Alright, so I love movies (and Mark Wahlberg), so I thought I'd do a little article about a movie in which he so happens to act.
Patriots Day was one of those movies that kind of just hit me hard. If you don't already know, it's a movie about the Boston bombing that happened in April of 2013 and the hunt for the men who committed the act.
We can hear on the news about these horrifying happenings, but we can never truly understand what it was like to be there when those two bombs went off. To me, this movie really put everything that happened into perspective for me. From the beginning, the movie takes you through the lives of some of the people before the day of the marathon. They were just everyday people who had absolutely no idea that their lives were going to be changed forever. And these actors are portraying REAL victims of the attack as you find out at the end when the actual victims themselves speak about what had happened. The movie also takes you through the hunt for the two men, and the events that happened up to their capture.
I know it's a Hollywood film, but it doesn't feel that way when you're watching it. From the very beginning, it feels real and that's because it was real. The movie has humor, and happiness, and love, but it does have a lot of real and raw emotion. It's real life.
In an article by Bryan Alexander of USA TODAY, Mark Wahlberg says, "This is not just about Boston, it’s about all of us. Bad things will continue to happen, but good people will always come together and fight for what’s right. And love will always win. I want everyone to hear that message."
And that message is crystal clear in the movie. Wahlberg and the rest of the cast and crew brought us a truly eye-opening movie that I think we all need. When the movie ended, the entire theater was completely silent. Not a single word was spoken. The movie had that much of an impact.
Even other movies like American Sniper and Lone Survivor (another Whalberg movie) bring to life what we only hear, but never witness. And although you only see these onscreen reenactments, you can truly feel the pain and the hurt that the people faced. Don't think of these as just simply movies; rather, think of it as real life.
If you haven't seen any of the movies I have mentioned, I strongly encourage you to watch them--not necessarily for entertainment, but for education and understanding that some of us are very lucky people. We are a family here in America. When disasters like the Boston bombings or even the Orlando Night Club shootings occur, we come together as one, and we mourn the losses and we pray because we're a family here, and that's the message that Patriots Day conveys.
So, I applaud Mark Wahlberg, Peter Berg, and the rest of the cast and crew of Patriots Day for creating such an eye-opening movie. And I also just want to send a thank you to all of the men and women who risk their lives to keep us safe. If you haven't seen this movie, I strongly encourage you to do so.