Patti Cake$ (2017) – Review

The story of the underdog, who continues reaching for the top despite all kinds of obstacles, is one that I have seen a lot over the years. A lot of sports films take it as a starting point (Eddie the Eagle or Creed), but also in the field of music, specifically rap, you can think of films like 8 Mile or Hustle & Flow. Patti Cake$ can be added to this category and is about Patti (Danielle Macdonald), who wants to make it as a rapper

She still has to prove herself, which is difficult as a white female rapper, who is also overweight. It means she has to be really secure about herself. She works together with Jheri (Siddharth Dhananjay), who sings along and is her hype man. The road to success is difficult, however, because she has no support from her mother and has to work hard to be able to pay her grandmother’s bills. Does she have what it takes to make it or will it be too much for her?

 As I stated before, this is not the first film in this genre with this subject matter. Macdonald portrays Patti in a fun way and is also strong showing emotional moments. But it were the moments that had the least to do with music that I found interesting and the music was the lesser part of the film (for example when the grandmother is used while recording a song). That can of course be personal, but as a rap fan I prefer to watch 8 Mile instead of watching this title again.