The Purge: Anarchy

Set in the world established by the original but containing an entirely new roster of characters, The Purge: Anarchy follows several hapless figures as they find themselves stuck outside during the deadly title event. There’s little doubt that The Purge: Anarchy gets off to a better-than-expected start, as filmmaker James DeMonaco does an effective job of establishing the disparate protagonists and their respective problems – with the introduction and exploits of a vengeance-seeking stranger (Frank Grillo’s Sergeant) certainly holding a lot of promise. The passable, watchable atmosphere persists right up until the purge itself commences, after which point The Purge: Anarchy slowly-but-surely morphs into a tedious and hopelessly generic actioner that substitutes repetition for thrills – as DeMonaco devotes the bulk of the proceedings to the remaining characters’ ongoing attempts to survive. This, of course, paves the way for a second half that’s rife with sequence after sequence of the protagonists evading nefarious villains and skulking through dimly lit locations, with the less-than-engrossing vibe compounded by DeMonaco’s reliance on second-rate, thoroughly unpleasant visuals – which the filmmaker amps up to new levels of ugliness each and every time an action beat rolls around (ie enough with the shaky camerawork, already). By the time the narrative reaches its desperate, eye-rollingly misguided Most Dangerous Game-inspired climax, The Purge: Anarchy has confirmed its place as a half-baked sequel that runs out of steam almost as quickly as it begins.

*1/2 out of ****