Patti Rocks

Before Kevin Smith tested the limits of good taste in Clerks, actors John Jenkins, Karen Landry and Chris Mulkey co-wrote and co-starred in Patti Rocks, a serious comedy about sex. Billy (Mulkey) is a married, chauvinistic bigot who's discovered that his girlfriend Patti (real-life wife Landry) is pregnant. Billy recruits his old pal Eddie (Jenkins) to go on a road trip with him to tell Patti that he's already married with children. What follows is an unflinching look into the male psyche that's alternately hilarious, offensive, heartbreaking and touching. Yes, the film includes a little bit of nudity, but like Clerks a few years later, the MPAA tried to slap an "X" rating on the movie based solely on the dialogue.

PATTI ROCKS was released on VHS by VirginVision Home Video (appropriate) in 1988 and it got some airplay on HBO around the same time. I haven't seen it played or mentioned since (though apparently it's been shown on IFC). No mainstream released DVD is available, but it seems you can buy a DVD of the movie directly from the other co-writer and director, David Burton Morris. More information about obtaining Patti Rocks from the director is available on the IMDB Message Board for the film.