PATRICK

"Cult classic" is a term tossed around quite a bit in the realm of genre cinema. For some, it's a blanket term covering anything that is popular but not necessarily widely accepted by the mainstream. That's a bit of a misnomer. A cult classic is really something that is largely ignored or under the radar of the mainstream but has developed a rather passionate, singular following through the years. Take, for example, PATRICK, an Australian horror film from 1978. This is a film that is rarely invoked when discussing horror films and for good reason. It resembles a horror film but doesn't play by the rules of the horror film. It is stuck in that gray area between horror and drama and it's presentation would likely cause audiences from either party to walk away in confusion.


Patrick

This is an area where the film's director, Richard Franklin, often lives. His PSYCHO 2 and ROAD GAMES were both character studies and thrillers equally. PATRICK has the CARRIE set-up without the bloody payoff. It's more concerned with telling a human story than languishing in a supernatural one. Sure, things fly around the room, typewriters type messages all by themselves and an overbearing administrator gets fried by touching a power grid while standing on a wet basement floor but what the film really wants to do is spend time with it's characters. The horror elements are there to provide a visceral and hair-raising break from the more natural human drama.


Susan Penhaligon Patrick

The people that enjoy PATRICK seem to enjoy it because it is a break from the traditional mold of the "psycho psychic" movie. It is not mean-spirited nor is it overly violent. It is sympathetic to all of it's characters - even the clinic heads are painted with a human stroke - and allows them their failings and successes. It gets a bit wonky near the end but even then it never breaks from it's carefully constructed narrative and themes of love and loneliness. PATRICK ends with a whimper and not a loud, bloody bang and those filmgoers who demand such an ending will leave the film feeling disappointed and cheated.


Patrick

Having watched PATRICK again recently, I was impressed with the film but my connection to it had dimmed quite a bit. When I first saw it as a teenager, I was very moved by it. I had recently broken up with my first real girlfriend and felt rejected, desperate and awfully lonely. In the same way that young outcasts everywhere felt an intense connection to the awkward, abused and lovesick Carrie White, I felt a deep connection to the character of Patrick. I was quite angry but felt useless to do anything about it. I felt betrayed by the only person I thought understood and loved me - I'm surely not the only one who thought that their life was over after their first break-up? - and I struggled with the twin desires to reconcile and destroy. Though Patrick was probably the least likely character for me to latch onto in my moment of absolute emotional devastation, I couldn't help but do so. Now that I've grown up and matured quite a bit, I can see how ridiculous the attachment I felt to Patrick really was but as a young man with a broken heart, this film meant quite a lot to me.


Richard Franklin's Patrick

Now when I watch PATRICK, I no longer feel that bond - my days of fantasy wish fulfillment are long gone - but I am significantly more appreciative of the way the film is constructed, acted and filmed. I wouldn't go so far as label PATRICK a "classic" - it's nowhere near that - but I enjoy it every time I watch it and it still feels fresh to me today. It is definitely not a film for everyone. People looking for a straight-forward horror film should stay far away but anyone looking for a nice change of pace - or just a well-written, well-acted film - should give it a shot.


Highly recommended.