The Purge: Election Year

Films don't always do so well when they mix stories with politics, particularly horror films, but in all fairness this one did the job surprisingly well. This feels like a good conclusion to the Purge series, with the upcoming first Purge explaining how it all started. This one had a story as well as the usual tales of hate and revenge. This was visually very good, some of the scenes looked great, the shop under attack scenes in particular was expertly staged. It was well acted once again, and the story was rather intriguing. It lacked some of the subtleties of the first film, and at times it did feel like we've been here before many times, but overall it was very watchable, I got the impression all involved were taking it very seriously. 7/10

2016. A presidential election year. Both in reality and on the big screen – with high stakes AND what seems to be an increasing amount of insanity working its way into the process. 2016 marks the second time the GOP is lead by a candidate mainly known for his accomplishments as a businessman, the third time with a candidate named Clinton heading the Democratic ticket – and the third time for a story about an annual 12-hour period at the beginning of spring during which all crime is legal – even murder.

As many questions as have been raised by the first two iterations in "The Purge" film franchise, writer-director James DeMonaco (accomplishing the rare feat of creating three movies in a single horror series) manages to find even more questions to ask in "The Purge: Election Year" (R, 1:45). For example, might such an annual event attract foreigners who would like to get away with murder for a night? (Yes. They're called "murder tourists".) Does insurance cover property against purge night destruction? (Yes. But they might hike up their rates at the last minute, even beyond what people can pay.) Is it possible for a politician to turn back the clock and end the annual purge? (Maybe. But it wouldn't be easy.) Senator Charlene "Charlie" Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) is an Independent candidate for President running primarily on a promise to end the purge, mainly because of seeing her entire family murdered on an earlier purge night. She has the backing of a guy who actually has her back, her head of security, former police Sergeant Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo), who was stopped from nearly carrying out a revenge killing on a more recent purge night and now hates the brutal tradition almost as much as Roan does. Although there is a growing anti-purge movement, including a group led by Dante Bishop (Edwin Hodge, the only actor to appear in all three of the films), there are a lot of powerful people who want the purge to go on.

On this purge night, the usual ban against killing high-ranking politicians is lifted. That puts Roan's life in danger. It also exposes the NFFA (New Founding Fathers of America) to being targeted themselves, but they have the money to hire plenty of security with plenty of firepower. When the NFFA turn their considerable resources against Roan, she finds herself on the run in the streets of Washington DC, trying to survive the night so she can (hopefully) win the election and make this the last purge night ever.

As the usual purge mayhem unfolds around them, Barnes and Roan are saved from certain death by deli owner Joe Dixon (Mykelti Williamson) and his loyal employee, Marcos (Joseph Julian Soria). With their help and the help of purge night triage vehicle operator Laney "Little Death" Rucker (Betty Gabriel) and (later in the movie) Bishop and his followers, Roan and Barnes just might survive the night… but it won't be easy and it may cost the lives of some of the main characters. NFFA leaders like Caleb Warrens (Raymond J. Berry) and Minister Edwige Owens (Kyle Secor), Roan's opponent in the presidential election, have money, influence, superior technology and ruthless thugs like Earl Danzinger (Terry Serpico, looking like an evil Anthony Michael Hall) to help bring their nefarious plans to fruition.

Like the pervious "Purge" movies, "The Purge: Election Day" is surprisingly entertaining and deep. The first film explored the idea of income and class inequality taken to extremes, but it just felt like an interesting one-off. A 2014 sequel added more action – and made the franchise's theme more obvious (especially late in the movie), while adding the subplot of growing popular resistance to the purge. The third film throws its message right in the audience's face, but what it lacks in subtlety, it makes up for in even better story-telling. The plot is multi-faceted, but not overly complicated, and features some interesting twists along the way. Some of the characters are over-acted, parts of the script are unnecessarily crude and there's a distracting amount of blood and gore, but "The Purge: Election Day" gives Movie Fans plenty of engaging action and biting social commentary. "B"

