THE FOREVER PURGE Review–Brutal, Bleak, and the Best of the Bunch

Josh Millican   |  

Jun 30, 2021

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Starring Ana de la Reguera, Josh Lucas, and Will Patton

Written by James DeMonaco

Directed by Everardo Gout

By the time you get to the fifth entry in any franchise (especially one with a TV series to boot) you can pretty much expect a by-the-numbers affair; a rehashing of established mythos with familiar characters and situations. Nothing could be further from the truth, however, in the case of The Forever Purge. Arriving in theaters this Friday (July 2nd, 2021), The Forever Purge is the most brutal, bleak, and gut-wrenching of the entire franchise. If the past four Purge movies were sparks, The Forever Purge is a powder keg of explosive horror, dystopian dread, and blistering social commentary–a blazing hot summer blockbuster!

The Forever Purge Synopsis:
After the annual Purge is abolished, a group of masked outlaw Purgers in Texas refuse to give up the fight in director Everardo Gout’s fifth and final movie in the dystopian horror franchise.

Though he has written all five installments in The Purge franchise, series mastermind James DeMonaco relinquished directorial duties (as he did with The First Purge in 2018, which was directed by Gerard McMurray). For The Forever Purge, Everardo Gout sits in the Director’s chair, and the Mexican-American filmmaker gives the film a fresh flavor. More than any other installment in the franchise Forever focuses on the Latino experience and immigration. DeMonaco has penned something with a love story at its core, an emotional saga about a couple from Mexico looking to start a new life in America. In a world where an annual Purge is overflowing into daily existence, the American Dream has never been more elusive and unattainable.

The Forever Purge throws every established “rule” out the window. As the title implies, and as I just revealed, the violence of “Purge Night” can no longer be contained to 12 hours annually. The film sees a new contingent of home-grown terrorists who want to extend Purging indefinitely. So while this particular “Purge Night” passes without incident, the chaos that follows brings America to the brink of collapse (with all indications being that we’ve moved well beyond the proverbial tipping point). The Forever Purge takes us out of the city and the suburbs, unfolding mostly in a rural border town–and in broad daylight. Nothing here is familiar; nothing is by the book, and nothing will ever be the same again.

The Forever Purge marks a bleak new era for The Purge. While each installment is horrifying in premise, these films have always offered a hefty dose of heroic escapism. These are summer blockbusters, after all. The Purge: Election Year (the third installment, and the one that proceeds The Forever Purge chronologically) is the most hopeful, suggesting the terrors of “Purge Night” and the New Founding Fathers of America will be eradicated. Obviously, that’s not the case. The NFFA is back in power, only this time, the collective societal rage in America is threatening to unseat even this authoritarian regime.

The Forever Purge is one of many films that was originally slated for a 2020 release but was held back due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And while some of the films that were delayed may suffer from the lag time and/or faltering momentum, this is not the case with The Forever Purge. If the movie (which was filmed in 2019) had been released in 2020, folks might have considered the filmmakers prophetic for predicting the insurrection of January 6th, 2020. So in 2021, The Forever Purge feels like a direct response to the day American democracy teetered on the brink, a reflection of a modern society threatening to cannibalize itself.

This chapter delivers Purging Cowboys, Saw-style traps, terrifying masks, and the destruction of El Paso, TX. The Forever Purge is my personal favorite of the entire series and I’m truly thankful that DeMonaco is penning a 6th installment. As I said before, I’m blown away by the fact that the fifth installment of the franchise is genuinely fresh and groundbreaking. If you already love the series, The Forever Purge is like a second honeymoon. If you’ve been on the fence, this one will win you over.