Release: February 14, 2012
Film: Patch Adams (1998)
This review contains examples of:
- Alternate Character Interpretation: In-Universe discussion: The Critic is quick to point out that Williams' portrayal of Patch is too determined to be a comedian and Blithe Spirit to be a doctor (let alone a good one), and might genuinely be better as a clown cheering up patients.
- Atomic F-Bomb: As the Critic realizes just how much the film is Based on a Great Big Lie, he gives a big middle finger while bellowing, "FUCK YOUUUUUUUU!!!!"
- Artistic License – Medicine: The Critic points out a few things he feels wrong with the movie, such as keeping Adams (who is suicidal but lucid) in the same facilities as the certified madmen, Adams' Cloud Cuckoolander antics (saying he would choose a Straw Vulcan medic with lousy bed manners over a comedic idiot like Adams because he doesn't trust the latter with a saw), and the fact that he opened a clinic without a license and stole supplies from the hospital, neither of which the real Adams did.
- However the review also gets some details wrong, such as not realizing that psychiatrists still need to go to medical school, which he corrected in the third "Top 11 Fuck-Ups" video.
- Based on a Great Big Lie: The Critic's anger breaking point is finding out that, while Patch Adams did lose a friend in real life, the Love Interest murdered on-screen was made for the movie, and he calls it out as a stupid, insulting attempt at adding cheap drama.
- Brick Joke: One seemingly innocuous comment from Patch ("What if a doctor becomes emotionally involved with a patient? What is wrong with that? Does the doctor explode? No.") is literally set aside and brought up later when Patch's girlfriend is killed by a patient.Critic: Well, if you count bullets blowing up the head of your fictional dead girlfriend, yes! YES, THEY FUCKING DO!!!
- British Stuffiness: In showing off
how "evil" the establishment is, the Critic speaks in the exaggerated British accent, complete with sputtering, while complaining about "most unorthodox" Patch is. - Broken Aesop: He uses the Brick Joke mentioned above to call out why getting too emotionally involved with patients can be a bad thing. People make mistakes when they get too emotionally involved, and that in turn led to Carin's death.
- Call-Back: To his review of The Haunting, saying the way the nineties writes women is similar to how it writes homosexuals.
- Character Focus: The Critic applauds Carin's "The Reason You Suck" Speech to Patch, saying the rest of the movie should be focusing on her rather than Patch.
- Cliché Storm: The Critic calls Patch's big court room speech one, saying it used nearly all the cliched lines in the Critic's checklistnote Critic: Oh, wait! You forgot "You complete me", and "Love means never having to say you're sorry".
- Comically Missing the Point: The Critic points out the apparent dumbness of the Ice-Cream Koan "Focus on the solution, not the problem" with a sketch where he's too preoccupied about looking at the solution and not the problem to even want to hear what the problem is and thus tells someone to try to put to put out a fire with a banana, which obviously doesn't end well for the guy.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: The Critic points out how prevalent this trope was in 90's films to compensate for the Damsel in Distress trope and discusses (In-Universe) the Unfortunate Implications regarding how strong independent women back then weren't like that because they're strong and independent, but because deep down they're actually overcompensating for a Freudian Excuse.
- Don't Make Me Take My Belt Off!: Upon learning that Carin Fisher doesn't actually exist, the Critic takes off his belt and whips the movie (represented by its poster) with it.
- Don't Shoot the Message: The Critic did his research on the real Hunter Adams and actually considers his real life methods to be fascinating, and is annoyed that the film over-simplified them into an emotionally manipulative movie.
- Dude, Not Funny!: Upon witnessing Carin Fisher get murdered, a distraught Critic regrets the things he said about her and fears he is trending on sensitive territory. It all evaporates when he researches the movie some more and discovers she is actually a fictional character standing in for a real life person who wasn't a woman or romantically involved with the real Patch Adams.
- Everyone Has Standards: The Critic wouldn't see the film if it had "He steals from hospitals" as its tagline.
- Jaw Drop: Has this reaction when Patch Adams is stealing supplies from a hospital.
- Earlier, he also reacts this when Adams, at the mental hospital, decides to use a catatonic inmate's raised hand to make jokes at his expense, particularly "How do you say hello to Hitler?"
