There's a whole new spin in today's horror flicks that are labeled "home invasion movies" and they seem endlessly popular. Usually the scenarios deal with a nice couple or family inside a suburban home being attacked by psychos from the outside, wearing animal masks more times than not. The modern day "home invasion" scenario for cinema might be traced back to HENRY: PORTAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER in that sequence where Henry and Otis slam through the front door of a house and attack its occupants while videotaping the events. (And going even further back, you can look at 1974's BLACK CHRISTMAS or 1955's THE DESPERATE HOURS.) But obviously, now more than ever, Americans harbor a great fear of someone kicking in their doors and windows and attacking them. The premise of THE PURGE is pretty cool: once a year, for a 12-hour period, Americans can participate in a "purge" to let go of their anger. Anything goes---rape, murder, destruction, whatever you may want to do. You will not be prosecuted for any crime committed during this time period and all law enforcement agencies and hospitals are closed during the "holiday." Kind of like Halloween on steroids! This allegedly keeps "real crime statistics at bay" the rest of the year, knowing you can do ANYTHING you want once a year. [Would have been great to see John Carpenter tackle this premise in his prime, no?] THE PURGE focuses on yet another annoyingly bland and dysfunctional American family who lock themselves in for the12-hour period but are attacked by a masked group of "purgers" when the youngest kid stupidly disarms the security system and lets in a black man that the group is chasing. What follows is pretty much your standard home invasion flick, with the "maskers" coming in with guns, knives, and machetes and the family doing its best to fight back and defend their turf, HILLS HAVE EYES style. So if you like movies like this, in the style of FUNNY GAMES, THEM, THE STRANGERS, and YOU'RE NEXT, you will probably enjoy THE PURGE. It's pretty much the same old, by-the-numbers "homeowners vs. the crazies" flick.
There's a whole new spin in today's horror flicks that are labeled "home invasion movies" and they seem endlessly popular. Usually the scenarios deal with a nice couple or family inside a suburban home being attacked by psychos from the outside, wearing animal masks more times than not. The modern day "home invasion" scenario for cinema might be traced back to HENRY: PORTAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER in that sequence where Henry and Otis slam through the front door of a house and attack its occupants while videotaping the events. (And going even further back, you can look at 1974's BLACK CHRISTMAS or 1955's THE DESPERATE HOURS.) But obviously, now more than ever, Americans harbor a great fear of someone kicking in their doors and windows and attacking them. The premise of THE PURGE is pretty cool: once a year, for a 12-hour period, Americans can participate in a "purge" to let go of their anger. Anything goes---rape, murder, destruction, whatever you may want to do. You will not be prosecuted for any crime committed during this time period and all law enforcement agencies and hospitals are closed during the "holiday." Kind of like Halloween on steroids! This allegedly keeps "real crime statistics at bay" the rest of the year, knowing you can do ANYTHING you want once a year. [Would have been great to see John Carpenter tackle this premise in his prime, no?] THE PURGE focuses on yet another annoyingly bland and dysfunctional American family who lock themselves in for the12-hour period but are attacked by a masked group of "purgers" when the youngest kid stupidly disarms the security system and lets in a black man that the group is chasing. What follows is pretty much your standard home invasion flick, with the "maskers" coming in with guns, knives, and machetes and the family doing its best to fight back and defend their turf, HILLS HAVE EYES style. So if you like movies like this, in the style of FUNNY GAMES, THEM, THE STRANGERS, and YOU'RE NEXT, you will probably enjoy THE PURGE. It's pretty much the same old, by-the-numbers "homeowners vs. the crazies" flick.
