I walked into “Patriot’s Day” with low expectations. I find that my opinions of movies usually match best with the Google reviews, however high the critics’ reviews may be. But this time, I was pleasantly surprised by how at odds my impression of the movie was from the other laypeople. Patriot’s Day was able to present a fictionalized version based closely on the actual events of the Boston Marathon Bombing in 2013.

What I found most interesting in the film was its characterization of actual people. Though I’ve seen many films that have characterized actual people–“Jackie” about Jackie Kennedy, “The Imitation Game” about Alan Turing, I’ve never seen one about an event so recent that I thoroughly followed. Many of the people portrayed in the film are still living, and this made me evaluate the ethics behind characterizing an actual person. Following the bombings in 2013, I formed certain opinions of the individuals involved. It was interesting to see how differently the film portrayed them. I had thought of Dzhokhar as someone who acted under the influence of his older brother who wasn’t completely immersed in the mission. The movie made him to be a completely reckless, immature teenager, selfish and excited to use bombs as some sort of game. I’d like to think he had thought through what he was doing farther than that. My greatest qualms involve the movie’s portrayal of Katherine Russell, Tamerlan’s wife, as someone who knew of the bombings and who was unwilling to cooperate with police. This could be true. But it could also be true she truly had no idea of the plan and was betrayed and hurt by her own husband. Characterization has the ability to change the narrative, and when someone living is characterized, this presents issues involving the truth, or lack of. I enjoyed Patriot’s Day very much, but its propagation of a one-sided narrative has me questioning how much truth lies within movies based on real events.

Ahh my boy Jian Yang, or Jimmy O. Yang has a very important role in the movie Patriots Day. I really love the Asian representation in American pop-culture, even if the movie is based on the real life story, it is always nice to see it.

Jimmy O. Yang is very talented, and it is so great to see him featured in a movie. I first found out about him in various stand ups he did as I was browsing through YouTube. This little Chinese man who looks kind of wimpy and frail resonated with me as he reminded me of myself. Even though in a way he kind of plays into the stereotype of frail Asian man, but he does a very good job playing his part in the movie.

Watching him from the perspective of his character Jian Yang from Silicon Valley, him in Patriots Day is a much more Asian American portrayal. I did not know that there was an Chinese student who was held at gun point and then gave away the position of the bombers, so I was very surprised and wonder why there is just a random scene of Jimmy in a restaurant on a date with some girl.

The scene of the car jacking was also excellent. Every moment of the bombers in the car up to the gas station had me on edge because I can easily put myself in that position. When he ran from the car into the gas station, I was so nervous I felt like I was hyperventilating, it was so tense.

Overall I liked the movie, even though it felt a little too Hollywood, but with Jimmy O. Yang and several very interesting scenes I would recommend it to someone who is interested in the Boston bombing.

It’s hard to imagine that it’s been over 5 years since the Boston Marathon Bombings. As a New England native who’s spent a lot of time in Boston, the tragedy was very memorable, and watching this movie as the Flora’s Friday Film last week rekindled some of those emotions. As many film reviewers claimed after their initial reviews, the film to presents itself as a great tribute to the many who were involved in solving the case, as well as a great example of the Boston Strong mentality that arose after the events. I found Mark Wahlberg’s acting to be incredible; he does a phenomenal job of captivating fear, courage, and triumph — all three emotions that resonated throughout the events of April 15th, 2013. When watching historical dramas and biopics, it’s important to realize that everything portrayed in film isn’t always accurate to the historical events being portrayed. That being said, Patriot’s Day does a great job of staying true to the story. The use of composite characters, which incorporated the experiences of multiple victims, and the use of actual testimonies in the making of the film, allowed for a comprehensive, impactful portrayal of the narrative. Overall, it was a great viewing experience, and I highly recommend this film to anyone who hasn’t had the opportunity to watch it.

This past Friday, I had the opportunity to watch the film, Patriots Day. The film was centered around the tragic events that took place in Boston. The movie itself is very powerful and moving and does a great job in capturing the horror of the bombing and the emotional toll it took on Boston and its citizens. However, one problem I had and many others had was the main character himself. One lone person didn’t lead to the capturing of the brothers and moreover, Mark Wahlberg’s character itself was made up. I think this was a bad move on the film’s part as it marginalizes the effort and heroics of the people who actually helped find the terrorists. Instead, the movie glorifies Mark Wahlberg and makes him out to be the hero of Boston.

When making a movie about a tragedy like this, I believe its very important to preserve characters and plot points. Directors are well entitled to impost their artistic license but by preserving such things, the story feels more authentic and true. In this case, glorifying Mark Wahlberg’s character does a disservice to the city of Boston.

All in all, I think the movie was very well made and barring some flaws, it was quite moving and something I would recommend to watch.

Through watching this film, I re-lived the moments I saw the Boston Bombing on  T.V. and all the panic and hysteria it drove. I remember seeing interviews of people with amputated legs, devastated that unknowingly their lives had changed forever. Every time I witness a terrorist attack and even throughout this film, it’s always challenging for me to fathom how these are real people, and how these people just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. This reality scares me because truth to be told, my family and I were supposed to be at that Boston Marathon, and something could have happened to us, however last minute my parents opted out. This makes me wonder how many times, just by change and luck, I have been saved and brought away from dangerous situations and while that makes me feel safe, it also makes me realize that my feelings towards safety are temporary. Through any surprise murder or bomb threat, I am always interested in knowing what lead the person up to doing these horrible things, and how their minds could have tricked them into believing that their actions were acceptable. In that sense, I would have liked the movie to have focused more on the psychological mentalities between the brothers, which lead to them capable of detonating these bombs.

