[rating=8.00]
There’s an undeniable familiarity you’ll feel when watching Patti Cake$. Its narrative structure is one of rote beats and well-trod territory, moving from scene to scene in a way not unlike any boxing or sports movie. Its conclusion feels forgone by the end of the first act—dreams, advancement, setback, success—but even its predictability cannot change the simple fact that Patti Cake$ is one of the most charming films of the season.
The easy comparison to make would be 8 Mile—the semi-autobiographical retelling of Eminem’s life meant to launch the rapper’s movie career—though that belies much of the heart of Patti Cake$. The similarities are there, sure, but they’re surface level. Any deeper than that and the comparison becomes disingenuous. Both feature unlikely protagonists trying to make it in their local rap scene, and both play out it in downtrodden, blue collar cities. There, the similarities end.
8 Mile was a strictly dour affair, its tone ostensibly meant to match the rappers behind the mic the persona. It relished in the gritty, focusing on the economic wasteland of Eminem’s Detroit—a dark and twisted visage of an America gone wrong. Patti Cake$, meanwhile, chooses not to linger on the broken world of its small, New Jersey setting. Here, downtrodden is the starting point, the place where dreams can grow, if fostered correctly. If the difference between the two films can be summed up in a single word, the word would be “hope.”
Hope is what propels Patti (Danielle Macdonald) as she tries to balance the realities of her life bartending or working in catering with her dreams of making it in the world of rap. Together with her friend Jheri (Siddharth Dhananjay), she spends her time freestyling, writing rhymes, and entering battles to try and get her name out there, no easy feat for an overweight white girl. When the two meet a misanthropic producer named Basterd (Mamoudou Athie), they form an unlikely trio who aims to take over their local scene. But is it enough to win the attentions of famed producer O-Z (Sahr Ngaujah) and land a coveted spot on his Emerald City label?
Writer/director Geremy Jasper, making his feature debut, has crafted a film full of soul, populating his story with a wide array of characters that feel ripped from out of reality. Patti’s struggles with her family, including a distant, alcoholic mother (Bridget Everett) and ailing grandmother (Cathy Moriarty) are a beautifully depicted example of the struggles of working class, blue collar existence, lending agency to Patti’s dreams of superstardom.
No matter how often her mother denigrates her dreams—resulting from her own crushed dreams of stardom back in the 80s—or how high the stack of bills piles up, Patti never stops striving for her chance to shine. The progression is slow, and not without multiple setbacks and surprises, but it comes together in a way that delights and satisfies.
Macdonald emerges as a bonafide powerhouse; having built her chops in small TV roles over the last few years, she kicks the door wide open and demands your attention. She breathes life into her every moment on screen, in all its beauty and ugliness, never faltering as she takes Patti on the journey of acceptance. In her hands, you forget Patti is a fiction.
Dhananjay and Athie add a delightful depth to the narrative, each as oddball as Patti and bring much to the table. Athie, in particular, excels as Basterd, a disaffected weirdo with an affinity for noise. Like Patti, both characters strife for a moment of acceptance, both from within and without. As a trio, they create an unlikely hodgepodge of ability and charisma, careening them down a path of hope for a better life and of true acceptance by the world at large.
Even with its often by the numbers approach, Patti Cake$ succeeds at being a delightful piece of filmmaking. Jasper has made a stunning debut into the world of feature filmmaking with this endearing film that runs the emotional gamut. For dreamers everywhere, Patti Cake$ is a beacon of hope in a world that is too often cruel.
Patti Cake$ is now playing in theaters everywhere.
