC removed (only the close up of the wrist-slitting) from the DVD/ Home video version.

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Connections

Referenced in Ellie Parker (2005)

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Soundtracks

Out of the Races and on to the Tracks
Performed by The Rapture
Written by Vito Roccoforte, Luke Jenner and Matt Safer
Published by Hung Up on a Dream/And Your Bird Can Sing Music/Le Sound Albert (SESAC)
Courtesy of Sub Pop Records

User Reviews

Refreshing and different

I personally rather enjoyed this sleeper film. It recently aired on one of the premium cable networks and I sat riveted as I watched. Avary certainly uses a very stylized approach and yet manages to capture the flavor of Bret Easton Ellis' novel, which originally was set in 1985 in Bennington, VT. I thought, as I watched, how cleverly Avary brought the film up-to-date and still kept the basic flavor of the novel's plot and kept true to the central characters. I was rather surprised at some of the other comments that the film was trashy, vulgar and boring. I found none of that to be true. Avary certainly didn't sugarcoat anything which I found to be a refreshing change from many of today's films out of Hollywood. He didn't stick to trite formula, but rather he displayed an art-house kind of feel in presenting the story. I thought the actors were all well cast and convincing. I laughed, cried and cringed during the film and I believe it is going to end up a cult classic.