| Horror |Action |
Director: Everardo Gout
Producer: Jason Blum, Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Sebastien K. Lemercier, James DeMonaco
Writer: James DeMonaco
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 2, 2021, Wide
Runtime:1h 43m
SUMMARY:
Adela (Ana de la Reguera, Cowboys & Aliens) and her husband Juan (Tenoch Huerta, Days of Grace) live in Texas, where Juan is working as a ranch hand for the wealthy Tucker family. Juan impresses the Tucker patriarch, Caleb (Will Patton, Halloween), but that fuels the jealous anger of Caleb’s son, Dylan (Josh Lucas, Ford v Ferrari). On the morning after The Purge, a masked gang of killers attacks the Tucker family–including Dylan’s wife (Cassidy Freeman, HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones), and his sister (Leven Rambin, The Hunger Games), forcing both families to band together and fight back as the country spirals into chaos and the United States begins to disintegrate around them.
MOVIE REVIEW:
Like the previous four movies in this series, this one touches somewhat upon timely modern-day issues, but the routine, unimaginative storytelling sabotages any attempt at satire or significance. The Forever Purge taps into the horrifying White supremacist movement, especially the simmering hatred and prejudice toward immigrants. But aside from establishing the ironic idea of Mexico becoming a haven for escaping American “Dreamers,” the movie does little to comment upon or satirize its relevant themes. (At least the movie roots for the Dreamers.)
Otherwise, The Forever Purge offers the usual uninspired collection of jump-scares and bloody killings, played mainly for cheap shocks and thrills, with no real consequences. Director Everardo Gout includes a few interesting, tricky, long-take shots, and he decorates the movie with eerily beautiful graffiti and composed carnage. But his attempts to tie in the events of the ranchers’ story with a bigger picture of the United States as a whole tend to fall flat. The only thing this movie, and the series in general, really seems to be saying is that the United States is an inherently violent place, with little anyone can do about it.
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