Review of Patriots Day (2016) by Kaptenvideo — 09 Jan 2017

2013's the Boston Marathon Bombing the Hollywood version. First responders and investigators are racing against the clock to hunt down the sneaky muslim bombers before they strike again. It can't be watchable to anyone but American patriots, right?

Wrong. "Patriots Day" is actually a solid action thriller which seems realistic enough, even handling some more trivial details like how the bombers look like exactly. it avoids the excessive corniness and epic-ness till the last minutes and plays it like a catastrophe movie followed by exciting manhunt. The cameras are out there with us, in the middle of it all, and it still looks good. Another good example of how to handle the shaky in-your-face style of action that is often strongly disliked or even hated in movies.

The stories of the main characters are rather vague and shallow, so good that they are relegated to sidelines. Mark Wahlberg has one of the biggest roles and does his usual thing which seems really pretty interesting only for the maybe first three times you see him in movies.

You know, that humble and tender joe everyman that has a big heart but also gets **** done where it really matters. Like a action version of Adam Sandler or something.

There are some big boyz of Hollywood involved, to make the movie more solid and prestigious, including John Goodman, Kevin Bacon and underused J. K. Simmons. It's amazing how effective this kind of playaz can be to bring almost any story to life. They make serious faces, talk their serious talk and make the world a better place. Works every time. "Patriots Day" is a tight enough package already... and they make it even more watch-worthy. Seriously.

Boston Marathon bombing is good basis for a Hollywood movie. It's recent and true-life, so it can turn populist without getting too much criticism for it, and there's also creative freedom to add pretty much anything you want to a story.

So no wonder there are more movies on the horizon. "Stronger" with Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead is coming already, and there's also some project called „Boston Stronger“...

All in all, this is certainly by far the most fun I've had watching a movie directed by Peter Berg. He's always good with action and usually boring handling everything else ( The Kingdom, Hancock Movie, "Battleship", Lone Survivor and Deepwater Horizon, among others).