Just because a film is a lot better than the first one doesn’t necessarily make it worth watching. That’s the dilemma I have with whether or not to recommend The Purge 2. Hmmm…decisions, decisions…
What Works: The first movie was one of the bottom ten-percent of last year’s list, a faux-political horror film that wanted to say things about income inequality or the dehumanization of poor people but failed miserably (for starters, the black homeless guy the rich were hunting was never even given a name), nor was it a particularly successful horror film. At the time, I asked why they wouldn’t take the plot to the streets and let us see the anarchy rather than spend nearly the whole movie locked away in a single house…
Well, evidently the filmmakers were listening because the sequel is set on L.A. streets that turn into war zones. And there’s a lot more of a kinetic kick this time out, as we watch great images like an on fire public-transit bus fly down a street in the rearview of a bullet-plated armored car or a posse of gang-bangers cruising down the streets in a yellow schoolbus that they clearly plan to turn into a murder bus. This sequel finally feels like a Blumhouse production (the notoriously cheap horror studio known for pinching pennies to generate big returns) that costs more than 5 bucks to make, and the bigger canvas works well for the story—-which is more successfully political this time out.
Frank Grillo makes for an appealing lead as a quasi-Batman like avenger, and he manages to generate some heat with Carmen Ejogo. Neither is given much to work, but they make the most out of what they have and do a better job than Ethan Hawke, who gave possibly his worst performance in the first Purge.
What Doesn’t: The performances are better, the politics are clearer, the plot is better, etc. So why am I still resisting giving “The Purge” an unequivocal thumbs-up? I can’t really figure it out, but it seemed like something was still missing at the core of this thing. Maybe it’s because this sequel is really more of an action thriller than a horror movie, and I felt strangely bored during scenes that should have left me on the edge of my seat. Still, the anticipation cranked up in the first third definitely delivers, and it’s always the suspense aspect (like a couple whose car has broken down before they can get to safety) that scares more than the actual deaths.
What I Would Have Done Differently: There are definitely worse movies out there right now, and it’s unusual to see a sequel that’s this much better than the original.