In the 1980s (the period in which the film is set) Wall Street executives were considered masters of the universe. Now, Bale reflected, nobody pays them any attention. "A lot of the guys I met said they are actually making more money than they did back then, but there isn't the high profile."

Bale's co-star, Chlöe Sevigny, admitted she was disturbed by Brett Easton Ellis' book. "There's a scene with cheese which was very difficult for me to read through, but I don't understand the uproar over the film.

It's more of a woman's view..."

Bale concurred. "It's a misconception that the book or movie is misogynistic...
if anything, you come out of the movie having seen the worst of men."

Geoffrey Macnab