‘Patriots Day’ Review

The Boston Marathon bombing in 2013 was an awful tragedy that took lives and injured lots. After it happened, the city of Boston became united and showed that the terrorists would not win. There are many people who showed true bravery during this time of crisis and Patriots Day highlights their bravery. 

Plot

Patriots Day is the true story of the marathon bombing and the manhunt that ensued to chase down the men who committed the attack. The movie features real people who were involved in the investigation and some of the real victims of the bombing.

Performances

Mark Wahlberg is the main star of the movie and he gives a great performance. He is someone who loves his city and wants to do whatever it takes to catch the guys who did this attack. He is horrified by the scene he witnessed but he keeps his composure to get the job done. 

There is some controversy surrounding his character because his character is not a real person. I do not think it took anything away from the movie because he does capture the spirit of the Boston police who were involved in this attack.

The supporting cast is also great in this movie. John Goodman plays the police commissioner and he does a great job. Kevin Bacon also does a really good job at playing an FBI agent who is investigating this as it is a national security issue. 

Bacon and Goodman often argue with each other over what the correct method is in dealing with this issue and it is very intriguing to see. J.K. Simmons plays a police chief in a small town right outside of Boston and his character is really cool.

There are also several other characters introduced at the beginning of the film. At first, it is confusing why their characters are being shown but they all end up tying into the story of the film. Alex Wolff and Themo Melikidze play the terrorists in the movie and they both do a great job at portraying the villains of the film. 

One thing I really liked about them is that even though they did a horrible act, they are human characters. One is a college kid and I liked how he does some things that a college kid would do. They are also both very inexperienced as they try to make their escape.

Direction

The director of this movie, Peter Berg, does a fantastic job directing this movie. This is his third film that is based on a true story and I think he has found his calling as a director. He does a great job at creating suspense throughout the whole movie and keeping the audience intrigued in the story. 

I was on the edge of my seat for almost the entire movie. The suspense is also helped by a dark and ominous score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It is such a tense score that is very low and does not take away from the scene.

Berg also does a great job at directing the action sequences. I loved the fact that Berg decided not to hold anything back. The bombing scene is very intense and graphic. It is very fast-paced and everything goes to hell really quickly. It really makes the audience feel the emotions that all the characters are going through at that moment.

Berg really honors the city of Boston in this movie and it really shows throughout the film. He shows the great things about the city like the Red Sox and he shows the passion that all of the citizens have for the city and the bravery they showed during the bombing. I also liked the fact that Berg was able to incorporate some humor into this movie. It was refreshing to smile at a couple of moments during this really brutal movie.

Final Thoughts

Patriots Day is an amazing telling of a true story that captures all of the terror from the incident but also the love and passion of the people of Boston. It captures the bravery of the real-life victims of the incident and shows them as true heroes of this event. It truly is a movie that must be seen by anyone who is aware of this incident.

Rating: 5/5