The Purge: Anarchy

The Purge: Anarchy is much better than the first instalment; I considered giving it a fourth star. It is more sensitive in the treatment of characters, with more suspense, a cleverer script and more plot development, as well as more poignant in its provocative criticism of American capitalism. Dark and brutal, depressing due to the unpleasantly realistic subject and entertaining with its thriller pace with a lot of shootouts, Anarchy looks a bit like a video game in which you have to shoot your way to safety through a crowded, damn dangerous city at night. (08/07/2014)

The more space the characters have to move around, the more space they have to behave like morons. If anything, I have to acknowledge that the second Purge at least tries not to copy the first episode and makes better use of its initial premise, though its hollowness hasn’t changed at all since the previous one, but whatever. What bothered me the most were the characters, in particular the mother with her daughter, who were very annoying. In contrast, Frank Grillo was fine and I wouldn’t mind if he was the only protagonist, and the entire second Purge was only about his journey across the chaotic city towards his rightful revenge. Another thing that bothered me were the moments where the creators probably think they are delivering a sharp social satire (the scene of the auction, in particular, is utter nonsense), but they actually don’t say anything at all about society, because their world stands on a very wobbly logic. But overall, I have nothing against this film, it’s an inoffensive and eager B-movie. (08/09/2014)

In my opinion, weaker than the more intimate first movie. While it has likeable characters and a great intro that manages to evoke an atmosphere of hopelessness and the fear of ordinary people in the face of an impending storm exactly as I would have wanted throughout the rest of the film, as the minutes tick by, DeMonaco turns the story into a B-grade action video game where the heroes run around the city and seemingly complete new missions at random. The "climax" in this respect is the dark and opaque shootout at the very end, which pretty much says it all. The only thing I enjoyed is the idea of rich men using The Purge to capture random people and then hunt them down in an enclosed arena, purely for fun and, of course, for money. 50% (07/28/2015)

"Purge: Anarchy" is definitely not such a great step towards realizing its potential. DeMonaco goes with his action spectacle, which surprisingly isn't as intense or cruel. In this regard, the film has lost a bit of its impact and there are no scenes that truly captivate me. It's a shame because I'm sure that in such a setting and with such a premise, it could have been possible. The ending is a classic resolution that simply doesn't exceed the limits. (10/08/2014)