Visceral, Intense Film!

Rating: 8/10 (4 April 2014)

I think "The Purge" is great! It's amazingly, incredibly dark. And, you have to be okay with that. So, it's a polarizing film. But, if you are on board, you can really get into it and find it visceral and intense. I did.
This film is a button pusher, and it's intended to be. It wants to challenge you with the possibility of what would happen if humanity went to its darkest place. And, with the premise of "The Annual Purge," it does that. What fascinated me is that the film took that premise even further that I thought it would. When seeing it, I thought it was basically going to be a relatively standard home invasion movie.
But, it's really about challenging both the characters and the audience with the notion of what would you do in the situations presented? And, the answers become increasingly more fascinating, at least to me. And, that is what made the movie for me, a writer/director who was highly skilled and could make you really feel what it was like in that house. I completely believed what was going on, and that is absolutely key to the film's success.
And, it isn't easy to do that. Especially in film, where too much can be spelled out for you, creating a sense of terror and dread is highly difficult. But, it happens here, and it works! Hats off to that filmmaker, James DeMonaco for creating the world this film inhabits.
This isn't for everyone, obviously, but if you are ready for a film that is thrilling, but challenging, you could like it as much as I did!
******** (8 Out of 10 Stars)