Special Review
This review was requested by Discord user Propainkey. If you'd like to join the server or subscribe to Propainkey's YouTube channel, click the buttons below. Visit DiscordPropainkey on YouTubeDuring the 16th season of Saturday Night Live, the character of Pat, played by Julia Sweeney, was introduced. The joke about the character was that they are of undetermined gender and people are trying to figure it out. Having been featured in 14 sketches, the Pat character became one of the more popular characters on the show. However, over the years, the character has been criticized for negatively portraying people who are struggling with gender identity issues. Regardless, the character proved popular enough that a film adaptation was being considered after Wayne’s World was a financial success. The film was originally to be produced by Fox before they dropped out and Touchstone Pictures picked it up. With a budget of $8 million, the cast comprised of SNL veterans Julia Sweeney, Charles Rocket, and Tim Meadows. Finally, August 1994 saw the release of Adam Bernstein’s It’s Pat.
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Rating
Synopsis
Pat Riley (Julia Sweeney) is a heavyset person of undetermined gender who’s wanting more out of life. Unfortunately, they’ve been fired from every job they’ve had and Pat seems to not be happy with any of them. One day, Pat meets Chris (Dave Foley), a similarly androgynous person working as a bartender, and they fall in love. All over town, people keep asking the same question but never get an answer, “What is Pat’s gender?” One such person is Pat’s neighbor Kyle Jacobsen (Charles Rocket), whose curiosity turns into an obsession that ruins his life. Pat goes through a series of “wacky” scenarios, like taking a talk radio show from their neighbor Kathy (Kathy Griffin). Unfortunately, Chris ends up leaving Pat because of their selfishness and their inability to commit to anything in life. Will Pat and Chris be reunited, and how far will Kyle go to learn the truth?
Review
Ordinarily, I don’t like to throw around the term “worst movie ever” because there will always be something worse. In the case of It’s Pat, this is one instance where I can definitely call something the worst movie ever. In terms of comedy, this film fails on just about every single level and is almost entirely devoid of humor. Most of the “jokes” are pretty low-brow, which was fairly common in the 90s, but none of them land here. What doesn’t help is that Pat is easily one of the most disgusting, obnoxious, and unlikeable leads I’ve ever seen. Granted, I’m not familiar with the original sketch, but I can’t imagine the character being this insufferable on the show. Regardless, so much of the film is filled with Julia Sweeney mugging for the camera and using her obnoxious laugh. You know it’s bad when Kathy Griffin is actually sympathetic.
Despite the film’s general awfulness, the one bright spot of the whole thing is Charles Rocket and his subplot. I don’t know who told him to treat this like a thriller, but I’m glad he did because it’s amazing. He plays his part with such intensity and creepiness that he’s much more interesting than the lead we’re given. We see his curiosity over Pat’s gender turn to an obsession where he starts dressing up like Pat. If the whole movie were a stalker thriller disguised as a dumb comedy, it might’ve actually been enjoyable. Instead, even at 75 minutes, the film is a pain to sit through, going from one “wacky” scenario to another. If The Blues Brothers and Wayne’s World are considered the gold standard SNL movies, this is easily among the worst. Overall, It’s Pat is easily one of the most painful films I’ve ever sat through.
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