disturbed young man named Patrick (Thompson) inventively kills his mom and her lover, but winds up comatose in the process. He's shipped to a clinic that bears an unfortunate resemblance to Anthony Perkins' house in Psycho, where he becomes the favorite guinea pig of Dr. Roget (Helpman).
Roget is intent on discovering exactly at what point death occurs; Patrick, in a state between life and death for three years now, is an ideal subject. Enter pretty young nurse Kathy Jaquard (Penhaligon), who seeks employment at the clinic. Kathy, having just begun a trial separation from her husband, Ed (Mullinar), wants to make a fresh start; like Patrick, she's been in a "between state" for three years, suffering through a stifling marriage.
Kathy is assigned to look after Patrick in a private room that the very intimidating administrative head of the clinic, Matron Cassidy (Blake), is afraid to enter. Patrick, despite being by all accounts brain dead, can spit at disturbingly well-timed moments, and the windows of his room just don't seem to stay closed. A senile patient claims that Patrick flies into his room to play late-night games of chess.
Very strange "accidents" befall Kathy's husband and her potential new beau, Dr. Wright (Barry). Kathy's apartment is mysteriously trashed, and Patrick seems to respond to certain stimuli. Roget is eager to try new electroshock equipment he's won in a card game on Patrick, while electrical systems throughout the clinic go haywire. And then Patrick, using some form of psychokinetics, finds a way to communicate with Kathy, claiming that someone is trying to kill him. ...
This Patrick's no saint
While Patrick is one of several horror movies in the wake of Brian De Palma's Carrie to feature a young person with psychic powers (such as De Palma's own The Fury, Brice Mack's
Jennifer and Roger Christian's The Sender), Patrick owes more in approach to Curt Siodmak's classic and oft-filmed 1943 novel, Donovan's Brain.
True, Patrick's brain is housed in his useless body, and Donovan's brain floats in a jar. Yet the way in which Patrick's malevolent psychic influence grows echoes Siodmak's breakthrough SF/horror story. There's true intelligence to veteran screenwriter Everett De Roche's script. Motifs, such as the recurring plot point of injured hands, remain consistent throughout. Clues as to what's really going on at the clinic are casually dropped here and there.
Richard Franklin, who would go on to direct Psycho 2 and who would create the TV series Beauty and the Beast, does an admirable job; many shots are beautifully framed, and the grainy look adds much to the movie's tone. Because Patrick's powers are not so awesome as to be able to destroy a gym full of promgoers, the film maintains a refreshing level of credibility.
Yet Patrick is very clunky at points. The narrative screeches to a halt twice so workings of the brain most fourth-graders have a handle on can be explained to a trained nurse, using orange slices and an unfortunate frog as teaching aids. The plot is a "slow burn," but could use stream lining. References to The Tempest, Forbidden Planet and Oscar Wilde fall crunchingly flat.
For all its faults, Patrick is a very well-made and for the most part well-written film. It's worth a casual look, particularly for those interested in what can be done with next to no money.
