The Forever Purge

The Forever Purge is the fifth instalment of the dystopian franchise that takes inspiration from America’s current political climate and turns the country’s most pressing issues into fictionalised stories filled with horror. Everardo Gout’s feature debut reprises the central event around which the franchise developed. In the previous films, a new government introduced an annual national holiday known as the Purge. On this day, all types of crime, including murder, become legal for a 12-hour period, and everyone becomes a target to bloodthirsty individuals who take to the streets with the worst intentions.

The latest movie is set in Texas, some time in the near future. Mexican couple Adela and Juan escape a dangerous situation in their home country and reach the US illegally. Hopeful about their new life in America, Juan starts working on the ranch of the wealthy Tucker family. He receives a bonus to protect himself during the yearly Purge.

The Tucker family is very well protected by a reliable security system, while Adela and Juan go to a communal shelter where they spend the night until crime becomes illegal again at 7am the following day. A siren signals the end of danger and the protagonists seem to have escaped all harm, but it soon transpires that an organised sect has decided to disregard the time limit and keep the Purge going for longer – possibly forever. 

The action sits somewhere between a war zone scenario and a zombie invasion, as the attackers kill blindly and frantically. The horror element is kept alive with jump scares and non-stop violence, with varying degrees of effectiveness. The story itself does not offer anything groundbreaking but rather presents its scenarios simplistically. The message at the film’s centre is to denounce discrimination and racism and to highlight the dangers of taking radical ideologies to extremes, but the lack of subtlety in the delivery of the concept strips it of its power. 

Violent and disturbing throughout, the action is not supported by a sophisticated enough plot to justify the relentless splatter, so it eventually starts to feel repetitive and redundant. Although there are elements that work, The Forever Purge ultimately misses the chance to create a powerful dystopian scenario and marry it to its political message.  

Mersa Auda

The Forever Purge is released nationwide on 16^th July 2021.

Watch the trailer for The Forever Purge here: