Patti Cake$ - A Modern Musical

Whatever it is, Patti Cake$ has it. The modern musical is full of defied stereotypes, perseverance, dream-chasing, and of course, music. The original songs that make up the soundtrack of the movie are so catchy that they’ll be stuck in your head for hours after you leave the theater.

The film centers around a 23 year-old plus-sized woman that has an unexpected talent, the gift of rhythm. Patricia (Danielle Macdonald) wants to be a rapper. However, she lacks the means to do so because she is working around the clock to help pay her Nana’s (Cathy Moriarty) medical bills. Meanwhile her mother (Bridget Everett) is often busy out on the town, looking for a man to ease her loneliness. Every night as she sleeps, Patricia escapes into her dreams. Her uniquely-shot dream land consists of green smoke and an introduction by her hero, O-Z (Sahr Ngaujah). This is where she imagines her future as “Killa P,” the famous rapper.

Patricia, also known as Killa P, also known as Patti Cake$, has a best friend that has her same gift. Hareesh (Siddharth Dhananjay) is a constant motivation to Patricia and provides both comic-relief and emotional appeal. When Patricia starts to lose motivation, Hareesh keeps going for the both of them. Along the way they meet Bastard (Mamoudou Athie) who claims to be an anti-Christ. Despite his initial creepy disposition, they realize he is musically talented like they are. The band of misfits team up to form their rap group, “PBNJ.” There is a cliff the characters go to a few times in the movie that has a skyline view of New York City. The members gaze at it, hoping for the best for their future.

An aspect that makes this film enjoyable to watch is the attitude of the characters.  The film is set in a low-income town in New Jersey, and the PBNJ members’ quality of life is a bit below average. Despite their living conditions, they are never portrayed as pathetic or as objects of sympathy. It is easier for an audience to root for a character’s success if they continuously try for their goal, which Patricia does throughout the film. She takes on the role of the caregiver of the home because her grandmother is bedridden and her mother is distracted. Her income from her two jobs mostly goes towards medical bills; she rarely has leisure time. Instead of sulking, she uses her trials at an opportunity to contribute to what she loves; her notebook full of “bars” is always handy in case a new rap idea comes to her.

In the mornings, Patricia looks in the mirror and confidently poses while free-styling lines about how good she looks before heading off to work. The confidence the actress portrays makes the character a more-likeable one.

Boldness and rejection occasionally go hand-in-hand, as shown in the film. The members of PBNJ run around town giving out copies of their mixtape to anyone that will listen. In one scene, Patricia is catering a bar mitzvah where a local radio DJ is entertaining. The scene plays out slowly, clearly showing Patricia’s hesitation and inner conflict on whether to give DJ French Tips the mixtape or not. Timidly, she walks over to her, says she’s a big fan, and gives her the CD. The DJ responds kindly and tells Patricia to keep working. In a later scene, this plays out very differently. While catering a different event, she arrives at the home of O-Z, the hero that inhabits her dream-land. Her confidence from her encounter with DJ French Tips carries over and she gives him a copy. He tells her she doesn’t have a chance at ever being an artist, which changes her attitude completely and crushes her motivation. However, the work she had done before that moment ends up paying off when PBNJ is entered into a rookie competition by one of their new fans.

The film has obvious similarities to Curtis Hanson’s 8 Mile, which is about Eminem’s journey to fame. Given it’s from a female’s perspective, Patricia’s story provides an opportunity for young girls to be taught that their dreams are obtainable, no matter how out-of-place they may seem. In 2017, gender-equality is a hot-button issue; and this film is a light-hearted flick with a dash of feminism. It touches on and defies stereotypes, but the plot is inspirational as opposed to political.

When looking at the film as a whole, the story behind Patti Cake$ sounds ridiculous. A plus-sized white girl, an over-animated Indian, and a black anti-Christ form a rap group and reach for fame. It sounds like a parody film based off the rejects from the American Idol auditions. However, Jasper has created a film with characters that capture the audience’s hearts and keep them laughing (and dancing) the whole way through.

Patti Cake$ is set to be released in theaters August 18, 2017.

Writer: Geremy Jasper

Director: Geremy Jasper

Producers: Chris Columbus, Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey, Noah Stahl, Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Rodrigo Teixeria

Executive Producers: Bill Benenson, Jonathan Bronfman, Eleanor Columbus, Fernando Fraiha, Sophie Mas, Lon Molnar, Josh Penn, Lourenco Sant’Anna

Main Cast: Danielle Macdonald, Bridget Everett, Siddharth Dhanajay, Mamoudou Athie, Cathy Moriarty

Running Time: 108 minutes