The Purge: Anarchy

WARNING: This review is hidden because it reveals the content of the film.
Click here to show this review. I’m glad to see the “Purge” franchise moving in the right direction. This sequel, “The Purge: Anarchy” is not quite there in terms of the potential that the premise has to offer, but it’s a big improvement over the first picture.

The film is set in 2023, the sixth annual Purge. Eva Sanchez (Carmen Ejogo) and her daughter Cali (Zoë Soul) are about to become victims of some Purgers when a police sergeant (Frank Grillo) comes to their rescue. Joined by a married couple (Zach Gilford as Shane and Kiele Sanchez as Liz), the group makes an uneasy alliance as they try to survive the night, and in the case of the policeman, finish what he went out to do on this night where all crime, including murder, is legal.

This film is much closer to what I was hoping I would see when I sat down to watch “The Purge”. No longer is the action confined to a single house, we move onto the streets and see a plethora of different individuals as they interact with each other on this night where anything goes. You get to see the people offering protection for the night for a fee, what the homeless do to protect each other, both rich and poor people embrace their government given right to murder, evidence of how this 12 hour period has changed the whole year. The film shows a wide gamut of people, some who Purge for purely sadistic, evil reasons and others who… well, I can’t say that they’re totally in the right, as wholly sanctioned murder is without a doubt immoral, but have “legitimate” reasons for going out and taking out their frustration on the world.

What’s good about the premise of this franchise is reflected upon this film. You never know if you can feel safe at any point. Sure people might appear to be your friends, but what if they’re putting on an act? They could simply be biding their time, waiting to strike. There’s nothing to prevent them from doing so, and you never know, maybe you did something to upset them in the past 24 hours. Maybe calling upon them for help, talking back in a situation that’s so stressful you can barely hold it together is going to be that final straw. I also find the premise very frightening. Enemies could be everywhere. That’s scary, there’s also no one to help you when all hope seems lost. Remember how you complained in dozens of horror movies that someone didn’t just call the police for help? Well, there’s no police now! There’s a glimmer of hope, as the Purge only lasts 12 hours, but the odds of survival seem so small when you look outside and see people excited to maim and murder. Decked out with war paint, armed with flamethrowers, machetes, sniper rifles or traps, I find it frightening that the Purge might have some inkling of truth. I know that in reality, it’s much healthier for people to vent their frustration frequently and a little bit at a time, but what if it wasn’t true? What would it say about humanity if murdering people yearly under controlled circumstances was the way to achieve world peace?

This brings me to my biggest criticism of the movie. I still don’t feel like this franchise is still sold on its own premise. Yet again, we encounter a bunch of people who live in the world of the Purge, but are against it. It’s the equivalent of having an anti-hero like Snake Plissken reveal to the audience that he was framed, that he isn’t actually a hero who lacks conventional heroic qualities. It’s enough that these people are in mortal danger. It’s ok to have them give a thumb up to the Purge. In their reality the results speak for themselves, don’t they? Which leads into another negative point towards this film, a subplot concerning anti-Purge resistance group. I won’t say too much, but let’s put it this way: it’s as if the series is trying to move towards a conclusion, a point where this world transforms back into ours. I’m not interested in that. No one is. We want to see more stories from this world, don’t sabotage your franchise!

“The Purge: Anarchy” pulls its punches at points by making the characters nice when they don’t need to be, too stupid to survive, by implanting values from our world into them or giving them needlessly tragic backstories. When you look at the action, tension, and execution, it’s a much, much better film than the previous entry in the series. I still see some room for improvement in this film, but it looks like there’s hope for the sequel, now out in theaters. I like “The Purge: Anarchy” enough to recommend it and to go check out the next one too. (On Ultraviolet, July 2, 2016)