12 Horas para Sobreviver: O Ano da Eleição

The original film in this franchise had a great premise but failed to do anything with the concept and I wasn't expecting anything with the sequel but was stunned by how much the production team developed the idea , so much so that I was genuinely excited to seeing the next film in the series which is a rare occurrence for me to get excited about upcoming film . As the trailers were released earlier in the year I did feel my excitement being negated and felt we'd be getting more of the same from a concept that with hindsight might not have much in the way of legs . Yeah the promos did feature some very topical satire about a female Senator and a right wing nutjob battaling for the future of America but seemed a little too obvious

The bad news is that's exactly how THE PURGE ELECTION YEAR plays out . You could say the studio has been honest and constructed a trailer that is refreshingly accurate and what you see is what you get but is a backhanded compliment really a compliment ? Worse than that the trailer is edited in chronological order and there's no surprises . One great thing about ANARCHY was that the story revolved around the mystery and the enigma of the mysterious violent anti-hero who had his own motives for trawling the streets during purge night . Here there's no mystery or character development . Here Sgt Leo is a knight in shining white armour saving the Senator from the fascist establishment and purgers thereby trying to save America from its extreme elements . Everything is black and white and painlessly simplistic . Everyone is good or bad with no in-between and no ambiguity involved

Being positive about this at least the dichotomy of the characterisation means no one is going to confuse the noble and genuine Senator Charlie Roan with any female politician running for President in 2016 so at least the film can't be accused of being cheerleaders for present American party politics . It also contains the occasional haunting image such as a body lying burning in a street , but there's nothing here that matches the impact of a burning bus driving along a road or the nail biting heart stopping tension of the hunting ground we saw in the second movie . Don't get me wrong ELECTION YEAR is still better than the original film and if you loved ANARCHY you'll probably like this one . The downside is that you had hoped for something a bit better and are left feeling rather disappointed by a rather predictable movie

With the holiday coming up, the movie industry is doing its best to rope people into the theaters. You would think something patriotic like a war story, a biography of a founding father, or some type of political coming of age movie. But my first review is on a horror instead…that has to due with politics. My review is on The Purge: Election Year, the third installment in a series I never expected to have this much ground. Yours truly heads into the trenches to provide you another review and help guide your thoughts on how to spend your tickets in the theaters.

The GOOD: • Comedy • Semi Decent plot • Suspenseful

The first point has to be a surprise, but yes the Purge: Election Year has some decent comedy to lighten up the aggressively somber mood. I mainly laughed at the commentary from Joe, a local deli shop owner with an interesting background on his own. Joe's lines are a menagerie of one- liners, quips, and racial banter that had the audience laughing. Despite some of the intense moments, the writers made the lines very tasteful, making sure to add a fun edge that hopefully won't insult the masses. Some of the other characters have their moments as well, timed equally well to maximize the laughs.

But you didn't come for laughs, you came for suspense that the night of legalized murder has provided in the past. You might think that a third installment has lost its edge, but surprisingly Election Year keeps the same on the seat moments as the last one. Like its predecessor, this movie takes our characters onto the streets, each forging their own path through the chaotic forest of crazy violence. I was pulled into the movie not by the mindless killing, but by the wonder of which member of the merry band would bite the dust. Part of what helped this was a semi-decent, albeit rushed, plot that had a little more backbone than mindless murder. Election Year's plot brings us further down the rabbit hole as to the point of the Purge and fills into those pot holes left at the end of the second movie. It's nothing special, but the character profiles were what kept my interest and fostered a bond with all the characters.

The BAD • Pointless cursing/overacting • Violence substituted for plot • All the political issues it can drum up

No surprise, but a Rated R movie is going to have cursing, I get that I do. But as always the case, our writers get a little overzealous with dirtying the mouths of characters. Election Year unfortunately is not spared that fate as characters, mainly extras, fill their roles with overacted, dramatically-emphasized cursing that is more annoying than anything. I know it is to make you hate the character who will certainly die in the end, but they could have done it without such grandiose tactics. The silver lining of this, it is for limited run times so yay for that.

A second weakness for me, is substituting the violence for the plot. Now don't rip my head off, it is the Purge, a holiday that is only about violence and celebrating death, of course there will be violence. However, the Purge really needs to drop the glorified torture scenes and disturbing dances of craziness to provide more kick to their tale. That doesn't mean get rid of it all, after all there were plenty of jump at you moments where the violence was perfect, but Election Years tangents showing mask-wearing extras dancing or setting an elaborate trap that really doesn't work. This is another example of editing not eliminating all unnecessary scenes.