- Letterbox: The YouTube encode is non-anamorphic. Interestingly enough, you can find an unofficial upload of the video on YouTube in a 16:9 enhanced aspect ratio and with better video quality, albeit in 2 parts.
- Long List: The Critic rapid-fires a list of film's that starred Robin Williams in which he played, just as in this film, a Blithe Spirit out to put a dent in an inhumane (and in a few cases flat-out inhuman) establishment. Look down on "Never Heard That One Before" for a transcript.
- Monster Clown / Non-Ironic Clown: The Nostalgia Critic is harassed throughout the review by "Bitch Spasms", an obnoxious clown who straddles the line by not exactly being evil, but annoying, potentially injurious, and obliviously insistent that laughter is the best and only medicine. Interestingly, he also suggests that the film's fictionalized and often unsympathetic "Patch Adams" shows less promise as a medical doctor than, and he makes it clear that he means this, as a clown who could cheer up patients — where even then, the onscreen character is shown doing things like a sudden, loud, in-your-face performance late at night, where the film bends over backwards to have his pranks go over nice and he's just hoping no one getting the rest they needed really needed that rest.
- Never Heard That One Before:Authur: You see what no one else sees. You see what everyone else chooses not to see for fear, conformity, or laziness.
Critic: Wow, how inspiring. That's the most original message I've ever heard in a Robin Williams movie since Good Morning, Vietnam, Dead Poets Society, The Fisher King, Jack, Good Will Hunting, Being Human, Jakob the Liar, Flubber, Bicentennial Man, and Man of the Year. But I'm sure this Robin Williams movie has a totally different spin on it! - Once Done, Never Forgotten: After learning that the real Patch Adams didn't have a love interest, to point where he gives the movie a (literal) whipping.
- Running Gag:
- The Critic treating the scene let aside for the Brick Joke like an overtly energetic puppy, telling it to wait until he needs it.
- The appearances of "Bitch Spasms", who says that laughter is the best medicine and clowns around without being in any way useful.
- Several times, Critic imitates the movie's cliched antagonist with cries of "Most unorthodox!"
- Running Gagged: The Critic's last action on the episode (aside from giving his Catchphrase) is to blow "Bitch Spasms" away. The cadaver is still lying on the ground some time later.
- Sentimental Music Cue: The Critic mocks the movie's use of one when Patch sees a butterfly while grieving over his girlfriend's death, describing it as "vomit-inducing" and "playing louder than a Full House episode".
- Shout-Out: The Critic cuts in the Cobra Kai "Mercy Is For The Weak" speech during the Dean Bitterman's Establishing Character Moment (the "train the humanity out of you" speech).
- Strawman Has a Point: Invoked by the Critic, who says that between the Straw Vulcan antagonist and Patch Adams, he would want to be treated by the antagonist since he seems to have knowledge of medicine.
- He also agrees with the roommate who rats Patch Adams out for cheating, since he's never shown studying, yet is one of the top students, so for all he knows, he actually could be cheating.
- Tom Hanks Syndrome: In-Universe: The Critic's reaction at figuring out that this is the movie's approach to using Robin Williams says everything.
- Today, X. Tomorrow, the World!: The Critic does a parody of this while speaking on Dean Walcott's behalf:Walcott: (to Patch Adams) The truth of it is, Hunter, passion doesn't make doctors. I make doctors.
Patch: But don't you think it would—
Walcott: Our way of doing things is the product of centuries of experience. It's my hospital.
NC!Walcott: First, we will heal patients, and then... the world. (laughs evilly) - Unintentionally Unsympathetic: In-Universe discussion: His views on the film's portrayal of Patch Adams, with him pointing out how the real Patch is nothing like the film's portrayal.
- Very Special Episode: The movie angered Critic so much that he stopped the review and whipped the movie, and his final part of the review spoke about looking up the real work of Dr. Hunter Adams and not allow the movie (which he considers pretty much a big Hollywood lie) to taint your perception of him.
- Wham Line: After Patch's love interest dies and the Critic tries to figure out what to say about this without being distasteful...Critic: (frantically browsing the internet on his phone) Maybe she was molested. Maybe she did go through all that horrible stuff. Or maybe she was... (finds what he was looking for and suddenly stops dead in his tracks) ...A MAN. Who was not romantically interested in Patch at all. In fact, the female character was a complete work of fiction in this movie...
