Nato – The Purge
Let’s start with the film that inspired this article, shall we?
While I saw The Purge and gave it a passable review for creating themes which are creative and rewarding, it also unfortunately displays some of the most absolutely mind-boggling horror logic ever fathomed (or forgotten). I mean, do James DeMonaco’s characters live in a world where horror movies don’t exist? I’ve never, ever been one of those people yelling at the screen during a horror movie, because I absolutely detest those people, but I literally had to muzzle myself before I turned into everything I hate.
The set up is pretty simple – a beaten man seeks refuge in Ethan Hawke’s house, masked murderers show up saying they’ll kill everyone if they aren’t given the man within a certain time frame, Ethan Hawke struggles with emotions and morals, and his family ends up having to fight the masked murderers off after they decide against throwing their “guest” to the wolves.
What goes down during these events will infuriate horror fans, as Hawke’s family breaks every rule in the book. They split up, make every wrong decision, let emotions get in the way, try to fight back, don’t think rationally in making decisions, fight amongst themselves, waste time – anything the Sandins can do wrong, they will do wrong.
So what would I do differently if I were Papa Sandin? Simple – hand the homeless victim over. I get the whole argument that the Sandins refuse to participate in such barbaric acts and are above purging, keeping their souls pure and good, but let’s be honest – it’s about survival. According to the film, the Purge has been going on for about ten years. How do the Sandins not know by now that psychos roam free for twelve hours and there’s literally no predicting the vile depths they’re willing to sink to? It’s a simple choice really – hand over a man you don’t know on a night where countless lives are lost, or risk losing your entire family over a moral conundrum people won’t have the time to even acknowledge.
You’re a good man Mr. Sandin, don’t get me wrong. You’re a good man, but you’re also an unnecessarily stupid man.