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The Purge

  • 20132013
  • 14A14A
  • 1h 25min
IMDb RATING
5.7/10
212K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
918
154
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Rhys Wakefield in The Purge (2013)
Given the country's overcrowded prisons, the U.S. government begins to allow 12-hour periods of time in which all illegal activity is legal. During one of these free-for-alls, a family must protect themselves from a home invasion.
Play trailer2:33
1 Video
99+ Photos
HorrorSci-FiThriller

A wealthy family is held hostage for harboring the target of a murderous syndicate during the Purge, a 12-hour period in which any and all crime is legal.A wealthy family is held hostage for harboring the target of a murderous syndicate during the Purge, a 12-hour period in which any and all crime is legal.A wealthy family is held hostage for harboring the target of a murderous syndicate during the Purge, a 12-hour period in which any and all crime is legal.

IMDb RATING
5.7/10
212K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
918
154
  • Director
    • James DeMonaco
  • Writer
    • James DeMonaco
  • Stars
    • Ethan Hawke
    • Lena Headey
    • Max Burkholder
Top credits
  • Director
    • James DeMonaco
  • Writer
    • James DeMonaco
  • Stars
    • Ethan Hawke
    • Lena Headey
    • Max Burkholder
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 811User reviews
    • 387Critic reviews
    • 41Metascore
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Awards
      • 2 wins & 6 nominations

    Videos1

    Version 1
    Trailer 2:33
    Version 1

    Photos103

    Edwin Hodge in The Purge (2013)
    Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, and Max Burkholder in The Purge (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    Still photographs of "The Purge" (2013)
    James DeMonaco in The Purge (2013)
    Rhys Wakefield in The Purge (2013)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ethan Hawke
    Ethan Hawke
    • James Sandinas James Sandin
    Lena Headey
    Lena Headey
    • Mary Sandinas Mary Sandin
    Max Burkholder
    Max Burkholder
    • Charlie Sandinas Charlie Sandin
    Adelaide Kane
    Adelaide Kane
    • Zoey Sandinas Zoey Sandin
    Edwin Hodge
    Edwin Hodge
    • Bloody Strangeras Bloody Stranger
    Rhys Wakefield
    Rhys Wakefield
    • Polite Leaderas Polite Leader
    Tony Oller
    Tony Oller
    • Henryas Henry
    Arija Bareikis
    Arija Bareikis
    • Mrs. Grace Ferrinas Mrs. Grace Ferrin
    Tom Yi
    Tom Yi
    • Mr. Calias Mr. Cali
    Chris Mulkey
    Chris Mulkey
    • Mr. Halversonas Mr. Halverson
    Tisha French
    Tisha French
    • Mrs. Halversonas Mrs. Halverson
    Dana Bunch
    • Mr. Ferrinas Mr. Ferrin
    Peter Gvozdas
    • Dr. Peter Buynakas Dr. Peter Buynak
    John Weselcouch
    John Weselcouch
    • Freak Interruptingas Freak Interrupting
    Alicia Vela-Bailey
    Alicia Vela-Bailey
    • Female Freakas Female Freak
    David Basila
    David Basila
    • Georgeas George
    • (uncredited)
    Boima Blake
    • Freak #1as Freak #1
    • (uncredited)
    Nathan Clarkson
    Nathan Clarkson
    • Freakas Freak
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • James DeMonaco
    • Writer
      • James DeMonaco
    • All cast & crew
    See production, box office, & company info

