Review of Patriots Day (2016) by Troy C — 03 Feb 2017

Reliving the horrible events of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing so soon after it transpired is a risky move. A misstep here can make the whole movie reek of profit-making from a tragedy, a misstep there and you have a slavish recreation that offers no entry into the story on a personal level.

It was only a few months ago that director Peter Berg and actor Mark Whalberg gave us the wonderful Deepwater Horizon-a true story about an oil rig disaster-but they've managed to back that up with another triumph-against-all-odds real life tale.

Berg introduces us to a plethora of characters in the first act that, although initially unrelated, we know will all be linked together under horrendous circumstances, imbuing the entire set-up with a dread that gets under the skin.

Yet no amount of being prepared for what is to come makes the gut punch any softer; the chaos and agony of the bombings are depicted with such ferocity that it's a purely visceral experience of the highest order.

Not surprisingly the film wanes a little bit once the focus shifts to tracking down the perpetrators, but as we spend a rather large portion of screen time with the terrorists, the hunt becomes a tense cat-and-mouse affair between monsters who'll kill anyone and an entire city out for justice.

We view the complete string of events through the eyes of Whalberg's experienced cop SGT Tommy Saunders-a fictional amalgamation of real-life first responders-allowing the mass heartache of a whole population to be condensed into one relatable, likable man.

Thankfully Whalberg is in top form; his Tommy is one part an older, wearier version of SGT Dignam (the sharp-tongued hard-nut played by Whalberg in The Departed) and one part American hero. Considering Berg built a reputation as a Michael Bay-esque style-over-substance filmmaker, it would appear a career course-correct has occurred; Patriots Day (and Deepwater Horizon before it) is an intelligent, thoughtful and emotional tribute to the victims and heroes of a truly terrible event.