Purge: Anarchy Review

                In case you were waiting for me to tell you if The Purge: Anarchy is worth seeing in theaters the answer is yes. This movie is so much better than its predecessor. So much so that it’s hard to believe both movies were written and directed by the same guy. This doesn’t mean that the movie was completely flawless. It still had one too many clichés and the dialogue was still clunky at times, but those are minor compared to this major improvement.

                Anarchy follows a rag tag group of strangers and their efforts to make it through the night while being hunt down by menacing mercenaries and a guy named Big Daddy. A significant standout in this film is the inclusion of government conspiracy talk and a rebel army headed by Michael K. Williams doing his best Samuel L. Jackson impression. It’s also worth noting that the black bum from the first film makes a brief cameo.

                What makes this movie better than the first? For starters, the characters are actually likeable and the villains aren’t so cartoony. There’s more gun fights and plenty of intense action scenes that made me jump in my seat with excitement. This is closer to what I imagined a Purge being—strangers dodging maniacs and battling in the streets for a whole night. There’s actually a moral to this story and the ending is decent. It’s refreshing to see a movie’s sequel besting its predecessor. It’s like taking that first bite of a burger and tasting more bun and fixings than meat. But then you take a second bite and that’s when all the meat and everything else comes together to create a sensational experience.

                Studio head pimps have been whoring out movies from the start. If it doesn’t originate from a book, sequels are either rehashes of the original or desperate attempts to make more money. In a time in which Hollywood’s creativity well is running dry it’s easy for sequels to fall in these categories. Here are two steps to avoid that fate. 

Deion’s Steps to a Successful Sequel

1. End the first film with a follow-up – Convince people that a sequel is a continuation of the story rather than a money grab. Anarchy didn’t do this but they used the same conflict and showed how other people respond to it.

2. Expand- Include things that you wanted to do in the beginning but weren’t able to. The Expendables 2 are the most recent example. Sylvester Stallone wanted Chuck Norris in the first movie but he couldn’t commit. When the sequel rolled around, Chuck was on board. Go to greater lengths but don’t nuke the fridge.

                Sequels that are better than the original are rare. Those that are are heralded as classics. Shrek 2, The Godfather Part 2, Star Wars Episode V and Terminator 2: Judgment Day are considered classics. Anarchy is not a classic, but it’s a great date night flick!