Coming up with a fresh, interesting idea that can captivate audiences is difficult enough to begin with. To come across an idea of that caliber and execute an entire film based around it to perfection is a feat rarely accomplished in the film industry, however, when it does happen the results are remarkable.
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Ethan Hawke stars in "The Purge", a thriller set in the future where once a year for 12 hours all crime is legal. Coming up with a fresh, interesting idea that can captivate audiences is difficult enough to begin with. To come across an idea of that caliber and execute an entire film based around it to perfection is a feat rarely accomplished in the film industry, however, when it does happen the results are remarkable. Unfortunately, The Purge will not fall among those ranks. Despite an idea that immediately sparks thought (and keeps you thinking for the duration of the movie), it just doesn't come through with enough thrills to keep the viewer glued to the screen waiting on every move.
The main concept here is by no means the film's weakest point. Fast forwarding to the year 2022, unemployment is at 1% and crime has also dropped to an all-time low. The "New Founding Fathers of America" are running a much tighter ship with strict law that many think runs so well because of The Purge. This "holiday" is a 12 hour chunk of time where all crime is legal (including murder), no emergency personnel can be contacted, no high ranking government officials can be targeted, and the lethality of the weapons are restricted.
Many believe that the allowance to release built up stress and anger has resulted in the drastically decreased crime rate, especially when citizens are able to target the homeless and less fortunate who they see as no more than filth and bloodsuckers of society.
Cue the Sandin family. Father James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) is a home security salesman hoping to keep his loving wife Mary (Lena Headley), depressed daughter Zoey (Adelaide Kane), and intelligent son Charlie (Max Burkholder) safe on Purge night. Under scrutiny by their jealous neighbors and the eyes of God, the Sandin household doesn't make it long before their home fortress comes crashing down from the inside.
Torn between whether the Purge is beneficial or just senseless violence, Charlie must choose whether to assist a homeless man (Edwin Hodge) trying to escape a group of ravenous Purgers or leave him to his fate. Regardless of Charlie's choice, it doesn't take long for the Sandin's to realize that the demons at their door may be nothing compared to the ones behind it.
Director James DeMonaco wrote and directed a film with a fine premise that leaves you thinking, "If this were real, what would I do?", and with every decision the Sandin's make, has you asking it again. DeMonaco played it somewhat safe, casting Hawke as the lead who he's worked with before as writer and producer for Assault on Precinct 13, but Hawke seems almost detached from this role aside from certain scenes. Headley on the other hand, seemed to shine through with a much more convincing acting job.
For a film that was supposed to be a thriller, there weren't many unpredictable thrills. There are many moments when silent suspense is generated when the power in the house goes off and all that can be seen is what falls in the beam of a flashlight, but the attempted scares are forced and for the most part predictable. Ironically, the ending is essentially a twist. There are a number of instances close to the end of the 85 minute running time (and some in between) in which you might think you have the necessary tools to develop a theory on the ending. You'll probably find that none of them are correct. Although it struggles to entertain and keep entertaining, all would've been lost had the end not been somewhat refreshing.
The Purge was a similar model of Bryan Bertino's The Strangerswith less tension, but more story and reasoning for what was occurring. With a thought provoking concept and a story that places the audience in the family's shoes, much more was expected than what was given.