The 2016 film Patriots Day is largely a fact-based docudrama that adheres closely to the real timeline of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and the subsequent manhunt. Its commitment to authenticity is a core element, focusing on the procedural aspects of the investigation and the experiences of key individuals. However, for narrative cohesion and to represent the collective effort of law enforcement, the film employs composite characters, most notably the central protagonist, Police Sergeant Tommy Saunders (Mark Wahlberg). While the events, investigative techniques, and key figures depicted are overwhelmingly accurate, Saunders is a fictional amalgamation of several Boston police officers who were involved in different aspects of the crisis.
Specific elements of the film grounded in fact include the precise depiction of the bombing, the FBI's meticulous process of identifying the Tsarnaev brothers from surveillance footage, the murder of MIT officer Sean Collier, and the carjacking of Dun Meng, whose real-life testimony is a direct source for the film's portrayal of his ordeal. The climactic Watertown shootout is also recreated with a high degree of fidelity to the accounts of officers on the scene, such as Watertown Police Sergeant Jeffrey Pugliese, who is a real person portrayed in the film. The use of actual news reports and surveillance footage is integrated into the movie to further ground it in reality. The fictionalized components are primarily for narrative streamlining; Saunders is created to provide the audience a single viewpoint through disparate events, and some interpersonal dialogue between officials is dramatized for cinematic effect.
Ultimately, the film's dramatizations serve to condense a sprawling, multi-agency investigation into a comprehensible narrative without altering the fundamental truths of the event. The creation of a composite character like Tommy Saunders is a common cinematic technique used in true-story adaptations to avoid an overly crowded cast and to provide an emotional anchor for the audience. Therefore, while individual scenes and the main character are constructions, the film is considered a faithful and respectful account of what transpired, successfully capturing the factual sequence of events and the spirit of resilience demonstrated by the city and its first responders.
