The Purge-2013

The Purge-2013

Director-James DeMonaco

Starring-Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey

Scott’s Review #128

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Reviewed July 23, 2014

Grade: A-

On paper, the premise of the film The Purge is very intriguing. It immediately caught my attention and I was compelled to see it.

Set shortly, the government, fed up with the overwhelming crime and prison overcrowding, decides to initiate a once-a-year purge, whereupon, anything goes.

It’s like Christmas for the criminals and insane.

All emergency and police will shut down on this night and citizens are left to their own devices as a way to purge the violent and aggressive instincts from human systems. An affluent family, led by a security systems genius (Ethan Hawke), nestles in their lavish home.

Of course, events go horribly awry and chaos ensues.

The film contains suspense, thrills, frights, and a bit of humor and contains a question of class distinction and raises societal questions- Why are the wealthy better off than the poor? Do they deserve to be?

I enjoyed the setting of the wealthy, gated Los Angeles community and the eerily Stepford wife-like atmosphere of the neighborhood where housewives delivered casseroles and other dishes to each other for the big night. Throughout this sunny environment, the viewer could sense a too-good-to-be-true cheerfulness and the darkness to follow anticipated as sunset emerged.

I found this film to be unpredictable and the edge of your seat and the film delved into a home invasion thriller, which was effective. I could not predict what might happen next and that is incredibly entertaining.

I am unsure if some of the humor in the film was intentional or not- some of the kills were over the top and contained one-liners, but The Purge is a crisp, fun, summer popcorn horror film.

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