Trailer
Plot summary
At a private clinic in Melbourne, Kathy Jacquard takes a job as a nurse after an interview with Matron Cassidy. Her patient is Patrick, comatose for three years since murdering his parents. Doctor Roget, who owns the clinic, keeps him alive to research what separates the living from the dead, and tells Kathy that a fellow patient, Captain Fraser, believes Patrick travels out of the window at night. Kathy has recently separated from her husband Ed. Patrick has psychokinetic powers and can travel outside his own body. He moves objects while Cassidy watches, and at a pool party he tries to drown Brian Wright, a doctor who shows an interest in Kathy. When Kathy types a memo in his room, he takes over her hands and types his own name.
Cast
- Robert Thompsonas Patrick
- Helen Hemingwayas Sister Williams
- Carole-Ann Aylettas Patrick's Mother
- Walter Pymas Captain Fraser
- Paul Youngas Lover
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Patrick (1978)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- During the making of Patrick, the actor Robert Helpmann broke his back while trying to lift up Robert Thompson in one scene.
- Quentin Tarantino is a fan of Patrick and borrowed from it for a scene in Kill Bill where the bride is in her coma and spits on the orderly, mimicking Patrick; he relates the story in Mark Hartley's documentary Not Quite Hollywood.
- Judy Morris was originally announced as the star of Patrick, but British film actor Susan Penhaligon was imported to play the lead, which Ginnane thought helped secure a sale in Britain.
- Everett De Roche said that when Richard Franklin became attached to Patrick the script was "a rambling 250 pages", and that Franklin taught him the elements of drama and suspense.
SPOILER
Everett De Roche said the final scene of Patrick leaping out of his bed was inspired by a carnival trip Richard Franklin had made, where a man in a gorilla suit burst out into the audience and everyone screamed; they worked backwards from that scene.- In Italy, Patrick was re-scored by the progressive rock band Goblin, replacing the original score for the film's Italian release.
