The idea was bigger than the movie

Rating: 6/10 (8 June 2013)

Let's face it, when a mainstream Hollywood film is made, closed minded, money grubbing executives are the ones who ultimately ruin the product. They value money and accessibility over making something that is risky and potentially historic. This sort of mentality is really the only thing that holds back "The Purge," and a common echo that will be heard on this film's comment boards is the fact it had so much potential.
But even then that mentality could be reminiscent of the story at hand, where Ethan Hawke's character James Sandin makes boat loads of money (literally) but blinds himself to the actual truth of the annual Purge. Too bad the people making the film didn't have a realization to the truth and release their violent tendencies much like James Sandin. But either way, despite all of the punches that are pulled, the film brings up a lot of speculation that makes it more interesting to a sophisticated film goer even though it is advertised as your typical kill fest of the week. While popcorn movie watchers will watch for the violent implications, pretentious snobs like myself will find something much deeper, much more sinister. While the class warfare angle has been overplayed the last couple years, this film managed to turn the idea into actual violence. And while conservatives might just label this as typical anti-wealth liberal Hollywood trash, it is actually quite an allegory for 2nd Amendment enthusiasts and fiscal conservatism. "Purging" the poor has saved America, unburdening the country of "parasites" and in turn, has helped create a smaller and more efficient government (presumably) and allowing poor people like James Sandin unprecedented upward mobility through unfettered capitalism. I especially found it interesting when his neighbors turn on Sandin, once again showing classism-based jealousy is not just a poor/wealthy paradigm, but also an affliction that ensnares the upper crust.
While all of these things were there for the taking, the direction was what turned "The Purge" into another run of the mill pseudo horror film. I believe this is where too many people put there opinion into the fray. Imagine the response if the film had some of these scenarios: The people in the masks actually were the neighbors or Sandin was less virtuous, taking advantage of The Purge to make money and not giving a damn about the carnage or implied ethos, or maybe the homeless man they let into the house was truly guilty, an escaped murderer or child molester. The social implications could have gone any way, but even though the filmmakers took the easy way out, the ending still had some interesting implications at the end. I won't say The Purge is great, but at least it wasn't an unmitigated train wreck.