Mark Wahlberg and Peter Berg have their formula down pat.
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The actor/producer and writer/director thrive in creating films which shine a light on bravery in the most horrendous conditions.
First they tackled the story of a soldier whose entire team was killed in Afghanistan in Lone Survivor, then they showed audiences the human side behind the environmental disaster that was the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig off Mexico.
The pair have continued the stellar form with Patriots Day, which covers the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.
Wahlberg plays Boston police officer Tommy Saunders, a fictional character representing numerous officers who showed great bravery on the day of the attack, and he is the audience’s entry point into the action of the film.
Great pains are taken by the film-makers to ensure Patriots Day isn’t sensationalised, glorified or over-stylised.
It’s raw, tense and allows audiences to make up their own minds without shoving morals and macho Americana down their throats.
In a rare turn for ‘action’ movies – real-life or not – the terrorists are depicted without a typical villainous sheen.
They’re not moustache-twirling, cat-stroking megalomaniacs; they’re just people, as the real-life terrorists were.
They live in a house, have a family, go to the shop to get their milk – and their mundane lives make their actions all the more frightening.
They could easily be your next door neighbours.
Following the terrorists, and the police efforts to track them down, in the days after the devastating blast is tense and engaging viewing.
The film shows the lives of many Boston locals before and after the explosions and the relevance of many doesn’t become apparent until at least the second act.
The events of those few days are depicted with restraint and respect and the actors give proper gravitas to the real-life story.
Wahlberg is joined by a top-notch cast including Michelle Monaghan, John Goodman, Kevin Bacon and J.K. Simmons.
Also adding to the film are composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, whose stirring sounds have been used by brilliant director David Fincher in his last three films.