Review: Patriots Day

A filmed and slightly fictionalised dramatisation of the 2013 bombing during the Boston marathon, Mark Wahlberg plays a Boston cop (not based on any one real-life character) in the thick of the action, whilst his wife (a typecast and underused Michelle Monaghan) worries at home. John Goodman, Kevin Bacon, and J.K. Simmons play the various law enforcers involved, whilst the two bombers (who I won’t give them credit/attention by naming) are also showing preparing for, carrying out, and fleeing from their misdeeds.

With the real-life incident still fresh in most peoples’ minds, this 2016 re-enactment from director Peter Berg (“Very Bad Things”, “Friday Night Lights”) and his co-writers Matt Cook (the dreary corrupt cop flick “Triple 9”) and Joshua Zetumer (the so-so remake of “RoboCop”) needed to make sure nothing failed to convince here. Aside from one moment late in proceedings, one and all have definitely done their jobs here with this really fine film. It’s amazing that the director of the empty-headed “Battleship” could also be the guy responsible for solid efforts like this, “Deepwater Horizon”, and “Lone Survivor”.

We start with a funny opening scene where Mark Wahlberg hurts himself kicking a door down while on a raid. Berg and his co-writers also make sure to give us some backstory not only to the cops played by Wahlberg (playing a composite character), J.K. Simmons, Kevin Bacon (representing the FBI), and a trim-looking John Goodman (excellent as the Commish), but the victims of this awful tragedy who are played by lesser-known actors. I came to like a lot of these people early on and was scared that some of them wouldn’t make it out alive. It’s interesting that film also takes the time to portray the bombers, and despite what you might’ve ascertained elsewhere the film makes no bones about the fact that the younger of the two bombers is just as bad as the other guy. This guy was no mere naïve follower. A completely unrecognisable Melissa Benoist does fine work as the wife of one of the bombers, but an interrogation scene with her character is the one scene in the entire film that rings false to me. It’s like something out of “NCIS” or something, and casting TV veteran Khandi Alexander (best-known for “CSI: Miami”) as the unconvincingly tough interrogator doesn’t help. It’s really jarring and silly stuff in a film that otherwise never failed to convince me. Sure, we’re being manipulated throughout by Berg with shots of a little kid in particular, but this happened, it’s awful, you’re meant to be emotional about it. So I didn’t mind the manipulation. He sure shows the bombing for the violent blast it was, though. Berg deserves credit for giving us what I think it’s an uncomfortably accurate recreation of events here, he really seems to have studied the news footage of the incident (I was glued to my TV for a day or two myself, I’m a bit of a junkie for this kind of thing).

Mark Wahlberg may have a limited range as an actor, but this character is well within that range. You can argue about whether a composite/fictionalised character was the right choice for our lead (I think the film would be too messy without compressing the many Boston cops involved into one but they probably should’ve chosen one real-life cop), but the Boston native is nonetheless effective. He has one great scene where he completely loses his shit temporarily coming home, affected and traumatised by what he has seen and experienced. It’s some of the best acting the former Marky Mark has ever done. What I really liked about the film is that Berg and his co-writers have the balls to introduce characters early who actually don’t play a part in proceedings until late in the film. It works. Also, as the film moves into the manhunt/investigation portion of the story, there’s a real urgency to it.

Very solidly done, well-acted, and very convincing. Did this story need to be done as a piece of cinema so soon after the incident? No, but I won’t hold that against it. Fine, relatively no-frills retelling of a nasty and tragic event in recent history.

Rating: B-