Rated R

Having only previously appeared in very limited release in theaters in a select number of big cities, Patti Cake$ is new this month to DVD and streaming sites including Apple TV. Patti Cake$ is a story of a teenage girl named Patricia Dumbrowski (Danielle Macdonald of Dumplin’ and Every Secret Thing) from New Jersey who dreams of making it big as a rapper. Written and directed by first time film director Geremy Jasper, Patti Cake$ is a vulgar, yet beautiful glimpse into a young woman’s desperation and desires.

Every day is a struggle for Patricia, who goes by a number of nicknames including ones she likes such as Patti Cake$ and Killa P and one in particular that she loathes, Dumbo—a nickname given to her by peers due to her last name and her physical stature. Raised by her single mother after her father deserted them, Patricia still resides in her childhood home with her alcoholic mom, Barb (Bridget Everett of Trainwreck and Love You More), and her ailing grandmother whom she calls Nana (Cathy Moriarty of Analyze That and I’m Dying Up Here). Patricia is the family’s main source of income, but even working multiple jobs, the family is always underwater financially.

Patricia spends all of her free time (of which there isn’t much) writing rhymes in any one of the many notebooks she has and hanging out with her best friend, Jheri (Siddarth Dhananjay from the video game NBA 2K18). Together, they meet another outcast musician who goes by the name Basterd (Mamoudou Athie of The Get Down and Unicorn Store) and, with her nana in tow, they form a hip hop group called PBNJ. They cut a demo CD and attempt to prove wrong all of the many people telling them that they’ll never make it.

Patricia’s life is filled with many setbacks and disappointments. She sometimes gets down on her luck, but watching her rally makes watching Patti Cake$ quite enjoyable. Patricia is truly a character worth rooting for. Plus, the film’s original hip-hop soundtrack (also from Geremy Jasper) is straight-out fun for those who enjoy the genre, although it certainly helps earn its R rating for its vulgarity. While lacking originality in its overall plot (the story feels an awful lot like 8 Mile), the performance of Danielle Macdonald as the title character is wonderful enough to make its lack of originality only a minor flaw.

New to Netflix, Hulu

New to Netflix on Friday, Dec. 1 is Voyeur, a documentary about a motel owner in Colorado who allegedly spied on his guests through ceiling vents as he watched from above in what he referred to as his “observation deck.”

Also new to Netflix on Dec. 1 is Season One of a new series called Dark. Spoken entirely in German, the series is a supernatural thriller that follows the story of a missing child and the four families closely involved with the child’s disappearance.

Season Two of The Crown returns to Netflix on Friday, Dec. 8 starring Claire Foy (Season of the Witch and Going Postal) as Queen Elizabeth II in her early years in the monarchy. Season Two will be the last season that Foy will star as the queen despite the series being set to run through at least four seasons.

Additionally, Hulu has a number of new choices to stream beginning in December including the fifth and final season of East Los High available on Dec. 1 starring a group of Latino teenagers as they navigate their high school years in Los Angeles and Season Two of Shut Eye on Wednesday, Dec. 6 centering on the story of a husband-wife team of con-artists.