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3.0 out of 5 starsThe Purge: Anarchy (2014) Review
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2014
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It’s that time again where citizens of America must brace themselves for the New Founding Father’s annual tradition, the annual purge. Returning to direct is James DeMonaco who’s success from 2013′s hit was praised for an interesting concept that saw for one night out of the year, all crime is legal; including murder, and all emergency services would be suspended. This go around we see three sets of people who see themselves at the mercy of crazed citizens on the streets wanting to “unleash the beast” as they say. With the help of a vengeful father, Frank Grillo, he comes to their aide but only to set his sights on fulfilling his need by nights end.
Going into The Purge: Anarchy I hoped the director would fix some of the narrative issues from the first film that explained more about how the night of the purge came to be. Also the pacing was a bit slow and part of it being that the movie took place inside a home that took a while before things started to happen. In Anarchy, it’s safe to say the pacing is much better due to the character development and careful set-up before the purge commences. There are moments when gangs pop up unexpectedly around the city that gives a sign of who to look out for. The atmosphere was better compared to the original film where the film rushed to get to the home with Ethan Hawke and his family that we didn’t get a chance to let things sink in.
Seeing how the Sergeant (Frank Grillo) was going to participate in the purge to avenge his son’s death helped to show us a side we haven’t seen before. A disturbing idea that came out of the film was the idea of people voluntarily making themselves as martyrs to provide for their family. The mother and daughter, played by Carmen Ejogo and Zoe Soul, who’s father disliked the idea of the purge is an example of that. A resistance force was shown to oppose the purge that only bettered the wealthy while ridding of the poor. This is later explained into more detail as there needing to be a balance in the world. What the movie succeeds at is the expansion of the narrative by venturing into the ideas of faith, politics, and morality.
Considering the intrigue of the movie’s premise, the more the film progresses the more disturbing it was to watch as it added social commentary. What it said about violence and wealth was that it was a driver towards controlling the people and having a need to reduce the population. Although the movie has an element of fantasy with science fiction, you almost come to understand why the purge is needed. By the films end, as the purge concludes, there is a countdown clock for the next upcoming purge night. As much relief people may have when the night is over and the sirens goes off, you can’t help but think that every second of every day that goes by you come one step closer to the next purge.
The acting was mediocre to poor, as was with the last outing, that saw poor decisions by the characters that allowed for insanity to happen. Here is no different, except you may overlook some of their poor choices as they are covered up by entraining chases and shoot-outs. There is nothing more terrifying then a night of pent up rage that lets loose amongst cities around the country that is deemed legal. A character from the last film who was annoying to watch at sometimes is duplicated here with the daughter. Many times she put herself and the group in danger that only helped to see them get shot at or captured. Another problem is the government regulating fire arms when emergency services are shut down. We saw this in the last film but was never spoken about. Here, we see someone using a class 4 gun that is prohibited and is mentioned in some way.
Overall, the movie is a step up in the right direction. The pacing helped to make the film more enjoyable to watch and not be refined inside of a home. Watching the Sergeant and his group run through the streets to avoid maniacs was fun and tense at times. There is even a surprise appearance in the film if you pay attention closely. From an acting and narrative stance, there are still things to be improved on but from what I’ve seen it works with some exceptions. If you have seen the first Purge and disliked it you may not like this film; however for those who like the concept but were disappointed last year, you may feel differently this time around. An intense thrill ride that won’t let up.