The First Purge

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The First Purge is about how the purge started. In a lot of ways, this is a simple movie. The plot and characters feel thin, or at least, thinner than the filmmakers probably intended. There is stuff in this movie I like. Namely, I like what they show of some of the behind-the-scenes stuff. The woman who created the purge, Dr. Updale (played by Marisa Tomei) saw it only as psychological experiment. She recieved funding from a political party called the New Founding Fathers (a party that also plays a role in the other Purge films). However, the New Founding Fathers don't see the experiment in the same light as Updale. They see it as a way to utilize population control. It's supposed to be sort of a "kill the poor and there's less mouths to feed" kind of thing. I like the idea that, because this is something new, there are going to be people with opposing viewpoints. The filmmakers actually give you an understanding why certain characters do want to purge, and why certain characters don't want to purge. You're also given characters who may fall in the middle. The characters are a bit hit-and-miss in my eyes. Updale is an interesting character in my opinion, and I wish they would have given Marisa Tomei more to do. The other character I really liked was Skeletor, who was the main villain of the movie. The dude was a ton of fun to watch, and the actor was clearly having fun every time he was on screen. Lauren Velez (Laguerta from Dexter) has small role in the film, and I couldn't help but think she was wasted in such a small part that didn't really serve any purpose to the story at all. I do have to wonder just how well some of the political commentary is actually going to age in the years to come. One of the more memorable lines is when a young woman calls someone a "pussy-grabbing motherfucker." I know the Purge aren't exactly known for being subtle when they want to talk about social commentary, but even I think that was a little forced. The character development is pretty thin. The interesting characters are the ones that are kind of pushed to the background a little bit more. The two leads aren't awful, but they aren't very interesting either. None of this particularly bothered me, but it is still a legitimate criticism that should be addressed in terms of the movie as a whole. It may seem like this review that I've written is a bit all over the place, but my thoughts on The First Purge were all over the place. I liked the movie overall, but it had some glaring problems that are kind of difficult to overlook as well.

7 / 10