The horror film “The Purge” (2013) by James DeMonaco is
based on the premise that, at some point in a dystopian future, for one night
every year, twelve hours on the Spring equinox, all criminal laws are suspended
in the country. It’s pretty obvious what
the set up can be; a home security salesman (Ethan Hawke) and his family have
to survive an unusually cunning attack within their gated community.
The film (which is contained mercifully by 85 minutes)
contains opening and closing fictitious news footage of the success of the
“purge” as measured by the economy and lowering crime rate – by eliminating
society’s “undersirables”. At first, it
sounds like the idea is to let the poor people eliminate one another (the
feudal rich, like Hawke’s character James Sandin, can afford to protect
themselves with guns and fortresses
legally), so society doesn’t have to take care of them. That may sound
offensive enough, but as the movie progresses, and as we learn of the
complexities of the plot against Sandin (a “homeless” man wandering in the
enclave is a decoy), something even more sinister emerges. We’re told that these twelve hours give all
those who bear the brunt of an unfair world a chance to vent their frustration
and anger. But then there is the idea that the “Purge” gets rid
even of those members of the “decadent middle class” who can’t defend themselves,
who are actually cowards or parasites.
Is this movie a right win or a left wing fantasy? It seems like both. Mao or Kin Jung Un might have been pleased.
In any case, even the gun-toting doomsday preppers need to beware.
The website is here. Warning: it will pull your leg.
There was a batch computer job where I worked once, "The Merge-Purge". The proverb was "The Merge-Purge has no urge."
I missed the theatrical run this summer (I wonder why) and
watched the Netflix DVD. If you want all
the extras, you might have to buy the Blu Ray.
But do you really want them?
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