But perhaps the biggest weakness for me is the political issues this movie is sure to spark. Back in the day, you could make a movie like this and not start a revolution, but modern times have left our people a little more easily offended these days. The Purge's overdramatic antics, dialogue, and factions are certainly going to divide people and perhaps incite their own revolution on some level. All of the excessive violence, racial slurs, and political issues are over glorified, and I saw these effects take fruit in my theater with a few overzealous fans. So why did I bring this point up? Two reasons. The first is the political rants and corrupt speeches are cheesy, overdone, and eye rolling. The second is that if you are easily offended, no matter how much you like horror, you should not see this movie.

The Verdict

Despite being a third installment, The Purge Election Year certainly brings the same bite it always has. Yes, it is overdramatic and glorifies violence, and at times is certainly reflective of a mad man's mind. However, as far as horror movies go, it is surprisingly decent in terms of plot, action, and suspense that will entertain many of this genre. With interesting characters and a fast moving pace, you certainly won't be bored for the 105 minute run time. Necessary for a trip to the theater? Not really, but those who love the dive into the mad realm of murder, will certainly enjoy this tale.

My scores:

Action/Horror/Sci-Fi: 7.0 Movie Overall: 6.0

This thrilling picture results to be a futuristic yarn full of kinetic energy and amazing stunt work . It contains mystery , chills , noisy action , thrills , fights , social critical , and a weird atmosphere with dark with a surprising ending . The known and unrealistic premise of "The Purge" developing in the first installment is the following : The idea behind this whole futuristic America is that the Economy is down and Crime is up , as authorities put a lot of emphasis on murder being legal , that's why they believe assassinations would get better problems . It is just universally accepted that the cause of all these troubles is built up aggression within the human population. In order to correct this, the United States Government decides that it would be a good idea to give the public a day to "release the aggression". So, one day of each year, they will have an annual "Purge" where all crime is legal , including killing . Somehow, magically, this does help the Economy and Crime overall is down for the rest of the year. Because if people get out all that anger in one day, they will not feel the need to commit any more crimes for the rest of the year . This third outing is set some years later from first entry , it's been two years since Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo who reprises the character of former police sergeant Leo Barnes) stopped himself from a regrettable act of vendetta on Purge Night . Nowadays serving as head of security for Senator Charlie Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) , who is promising to end the annual purge nights , she is competing at national election against another candidate , Minister Edwidge Owens (Kyle Secor) . The New Founding Fathers of America's (NFFA) leader, Caleb Warrens (Raymond J. Barry) and their candidate, Minister Edwidge Owens, view Roan as a threat; in the guise of regaining the public's trust, revoke immunity for rank 10 or higher government officials to kill her on Purge night . Charlie's mission is to protect her in a run for president and survive the annual ritual that targets the poor and innocent . They have to confront a really ruthless gang of masked killers led by Earl Danzinger (Terry Serpico) . But a betrayal forces them onto the streets of D.C. on the one night when no help is available . Along the way the security agent and the Senator are helped by a motley group of brave people called Joe Dixon (Mykelti Williamson) , Marcos (Joseph Soria) and Laney Rucker (Betty Gabriel) . As they must stay alive until dawn...or both be sacrificed for their sins against the state . I Purged . For one night only, America invites you to its annual tradition . Keep America Great .Purge for the People .Purge for the Nation . Purge for the Power .Purge for Your Liberty . Purge for the Glory. Witness the birth of an American tradition. Citizens, join the Purge. A nation reborn. It Changed Our Country. It Challenged Our Beliefs. Now, Witness How It All Began.

The film is a comic-books style story , set in a dystopian nearly future , plenty of energetic action , shootouts , extreme violence , thriller , surprise-filled entertainment and high body-count . The tale is a blending of ordinary Sci-Fi movies , such as : Escape from N.Y , 2013 : Rescue in L.A. , Doomsday , and even Mad Max series , taking parts here and there . Instead of attempting to be a terror movie , it turns a fantastic thriller/action film set in a pseudo-apocalyptic future about a group of people trying to survive on a night where it's all-out war on the streets . This exciting movie is packed with frenetic action , crossfire , unbelievable car stunts , tension , thrills , chills , and lots of blood and gore, including throating-slit , beheading and anything else . The nail-biting action scenes are uniformly very well done , and the suspense and intrigue are enough to keep you interested throughout the film runtime , even in the low parts of the picture . This Great Action Thriller was the final movie in the "Purge" trilogy (2013-2016) until a prequel was made : The First Purge (2018) . It displays a magnificent plethora of characters , pretty well drawn , giving exceptional performances by its entire cast .