This thrilling picture results to be a futuristic yarn full of kinetic energy and amazing stunt work . It contains mystery , chills , noisy action , thrills , fights , social critical , and a weird atmosphere with dark with a surprising ending . The known and unrealistic premise of "The Purge" developing in the first installment is the following : The idea behind this whole futuristic America is that the Economy is down and Crime is up , as authorities put a lot of emphasis on murder being legal , that's why they believe assassinations would get better problems . It is just universally accepted that the cause of all these troubles is built up aggression within the human population. In order to correct this, the United States Government decides that it would be a good idea to give the public a day to "release the aggression". So, one day of each year, they will have an annual "Purge" where all crime is legal , including killing . Somehow, magically, this does help the Economy and Crime overall is down for the rest of the year. Because if people get out all that anger in one day, they will not feel the need to commit any more crimes for the rest of the year . This third outing is set some years later from first entry , it's been two years since Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo who reprises the character of former police sergeant Leo Barnes) stopped himself from a regrettable act of vendetta on Purge Night . Nowadays serving as head of security for Senator Charlie Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) , who is promising to end the annual purge nights , she is competing at national election against another candidate , Minister Edwidge Owens (Kyle Secor) . The New Founding Fathers of America's (NFFA) leader, Caleb Warrens (Raymond J. Barry) and their candidate, Minister Edwidge Owens, view Roan as a threat; in the guise of regaining the public's trust, revoke immunity for rank 10 or higher government officials to kill her on Purge night . Charlie's mission is to protect her in a run for president and survive the annual ritual that targets the poor and innocent . They have to confront a really ruthless gang of masked killers led by Earl Danzinger (Terry Serpico) . But a betrayal forces them onto the streets of D.C. on the one night when no help is available . Along the way the security agent and the Senator are helped by a motley group of brave people called Joe Dixon (Mykelti Williamson) , Marcos (Joseph Soria) and Laney Rucker (Betty Gabriel) . As they must stay alive until dawn...or both be sacrificed for their sins against the state . I Purged . For one night only, America invites you to its annual tradition . Keep America Great .Purge for the People .Purge for the Nation . Purge for the Power .Purge for Your Liberty . Purge for the Glory. Witness the birth of an American tradition. Citizens, join the Purge. A nation reborn. It Changed Our Country. It Challenged Our Beliefs. Now, Witness How It All Began.

The film is a comic-books style story , set in a dystopian nearly future , plenty of energetic action , shootouts , extreme violence , thriller , surprise-filled entertainment and high body-count . The tale is a blending of ordinary Sci-Fi movies , such as : Escape from N.Y , 2013 : Rescue in L.A. , Doomsday , and even Mad Max series , taking parts here and there . Instead of attempting to be a terror movie , it turns a fantastic thriller/action film set in a pseudo-apocalyptic future about a group of people trying to survive on a night where it's all-out war on the streets . This exciting movie is packed with frenetic action , crossfire , unbelievable car stunts , tension , thrills , chills , and lots of blood and gore, including throating-slit , beheading and anything else . The nail-biting action scenes are uniformly very well done , and the suspense and intrigue are enough to keep you interested throughout the film runtime , even in the low parts of the picture . This Great Action Thriller was the final movie in the "Purge" trilogy (2013-2016) until a prequel was made : The First Purge (2018) . It displays a magnificent plethora of characters , pretty well drawn , giving exceptional performances by its entire cast .

This is a decent movie and well set in a post-apocalyptic D.C. , dealing with a valient group who will have to fight cruel disguised cutthroats , bands of depraved crazies ; packing frantic action , shocks as well as abundant violence, being professionaly directed by James de Monaco . And it even has earned more money at the box office than its predecessor . Monaco is a good writer/producer and director . He has written the Purge saga and Purge TV series ; and Assault on Precinct 13 , Skinwalkers , Negotiator , Hate , Staten Island , The kill Point series , Crash series . And he has directed The Purge films ; this horror/thriller franchise is formed by The Purge 2013 , The Purge: Anarchy 2014 , Election year 2016 , and The First Purge 2018 . All of them are set in different locations , as the first film takes place in a house , the second film takes place in the streets , and the third film takes place in official locations , as well as D.C. , and The First Purge takes place on Staten Island, New York , in which no character from any of the previous installments will be returning. This Purge Election is an acceptable film in its own right and it's worth watching . Rating : 6.5/10 . It is very highly recommend to anyone who appeals apocalyptic thrillers .

With the holiday coming up, the movie industry is doing its best to rope people into the theaters. You would think something patriotic like a war story, a biography of a founding father, or some type of political coming of age movie. But my first review is on a horror instead…that has to due with politics. My review is on The Purge: Election Year, the third installment in a series I never expected to have this much ground. Yours truly heads into the trenches to provide you another review and help guide your thoughts on how to spend your tickets in the theaters.

