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Movies / On DVD / Patch Adams
Patch Adams

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Patch Adams (1998)

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24 %
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Reviews Counted:55

Fresh:13

Rotten:42

Average Rating:4/10

Consensus: Syrupy performances and directing make this dramedy all too obvious.

Runtime: 2 hrs

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Tom Shadyac's (ACE VENTURA) film tells the true story of Hunter "Patch" Adams (Robin Williams), an aspiring doctor in the 1970's who attempted to treat his patients with a medicine that modern... Tom Shadyac's (ACE VENTURA) film tells the true story of Hunter "Patch" Adams (Robin Williams), an aspiring doctor in the 1970's who attempted to treat his patients with a medicine that modern science had totally disregarded: humor. After a stint in a mental hospital where he discovers his need to help others, a young Patch enters medical school. There he develops his own methods of reaching patients as an antidote to the the pomposity he witnesses in his instructors and fellow students. While his patients and fellow staff members appreciate his approach, the powers-that-be frown upon his "unschooled" methods and attempt to prevent him from practicing. Philip Seymour Hoffman (MAGNOLIA) and Monica Potter (ALONG CAME A SPIDER) co-star in this crowd pleaser based on a book by Adams. [More]

Starring: Robin Williams, Monica Potter, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bob Gunton

Starring: Robin Williams, Monica Potter, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bob Gunton, Peter Coyote

Director: Tom Shadyac

Director: Tom Shadyac
Screenwriter: Steve Oedekerk
Producer: Barry Kemp, Mike Farrell, Marvin Minoff, Charles J. Newirth
Composer: Marc Shaiman

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Patch Adams

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21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
01/01/01
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Blindingly unsubtle!

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The story's a bit too formulaic to summon the tears it's going for.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Annlee Ellingson
Annlee Ellingson
Boxoffice Magazine

If I were the real Patch Adams, I'd sue for malpractice!

comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Fenster
Bob Fenster
Arizona Republic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bradley Null
Bradley Null
Filmcritic.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

Director Tom Shadyac and screenwriter Steve Oedekerk have sleekly outfitted a sudsy feel-good formula into an entertaining holiday comic tear-gusher.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
01/01/00
David Bartholomew
David Bartholomew
Film Journal International

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Cinemaphile.org | comment Comment
01/01/00
David Keyes
David Keyes
Cinemaphile.org
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dennis Lim
Dennis Lim
Village Voice

This contrived feel-good film is a bit like adding artificial sweetener to eggnog.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
01/01/00
Duane Dudek
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A little too conventional and predictable for my taste. However, when the ending came, the whole effect of the movie was pretty much ruined.

Full Review Source: DustinPutman.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dustin Putman
Dustin Putman
DustinPutman.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Edvins Beitiks
Edvins Beitiks
San Francisco Examiner

The whole thing plays like a really long Robin Williams' talk show appearance with a plot slapped on.

Full Review Source: NUVO Newsweekly | comment Comment
01/01/00
Edward Johnson-Ott
Edward Johnson-Ott
NUVO Newsweekly

By the end of it, you may feel like tripping a stranger just to shake off the sticky-sweet residue.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Eleonore Snow
Eleonore Snow
Mr. Showbiz

a genuine, heartwarming crowd pleaser, although director Tom Shadyac can be seen disgorging heapings of sentimental claptrap over this biographical landscape.

Full Review Source: Nitrate Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
Elias Savada
Elias Savada
Nitrate Online

Involving and emotionally fulfilling, if quite a bit over-sentimental.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
01/01/00
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve

Although the real-life Adams has shown great imagination as a doctor, the same can't be said for director Tom Shadyac and his producers.

Full Review Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jack Garner
Jack Garner
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

this attempted tribute to the human spirit more often than not seems like it was written by a computer.

Full Review Source: Kalamazoo Gazette | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Sanford
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette
 
 
21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 >> >|
all

Latest News for Patch Adams

December 18, 2006: Oedekerk Hired to Rehaul Tim Burton's "Ripley," Believe It or Not
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With the pumpkin holiday approaching, Sony unleashes the terror with its frightfest "The Grudge 2" which aims to dominate the marketplace this weekend. More...

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