This is a decent movie and well set in a post-apocalyptic D.C. , dealing with a valient group who will have to fight cruel disguised cutthroats , bands of depraved crazies ; packing frantic action , shocks as well as abundant violence, being professionaly directed by James de Monaco . And it even has earned more money at the box office than its predecessor . Monaco is a good writer/producer and director . He has written the Purge saga and Purge TV series ; and Assault on Precinct 13 , Skinwalkers , Negotiator , Hate , Staten Island , The kill Point series , Crash series . And he has directed The Purge films ; this horror/thriller franchise is formed by The Purge 2013 , The Purge: Anarchy 2014 , Election year 2016 , and The First Purge 2018 . All of them are set in different locations , as the first film takes place in a house , the second film takes place in the streets , and the third film takes place in official locations , as well as D.C. , and The First Purge takes place on Staten Island, New York , in which no character from any of the previous installments will be returning. This Purge Election is an acceptable film in its own right and it's worth watching . Rating : 6.5/10 . It is very highly recommend to anyone who appeals apocalyptic thrillers .

Senator Charlie Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) is running for President on a platform of ending the Purge. Her family was massacred during the Purge in her childhood. The NFFA revokes the Purge rule protecting high rank government officials but Roan refuses to add security. Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo) from the previous movie is now her head of security. Store owner Joe Dixon (Mykelti Williamson) is informed that his Purge insurance has been canceled. Roan is betrayed and escapes with Barnes into the streets where they are hunted.

This tries to add politics to what started out as a simple horror franchise. It's making social commentary. The world of the Purge continuous to be expanded. There are fun Purge visuals. There are some fun action although I wouldn't call it a scary horror. It goes down some weirder paths which is interesting. One thing holding it back is that there is only one possible good ending and the movie would ignore it to its detriment. Roan has to die.

Am another person who didn't care at all for 'The Purge' from 2013. It wasn't completely unwatchable with a couple of reasonable performances and decent production values but was so tension and suspense-free and full of irritating characters, illogical character behaviours, a dull pace, a cheesy script and tired clichés.

Had seen and heard numerous times people saying that 'The Purge: Anarchy' was a much better film. Will admit that due to disliking 'The Purge' so much, part of me was very unsure as to whether to watch 'The Purge: Anarchy' and very nearly didn't watch it. Seeing it, it was indeed a much better film. Decided too to see 'The Purge: Election Year' to see whether the series would continue to improve or whether it would wear thin. Having watched it, 'The Purge: Election Year' is far from great and has major flaws but it was not a bad watch, as far as 'The Purge' films go it is an easy second best, the best being 'Anarchy'.

Visually, the slick and gritty look suits the film well and the effects and such are not as sloppy as before. It's ominously and not overbearingly scored and assured enough, while boasting enough, though with much room for more, fun, tension, eeriness and shocks. 'The Purge: Election Year' starts quite well and elaborates upon what happens before and approaches it from a different angle instead of being a re-hash.

Frank Grillo is a fully committed lead, although his character was far better written in 'Anarchy'. Elizabeth Mitchell matches him with dignity and professionalism and their chemistry gives some urgency and heart. Mykelti Williamson is good fun.

However, the story execution doesn't feel fresh, with tired clichés, very variable attempts at twists and too many parts that don't ring true and not always plausible. The character development is still wafer thin, with the villains being ciphers that are not threating and actually being pretty stupid and a few characters don't serve much point. None of the characters are quite as annoying as those in 'The Purge', but the questionable and illogical decision making and behaviours remain still.

Dialogue continues to be rather weak, lacking tautness and being awkward and silly, complete with rather heavy-handed and over-emphasised political elements. Would have liked more tension and suspense, while they are here there is not enough of either, and tighter pacing would have helped, the middle act does drag.

Overall, not much special but has its moments. 5/10 Bethany Cox