    Storyline

    Edit
    In an America wracked by crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity-including murder-becomes legal. The police can't be called. Hospitals suspend help. It's one night when the citizenry regulates itself without thought of punishment. On this night plagued by violence and an epidemic of crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become when a stranger comes knocking. When an intruder breaks into James Sandin's (Ethan Hawke) gated community during the yearly lockdown, he begins a sequence of events that threatens to tear a family apart. Now, it is up to James, his wife, Mary (Lena Headey), and their kids to make it through the night without turning into the monsters from whom they hide. —Universal Pictures
    violencekilling spreeclass differencessurvivalsuburb217 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • Taglines
      • Reminder all emergency services will be suspended for a 12-hour period during the purge.
    • Genres
      • Horror
      • Sci-Fi
      • Thriller
    • Certificate
      • 14A
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Director James DeMonaco was asked why the film began with footage of multiple purges taking place outdoors - yet he opted to have all purging occur inside one family's home. He responded, "we only had 19 days to shoot and $2.7 million to work with". If he ever got a chance to do a second one, he vowed it would be more like Escape from New York (1981).
    • Goofs
      For a while in the middle of the movie, James has a shaped goatee and moustache, which he does not have during the rest of the movie.
    • Quotes

      Mary Sandin: We are gonna play the rest of this night out in motherfucking peace. Does anyone have a problem with that?

    • Connections
      Edited into Everything Wrong with...: Everything Wrong with The First Purge (2018)
    • Soundtracks
      Clair de Lune
      Written by Claude Debussy

      Arranged by Alfred Reed

      Performed by Symfonický orchester Slovenského rozhlasu (as Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra)

      Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

      Published by Klams Music & Co, Inc.

    User reviews811

    Review
    Top review
    5/10
    Should have been better
    The idea is intriguing. For twelve hours a year all crime is legal, including murder; do what you want and face no consequence. All emergency services are suspended and with the exception of an unexplained restriction on weaponry, and certain members of the public being out of bounds as targets, there is nothing to stop you doing what you wish. The result is a venting of frustration and anger, a purging of demons, as well as the eradication of the poor and those unable to defend themselves. The end result of this annual purge is extremely low unemployment and crime, and a fantastic economy; "a nation reborn", where the weak are prey and the strong survive. One of the strong is James Sandin, who sells security systems to fellow high-flyers; these obviously come in most useful on the night of the purge. Of course on the night in question, things go rather wrong and the Sandin family find their home under siege, following their son Max's generous act of letting a victimised stranger in.

    For a second, put aside the rather obvious holes in the idea when considered as a practise encouraged at a national level, even put aside the cynical nature of the movie, and we can see the idea may have started out as a distressing vision of a near future, a terrifying "other reality". Indeed, 'The Purge' takes its cue from a lot of previous work that has done similarly; you don't have to look too hard to see various elements of 'A Clockwork Orange', '1984', 'Lord of the Flies' and 'Battle Royale'. The problem is that unlike those works, and unlike 'Straw Dogs', with which it shares more than a little DNA, this story has been watered down to a locked room domestic thriller; a potentially incendiary political fable is devoid of most of that which would have made it so. This is actually typical of writer/director James DeMonaco, who is responsible for the screenplay for the remake of 'Assault on Precinct 13', a film which again extracted a lot of the original's rough edges and tough moments to leave a flat, action driven thriller. Similarly, the scope of the film is rather narrow; with early implication that there will be a study of repressed violence and how the night is used as an excuse, it is then disappointing to see the story steers frustratingly wide of all matters other than murder. The film lacks the gumption to tackle the disturbing elements of our unchecked nature in a way that Cronenberg would have done.

    So what we're looking at here is a film which, in different hands may have proved to be a controversial and stirring piece of work, but with DeMonaco scared to grasp the nettle, we end up with a flat, rather tame film, which is given some lift by its better elements, such as the performances and some of the fight sequences. Lacking bite, with a frustrating amount of exposition and not enough dissection of issues, 'The Purge' falls short of what it should have been.

    This is not to take away from Ethan Hawke's solid performance, or some of the more effective scenes, but what we would give to have seen this in the hands of Michael Haneke.
    helpful•216
    81
    • eonbluedan-1
    • Jun 5, 2013

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 7, 2013 (Canada)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • France
    • Official site
      • Official Facebook
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • La purge
    • Filming locations
      • Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Universal Pictures
      • Platinum Dunes
      • Blumhouse Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $3,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $64,473,115
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $34,058,360
      • Jun 9, 2013
    • Gross worldwide
      • $89,328,627
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 25min
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • Dolby Atmos
      • Dolby Surround 7.1
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

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