"I liked Sean because he looked, well, slutty. A boy who couldn't remember if he was Catholic or not." James Van Der Beek throws off Dawson's floppy fringe to play angry anti-hero Sean Bateman.

Bret Easton Ellis created a monster in American Psycho's homicidal yuppie Patrick Bateman.

Now he turns his eye on a bohemian college, where Bateman's younger brother finances his alcohol-fuelled haze by dealing cocaine.

Director Roger Avary (Killing Zoe) frames the film around a series of parties, charting the cynical romances of bisexual Paul (Ian Somerhalder), all-American blonde Lara (Jessica Biel) and Shannyn Sossamon as the dreamy Lauren.

Paul doesn't care who he sleeps with, so long as they're beautiful.

Lauren pines for absent inter-railer Kip Pardue, but contents herself with professor Eric Stoltz.

And Sean? Sean fantasises about Lauren, beds her room-mate Lara, fights with his scumbag dealer Clifton Collins Jr and brings his leering rock 'n' roll fatalism to sex, drugs and the other liberal arts.

Stoltz, Swoosie Kurtz and Faye Dunaway bring some class to the curriculum, but this is definitely Van Der Beek's show.

Sean Bateman might sport the same preppie JCrew chic but, with his bruised, narcotic glaze, he swaps Dawson's metaphysical musings to deal drugs, snog boys and cheat on his dream girl - "I only slept with her 'cause I'm in love with you."

Simon Hodgson