Patch Adams

"Patch Adams" arrived during Robin Williams' peak as a dramatic actor who could still deploy his comedic gifts at will. As Hunter "Patch" Adams—the real-life doctor who believed laughter was medicine—Williams finds a role that fits him like a glove. The film, directed by Tom Shadyac, follows Adams from suicidal patient to medical student to pioneering physician who wears a red nose and tells jokes to his patients. The sentiment is genuine: treating the whole person, not just the disease. "You treat a disease, you win, you lose," Adams says. "You treat a person, I guarantee you, you'll win."

The script oversimplifies the conflicts—Dean Walcott (Bob Gunton) is a cartoonish villain—and the third act delivers a tragedy that feels engineered for maximum tears. Critics at the time were split; many found it too sweet, too predictable. But Williams' performance transcends the material. He's funny when the film needs levity and devastating in the film's darkest moments. Monica Potter provides warmth as love interest Carin, and a young Philip Seymour Hoffman shines in a supporting turn as Adams' roommate Mitch.

Twenty-five years later, "Patch Adams" endures not because it's subtle, but because it believes in something: that compassion and humor belong in the hospital room. Williams gave his whole heart to the role. The film around him may be uneven, but his commitment makes it hard to dismiss. It's a reminder of what we lost when he left us.