The Purge

The Purge (2013)
Directed by: James DeMonaco
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 44%

Hello Film Fans!

Rarely do I get excited about horror films. As a child, I was terrified of the classics: Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween. They instilled that healthy fear of the unknown, but I never had "fun" watching them. Fast forward a few years to high school and my opinion changed. I had been doing research on the Amityville murders because of the remake that was about to hit the theater. I found everything I read to be absolutely intriguing. I got excited for opening night and even convinced some friends to go with me. I laughed throughout the whole film. The things they said and did were incredibly contrived and inaccurate as to what "really happened". I saw horror movies in a different light after that. I even went and bought the DVD of the scariest movie I have ever seen; John Carpenter's (I hate that I have to make that distinction) Halloween. I still don't pay to see outright horror films because they just aren't what I like. Thrillers, on the other hand, are some of my favorites. It can be a good psychological thriller (Se7en), a great political thriller (All the President's Men), or maybe even a gripping crime thriller (The Usual Suspects). The horror subgenre of thriller is one that has had some heavy hitters in the past (The Shining, Alien, The Ring) but the scariest one I have seen recently is The Strangers.

I think I just wet myself

It blended everything so perfectly. I looked over my shoulder for a solid week after seeing it. That is a good horror film. The Purge comes close but lacks the real danger you feel with The Strangers.

The Purge opens at some point in the near future (2022 I think). Crime is at an all time low, poverty is on the decline, and Americans are seemingly happy. The reason behind this time of peace and prosperity is the annual Purge. A few years prior to the events in the film, the "New Founding Fathers" ordinated that every year, for twelve hours, all emergency services will be suspended. In those twelve hours, anything goes. People are given carte blanche to murder and pillage as they see fit. The reasoning behind the Purge is simple, if you allow everyone to release all their anger and hatred on one day, free of repercussions, then they will be much happier throughout the rest of the year. James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) is a very successful home security salesman. When the film starts, we learn that his team was number on in his district in upgraded security systems. This accomplishment is to be awarded with a large monetary bonus. As James drives through his gated community, we see large, lavish homes. Neighbors out walking their dogs, mowing their lawns, and preparing for the Purge. Through a conversation between James' wife, Mary (Lena Headley), and a neighbor we sense there is an uneasiness between everyone. Nobody quite knows what the others are planning to do with their evening. The neighbor mentions that the new addition the Sandins have built compliments their home nicely, and then makes a remark about how they all helped build it because they bought their security systems from James. The neighbors usually hold a large party during the Purge, but they decide against it this year. As the family sits down to dinner, we are introduced to the two Sandin children: Charlie (Max Burkholder) and Zoey (Adelaide Kane). Charlie is young and curious as to why his parents don't Purge. James tells him because they don't feel the need, but they would if they did. We get a true sense of Mary's disagreement with the Purge when she shifts her eyes quickly to him as he says this. Mary wants no part of the Purge, but it is a way of life. Zoey is a horror movie teenager dressed in a school girl outfit the whole movie. Her boyfriend is older than her by several years, but he claims to "love" her (they actually growl at each other to show affection...). Minutes before the beginning of the Purge, the Sandins gather in their house's command center to activate their security system. After a brief explanation of what the Purge is and a siren signaling the commencement, everything goes back to normal. A while later we see that there is a man trying to escape a group of people out to murder him. Charlie sees the man on the security camera monitors and decides to help him. He deactivates the system, allowing the man to enter their home. He quickly disappears in the confusion and tension begins to build in the household. Shortly after the disturbance, the group that was chasing him arrives at the Sandin's door. Their leader, Henry (Tony Oller) gives them an ultimatum: deliver our victim to us, or we will come in and kill you.

The Purge does a lot of things right. The premise, while pretty far fetched, is intriguing, however it's not the first time it has been used. The original Star Trek series had an episode where a civilization lived in banality except for during a twelve hour period where there were no rules. The underlying issue in The Purge is that the wealthy get wealthier and the poor get poorer. Case in point, James Sandin is a home security salesman. He is already rich, but he has become even richer due to his neighbors buying security systems from him. There is a sense of resentment in the community because they feel like they are not being treated fairly. The main targets for people out Purging are homeless or in extreme poverty. Henry pleads with James when he discovers his victim is taking sanctuary inside his house. He calls the man garbage and that it is his right to eradicate him so that the rest of the population can live without his burden. I would venture to say that there are some people today that wouldn't mind too much if Obama made the annual Purge a reality. What the Purge does right is it makes us question our morality; our humanity. What it does wrong is it employs horror movie tropes. People popping out of nowhere, there are a few trip and fall moments, and, as I stated above, the pretty teenager in a school girl outfit. In addition to these, we never really get a sense of danger because the villans are not shown all that often. Henry is a terrific movie villan, but his character is wasted due to lack of presence.

No BS

The Purge is a lot of fun. There are some tough moments to watch (security footage of brutal beatings and murder) but they are pretty isolated. All the actors do a great job in their roles (especially Oller). If you like horror movies then this decision will be easy for you, however if you want a smart thriller, wait for this one. The reliance on cliches and the lack of that feeling of danger makes the film feel a little light.

My Score: 6.5/10