★★★½☆
Riding high on a single mind-blowing premise that provoked viewers from the very first film, witnessing sanctioned crimes and homicides for one night annually doesn’t fail to amaze and thrill. Returning to the silver screen for the third time, The Purge: Election Year raises the standards of its ‘B’-flick ambitions to turn an exploitation film political.
With the objective of reducing crime rates 364 days a year by allowing citizens their right to release their inner devils for one night – known as Purge Night, The Purge (2013) and The Purge: Anarchy (2014) provided ample film material to help us realise how far humanity has fallen off and away from the tree of life.
Director and writer James DeMonaco fleshed out the premise within a house in a neighbourhood in The Purge. The second film broke away from home confinement to bring three sets of characters out on the streets. The third film adopts a macro view on the premise.
The Purge: Election Year tries to take the genre seriously by scripting a political agenda behind all the madness. One that also started it all after the New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) party took power in the United States to introduce and influence a culture of “purging and purifying”.
Suffering a tragic fate during one of the Purge Nights when she was younger, Senator Charlie Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) is running for election against the NFFA candidate Minister Edwidge Owens (Kyle Secor) to abolish Purge Nights. As genre films require, Senator Roan goes through a treacherous Purge Night with her head of security Leo Barnes (Frank) – yes, the police Sergeant who attempted to avenge his son’s death in The Purge: Anarchy.
With Minister Owens leading the annual Purge Mass where elite followers attend a protected service where purging is performed as an annual religious ritual. This portrays some references to how extremism takes place in our world today – when a handful of crazy individuals manage to muster critical mass of influence with teachings of ill-construed idealisms and philosophies to create an impact.
The God-fearing party also sends one pondering if it was an intentional reference to the current Republican US Presidential Candidate. The release of The Purge: Election Year might just be timed for this purpose.
Outdoing itself in the department of action set pieces, DeMonaco deploys good camera and editing techniques to bring about captivating genre deliverables that sustain throughout the film’s 105 minutes.
Supporting characters in the form of deli shop owner Joe Nixon (Mykelti Williamson) and his friends Marcos (Joseph Julian Soria) and (Betty Gabriel) Laney Rucker provide memorable screen presence and chemistry for a good watch.
Not sure if North Korea will also have a free pass to send an ICBM over on Purge Night.
There are also brief introduction of technology (such as UAV/drone) and economic spinoffs such as “murder tourism” where foreigners visit the US to kill Americans. Not sure if North Korea will also have a free pass to send an ICBM over on Purge Night.
DeMonaco’s latest installment of the series is proficiently serious about expanding its genre ambitions to greater heights with a political plot layer over its primary premise promise of purging.
Also published on InCinemas.sg
cineJay 