The First Purge (2018)

Directed by: Gerard McMurray | 98 minutes | action, horror | Actors: Y’lan Noel, Lex Scott Davis, Joivan Wade, Mugga, Patch Darragh, Marisa Tomei, Luna Lauren Velez, Kristen Solis, Rotimi Paul, Mo McRae, Jermel Howard, Siya, Christian Robinson, Steve Harris, Derek Basco, DK Bowser, Mitchell Edwards, Maria Rivera, Chyna Layne

Pretty cheaply made movies that turn out to be box office successes: Hollywood bigwigs love this trend! Lucrative, profitable and interesting for novice directors who want to prove themselves. If such a film does not do well, there is no man overboard, because there is no reputational damage (because no famous celebs participate) and the financial damage suffered is peanuts. ‘Saw’ by James Wan resulted in a commercially very interesting franchise, in addition to a spear, also cheaply made sequels. James DeMonaco’s ‘The Purge’ also turned out to be an interesting cash cow. Prequel ‘The First Purge’ is now the fourth part of this franchise. Unfortunately the udders of this cow are now really empty…

In ‘The First Purge’ you will discover how the first edition of this brutal ‘purge’ (read: legalized slaughter) went. The goal is to get all the anger out of your system so that the crime rate drops for the rest of the year. For half a day, all (violent) crimes are turned a blind eye and these misdeeds remain unpunished. This experiment was set up by the new ruling party New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) and takes place in a disadvantaged American neighborhood. The mostly African-American residents will receive $5,000 if they remain in a closed area during this twelve-hour session where the ‘purge’ is held. Actively participating in the experiment even yields more kinks. Residents living below the poverty line decide to risk their lives and participate. The government sees the first edition of the Purge as the way to get rid of benefit-seeking minorities and sends an army of mercenaries and the KKK(!) to the closed area. If those poor slobs don’t finish each other quickly enough, a little help from the government is just that extra push. Stupid move, because they didn’t count on a gangster gang that protects ‘their’ neighborhood with violence.

This franchise, created by James DeMonaco, is quite special. The first part from 2013 was a modest home invasion thriller in which a frightened Ethan Hawke protected his family from a few masked villains. ‘The Purge: Anarchy’ (2014) and ‘The Purge: Election Year’ (2016) were brutal action thrillers with a horror sauce. The strength of the sequels lay in the casting of Frank Grillo as a tortured avenger. This actor took the saga to a higher level with his lived through performance. The gritty cinematography and the raw outbursts of violence also gave these films a somewhat uncomfortable and grubby atmosphere.

In ‘The First Purge’ James DeMonaco is no longer behind the camera for the first time and is only responsible for the script. Gerard McMurray canned this film and that has major consequences for this franchise. For example, the oppressive atmosphere has been completely cleaned up by McMurray’s dull and clean camera work. Grillo also thanked for the honor and is nowhere to be seen. He is missed, because not a single empathetic or sympathetic character has returned in its place. In this movie you have to make do with Y’Lan Noel who gets to play a gangster with a heart of gold. This wall-to-wall one-man army terrorizes its own neighborhood, only to be hailed as a hero when he kills an army of mercenaries. Well.

Noel is a great action hero, but he lacks good one-liners and dialogue, leaving his character a cardboard shell. Unfortunately, that applies to all characters, none of which have been developed and remain stuck in the mold of one-dimensional characters (read: the stout, foul-mouthed Big Momma, the frightened but honorable student, the tough chick with leadership qualities, the wise, old man etc, etc). This film is a succession of clichés and portrays African-Americans as caricatures. All characters speak in slang, use raised voices to stand out, swear like boat workers, listen to hyper-irritating and repetitive gangster music and live up to all the chewed-up stereotypes. A pity, because the idea behind this film remains interesting: minorities being put in front of a corrupt government. The elaboration misses the mark, because why cheer for a bunch of one-dimensional gangsters who are thwarting a government?

The acting and script are, as mentioned, depressing. Even the ever-reliable Marisa Tomei disappoints in this film and simply can’t handle her role as a psychologist who finds it “disturbing” that people kill when they’re rewarded (duh!). Also very bad is the limited use of masks. This franchise stood out precisely for its use of terrifying face coverings that got more grotesque and scarier with each installment. This is kept to a minimum in this section. The absence of an appealing villain is also a loss. Well, there is a particularly creepy villain in the form of the sniffed-through junkie Skeletor (an intense, schmiffing and foaming Rotimi Paul), but his role is far too limited. It could have been much more, as the menace and unpredictability of this addicted villain make for some of the film’s best and most exciting moments. Unfortunately, his playing time is far too short.

‘The First Purge’ is a series of missed opportunities. The boring editing and cinematography in combination with a weak script and explanatory dialogues is disastrous. Add to that the boring characters, lack of masks and good villain and you have a disappointing film. If the action scenes also turn out not to be special, there is little positive left. Unfortunate.