The GOOD: • Comedy • Semi Decent plot • Suspenseful

The first point has to be a surprise, but yes the Purge: Election Year has some decent comedy to lighten up the aggressively somber mood. I mainly laughed at the commentary from Joe, a local deli shop owner with an interesting background on his own. Joe's lines are a menagerie of one- liners, quips, and racial banter that had the audience laughing. Despite some of the intense moments, the writers made the lines very tasteful, making sure to add a fun edge that hopefully won't insult the masses. Some of the other characters have their moments as well, timed equally well to maximize the laughs.

But you didn't come for laughs, you came for suspense that the night of legalized murder has provided in the past. You might think that a third installment has lost its edge, but surprisingly Election Year keeps the same on the seat moments as the last one. Like its predecessor, this movie takes our characters onto the streets, each forging their own path through the chaotic forest of crazy violence. I was pulled into the movie not by the mindless killing, but by the wonder of which member of the merry band would bite the dust. Part of what helped this was a semi-decent, albeit rushed, plot that had a little more backbone than mindless murder. Election Year's plot brings us further down the rabbit hole as to the point of the Purge and fills into those pot holes left at the end of the second movie. It's nothing special, but the character profiles were what kept my interest and fostered a bond with all the characters.

The BAD • Pointless cursing/overacting • Violence substituted for plot • All the political issues it can drum up

No surprise, but a Rated R movie is going to have cursing, I get that I do. But as always the case, our writers get a little overzealous with dirtying the mouths of characters. Election Year unfortunately is not spared that fate as characters, mainly extras, fill their roles with overacted, dramatically-emphasized cursing that is more annoying than anything. I know it is to make you hate the character who will certainly die in the end, but they could have done it without such grandiose tactics. The silver lining of this, it is for limited run times so yay for that.

A second weakness for me, is substituting the violence for the plot. Now don't rip my head off, it is the Purge, a holiday that is only about violence and celebrating death, of course there will be violence. However, the Purge really needs to drop the glorified torture scenes and disturbing dances of craziness to provide more kick to their tale. That doesn't mean get rid of it all, after all there were plenty of jump at you moments where the violence was perfect, but Election Years tangents showing mask-wearing extras dancing or setting an elaborate trap that really doesn't work. This is another example of editing not eliminating all unnecessary scenes.

But perhaps the biggest weakness for me is the political issues this movie is sure to spark. Back in the day, you could make a movie like this and not start a revolution, but modern times have left our people a little more easily offended these days. The Purge's overdramatic antics, dialogue, and factions are certainly going to divide people and perhaps incite their own revolution on some level. All of the excessive violence, racial slurs, and political issues are over glorified, and I saw these effects take fruit in my theater with a few overzealous fans. So why did I bring this point up? Two reasons. The first is the political rants and corrupt speeches are cheesy, overdone, and eye rolling. The second is that if you are easily offended, no matter how much you like horror, you should not see this movie.

The Verdict

Despite being a third installment, The Purge Election Year certainly brings the same bite it always has. Yes, it is overdramatic and glorifies violence, and at times is certainly reflective of a mad man's mind. However, as far as horror movies go, it is surprisingly decent in terms of plot, action, and suspense that will entertain many of this genre. With interesting characters and a fast moving pace, you certainly won't be bored for the 105 minute run time. Necessary for a trip to the theater? Not really, but those who love the dive into the mad realm of murder, will certainly enjoy this tale.

My scores:

Action/Horror/Sci-Fi: 7.0 Movie Overall: 6.0

I would've expected James DeMonaco to go out guns blazing, but The Purge: Election Year was an unfortunate, watered down shade of its predecessors. The elevated carnage the sequel earned praise for absolutely stagnates in this blunder of a film, as the violence felt staged & uninspired. In place of the hardcore & horrifying antics, are spoiled brats & corny foreigners playing dress up, whose inept acting earned chuckles instead of intrigue.

Sadly, where the horror fails, the writing follows suit. I concur, The Purge: Election Year's socio-political premise is sensible, but its plot pieces are as generic as it comes, wasting away the surprising emotional heft Anarchy was praised for. The poor writing extends to its under developed characters as well, leading to nonchalant responses to majority of the film's turnouts.

James DeMonaco should've called it quits after Anarchy, plain & simple. The glaring staleness of this installment, that promised a riveting closure to the well conceptualized franchise, is then a mere ineffective diversion. Sad.