Quentin Tarantino is “A big fan” of this Lost Horror Classic
Chad Collins
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Between the two of them, Quentin Tarantino and Guillermo del Toro could keep your watchlist fed for days. Not only are they giants of cinema, but they’re connoisseurs of the best, regularly underrated, genre movies around. Recently, we spotlighted Guillermo del Toro’s five Turner Classic Movies picks for Halloween and highlighted Tarantino’s (correct) contention that horror sequel Psycho II is incredible. I should know. In the same article from Far Out Magazine, Tarantino slyly spotlighted the Ozploitation classic Patrick. Check out his full quote below:
“I’ve always been a big fan of Psycho II and a huge fan of the director, Richard Franklin, who did Road Games and Patrick before this. Those films are why Universal brought him over to do Psycho II, which was a very big deal,” Tarantino said during the Tarantino Film Festival in 2005, picking Psycho II out as a genre favourite.
Patrick, for those unfamiliar, is a 1978 horror movie about a comatose hospital patient (Robert Thompson) who possesses considerable telekinetic power. Not only has he killed his parents, but nurse Kathy (Susan Penhaligon) is convinced that Patrick continues to use his powers to both possess and maim those around him. Naturally, no one believes her until it’s too late, with Patrick having had the chance to electrocute nurses and burn the skin off some dolt’s hands. It’s the stuff exploitation classics are made of. No wonder Quentin Tarantino loves it. Check out the vintage trailer below:
Patrick remains a cult gem, and in 2013, filmmaker Mark Hartley directed a remake. Like the original, the remake was well-received, with critics at the time highlighting how this new Patrick retains both the frightening atmosphere and over-the-top insanity of the original. Our own Drew Tinnin had this to say in 2013: “[Patrick] exhibits the same understanding of how to craft an effective horror film that’s decidedly over-the-top while still retaining the same atmosphere that made the original Patrick worth documenting in the first place.”
What do you think? Have you already seen Patrick? If not, do you plan to check it out on Quentin Tarantino’s rec? Let me know over on Twitter @Chadiscollins. Or, of course, you could try communicating with me telekinetically. I’m not sure I can do that, but I’ve never really tried.
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