The keyword term "Patriots Day Joey" functions grammatically as a proper noun. It is a compound noun phrase used to identify a specific, unique individual presumed to be associated with the 2016 film Patriots Day. The core noun is "Joey," which is modified by "Patriots Day" to specify the context in which this person is being referenced.
Analysis of the film's script and cast reveals that there is no character explicitly named "Joey." The search term likely arises from a viewer's attempt to recall the name of a key character from the film's narrative. The individual most frequently associated with this search query is Dun Meng, the Chinese national who was carjacked by the Tsarnaev brothers. Portrayed by actor Jimmy O. Yang, Dun Meng's role is pivotal; his escape from the carjacked vehicle and subsequent report to the police directly led to the Watertown firefight and the eventual capture of the suspects. His sequence is one of the most memorable and suspenseful in the film.
In practice, the term "Patriots Day Joey" serves as an informal signifier for the character Dun Meng. The use of a common American name like "Joey" instead of the character's actual name reflects a frequent pattern in search behavior where users substitute a forgotten or difficult-to-recall proper name with a more familiar one. Therefore, while the keyword is structurally a proper noun, its referent is a misidentification of the character whose courageous actions were critical to the film's true-to-life plot resolution.