This film also made me reflect on the idea that you may now know the actions of the people closest to you. It is hard to imagine Tamaran’s wife condoning the activities that he as a part of, and thus it must have been so scary and unimaginable for her to learn what her husband has been up to. In that  regard, it also worried me that I could be associated with people who are potentially very dangerous and that you don’t always know the true colors of all people you meet. Although this is a very paranoid statement, situations like these make me less likely to trust some people completely and maintain my distance. I wonder if there were any actions of deceit that the wife and friends could have caught on earlier, and if these actions could be given more notice, so more people could identify idiosyncratic behavior and ponder upon the relevance of this behavior. However, we then come to the issue of correlation versus causation which makes it more challenging to assume people’s behavior indicates deception and dangerous activity.

Patriot’s Day was most likely the film that I enjoyed watching the most this semester. It was powerful, engaging, and left me keeping back tears at the end. The Boston marathon bombing was an event that was heard nationwide, and one that has continued to come up in conversations in the present day. The film itself shows why this is so. Throughout the movie, the stories of each of the character’s are shown so that you can connect to or simply see their backgrounds. This continues to the very end of the film, when the real-life accounts of the characters are added in and they are able to speak about their experiences. The film never forgets the victims of the attack and is able to incorporate their stories into the narrative.

I believe that the film especially shows the unity of the Boston community. The accounts of the different victims elaborates this idea, as they use their own experiences after the bombing. I found this idea of community and support incredibly impactful, since it is woven into the movie itself and explicitly brought up once the actual film is over. The film also brought up other attacks on big cities and how these communities rallied within themselves to heal.

Last week, I went to go see the movie Patriot’s Day. This movie was about the Boston Marathon bombing. Some parts of the movie were heartbreaking, but in the end one of the bombers got caught and the other was killed. I still don’t understand how someone could do such terrible and atrocious things. One thing that really stood out to me was the guy who they kidnapped and whose car they stole. In the end he got away and helped the police, but I’m sure he must have been terrified. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I was in his place, but I really wonder if I would’ve been strong enough to escape. Would I have just shut down and accepted the fact that I was going to die? He was just a regular guy going about his day one minute, and the next he was kidnapped. It’s really scary to think that this could’ve happened to anyone. Either way, I’m glad that the bombers were caught.

After watching this movie, the first lesson I learnt is that there’s nowhere without dark side, even through there is US, and 99% people are nice and innocent. The second lesson I learnt is that there is still some hope to accept and teach bad people how to be a nice people, even through to some extend they are evil totally. The third lesson I learnt is that maybe love can move everyone, even through the possibility is lower than what this film shows to us. But after all, it’s a good movie to record the most miserable tragedy happened in 2013, and also salute to those policemen who protect us from injury and darkness.

Last week I was able to watch the film “Patriot’s Day.” I had heard of the movie before but hadn’t seen the trailer or even knew what the plot was about. The movie was about the 2013 bombing that occurred during the Boston marathon. The beginning of the film introduces characters who are key to the story without the viewer understanding why the movie is presenting random characters. The movie is formatted in a very fragmented way because it breaks down the occurrences of that day and the two days after the attack down to the hour. It was captivating because although it wasn’t as flashy as an action movie, it was extremely realistic which really brings an audience in. As viewers, we were able to get a sense of what being in Boston on that horrific day was like through the camera angles and time stamps.

It was interesting to see how officials decided on the best way to respond to the situation. First, they needed to decide who would take the case between the Boston police department and the FBI. When analyzing the scene and finding pieces of home-made bomb materials, the FBI was able to decide that it was most likely a terrorist attack. They faced other challenges such as trying to figure out whether or not they should release the photos of the suspects to the public prematurely. Often times we expect these professionals to be able to give us answers almost instantly, but the movie highlighted how delicate these situations are and how patience is often times the better answer.

The movie was heartbreaking because it showed how this act changed the lives of hundreds of people forever. However, it also showed how strong the city of Boston is and how resilient they were after the accident.

In the movie, each shot of the streets of Boston is captured, each scene is captured, and the real images of the bombing and the screen shots made by the crew are inserted in turn to allow the audience to feel their way to the scene of the incident. Although the film was adapted from real events, unless you were a witness to the Boston Marathon bombing, you couldn’t even find out which plots in the movie had changed the actual events. Many times you will feel that this sense of realism is more like a documentary. The charm of this city in Boston is not only shown in the lens of the oldest buildings in the United States, the powerful four major league teams, but each and every one of the people who lived and now lives in this city. Everyone is determined to fight terrorism. The resolute and yearning for a better future. The episode interspersed with the appearance of a large number of Boston locations and Chinese. The rush runner was used by every Chinese student who read a book in Boston. Every film was run alongside the Charles River. Colorful and realistic add color.