The troubled couple of "The Purge: Anarchy" fights among each other until they find themselves out on the streets on the seventh annual purge.Shane, played by Zach Gilford, and Liz, played by Kiele Sanchez, find themselves stranded on the street on their way to Shane's sister's house.
Gilford sat down with media for a round table discussion at the LA Purge press day on July 13 in Los Angeles, California.
This film like many others by producer Jason Blum don't get made in a typical style.
"His(Jason Blum's) model for making movies works and it's smart. Everything goes up on the screen and I know he's gotten some heat for it, but if someone doesn't want to do his movie because of whatever reason then don't do it, but if your doing it, then your doing it and be excited about making the movie," Gilford said.With that model, the actors are excited and make the film they want to make, they want to be seen and that they are proud of having to been involved with.
"I really was proud of this movie when I saw it because I think at first (I) was thinking 'okay. I am making the purge sequel, I know what that is. Then I read the script and thought there's alot there, alot of commentary politically in it. Even if you take the political commentary away, which I think really heightens this movie, it's still a well made film," Gilford said.Even with a tight 28 day shooting schedule it wasn't all serious and intense. The cast got to bond and be friends, interact and be able to make the film feel less scripted and more like it could actually happen.
With all the running, intensity and chaos in the streets of the futuristic downtown LA, which looks like LA and doesn't distort reality much, not everything was scary to the cast."He (DeMonaco) wanted it to be so far into the future that this could happen and it's not the first year. It's like the show 'The Leftovers,' we don't want to see people leaving and what happens the next day we want to see what happens three year and that the world people live in. What happens in a world where people live with this purge night and let's assume it's the seventh annual purge, so theoretically it's starts two years from now," Gilford said.
"The scene where we are on the stage on the knees, we all got the giggles. We are all literally with tears streaming down our face on stage. I don't know why but for some reason (we have the giggles), it's over our shoulders, so it probably looks like we are crying but we are just cracking up laughing," Gilford said.This film does not impede much on the storyline of "The Purge" but rather brings a new setting, a new cast and a new way to look at the purge night.
Instead of making a sequel that piggy-backs on the original, this sequel intensifies the purge night by putting the viewers in the middle of the no rules night.
"I think these both movies ("The Purge" and "The Purge: Anarchy") make each other better because they are totally different movie," Gilford said.The violence and human behavior which scares audiences, as opposed by some supernatural being, is not the only part of this film.
There's social commentary on the state of politics and many more undertone messages which intensify the need for a purge night.
Gilford said, "I think people leaving it ("The Purge: Anarchy), will get alot out of it."
