The Patrick (2019)

Directed by: Tim Mielants | 97 minutes | comedy, drama | Actors: Jemaine Clement, Kevin Janssens, Hannah Hoekstra, Jan Bijvoet, Bouli Lanners, Pierre Bokma, Josse De Pauw, Jean-Benoît Ugeux, Frank Vercruyssen, Peter Gorissen, Katelijne Damen, Janne Desmet, Tine Van den Wyngaert, Ariane Van Vliet, Françoise Chichéry, Louis van der Waal

‘De Patrick’ is a rather eccentric Flemish tragicomedy. Director Tim Mielants based the film on his own childhood memories, when his parents took him to a naturist campsite at the age of 6. Thirty years later, the bizarre atmospheres and mysterious characters of that campsite would form the common thread in his first feature film. Because while Mielants has worked on many series in the past (several episodes of “The Terror” and the entire third season of “Peaky Blinders”), he debuts with ‘The Patrick’ for the very first time on the big screen. The end result is an original, whether or not perfect debut film.

The focus is on 38-year-old Patrick (Kevin Janssens), a taciturn man who prefers to hide in his hobby studio. Patrick still lives with his parents, who have been running a naturist campsite in the Ardennes for many years. At the campsite, Patrick is the much-loved handyman: he faithfully carries out all the tasks that people require of him. But when his father suddenly dies, Patrick is responsible for the campsite. To make matters worse, his favorite hammer is stolen. Patrick could very well buy another hammer, but there’s something stopping him from letting this theft go unpunished. Everyone is suddenly a suspect and an investigation will also have to be carried out. Due to his search, however, Patrick is hardly aware of the growing dissatisfaction among the regular camping visitors. This dissatisfaction is mainly fueled by the know-it-all Herman (Pierre Bokma), a Dutchman who is only too happy to take control of the campsite.

Making a character lacking in expression your protagonist is always a risky decision. And for a large part, ‘De Patrick’ certainly runs into this. Patrick is never very interesting as the main character. He certainly has a special appearance, but because of his closed character you don’t get to know anything about him as a person. As a result, Patrick knows how to arouse little sympathy, so that as a viewer you quickly lose interest in the outcome of his story.

But where Patrick as the main character arouses little interest, the subplots and supporting characters do. Because as it turns out: the environment of a naturist campsite can be very interesting. The site is presented here as a kind of dark fairytale world, full of suppressed desires, strange power plays, age-old feuds and even a possible conspiracy. It’s incredibly absurd, but nevertheless very comical. The idiosyncratic characters that populate this area also know how to make you laugh all the time. Especially Pierre Bokma is doing great here as the opportunistic Herman. A crazy fight scene with Bokma in a mobile home is without a doubt the highlight of the film.

In the third act, when Patrick’s big hammer business starts to play an increasingly important role, the plot unfortunately starts to move away from the everyday camping business. That’s a shame, because this campsite is exactly what is so nice about ‘De Patrick’. The few scenes that take place outside the campsite simply never have the same effect and do not fit well with the rest of the film. Mielants’ film debut is certainly original, but is also brought down by its impenetrable main character.