196.
The First Purge
5.5/10
Going into this movie, I hadn't seen the other movies in this weird franchise. I know a rough outline of what it involved, seen a few people dressed up at Halloween in link with some characters but honestly, never got around to seeing anything more. This movie is consisting of 95% of a cast that I have never seen before, the main guy looking like a cheap version of 50 Cent. The main task that this movie was going to have was to get me to watch the other movies. This was a prequel to all of them, meaning that it wouldn't be essential for me to have a knowledge of the storyline. Hopefully anyway. Will this movie leave me with rage that I'd need to get rid of or leave me thirsty for the next purge.
The film opens with the tone set straight away. A freaky looking bastard, telling a random guy his deepest, darkest desires that he wants to unleash on the world. His name is Skeletor and I very much doubt that it's the last we are going to see of him.
He even uses the word 'Purge', which is loved by the other man. Set in the not too distant future, the world is of economic failure and social turmoil, with everyone about to break, unless they are filthy rich. Neither the Republicans or Democrats are in charge of the US now. Instead, a group called The New Founding Fathers of America is on top and they plan on experimenting on Staten Island. They plan on letting everyone release their inhibitions for 12 hours, offering the residents $5,000 to stay on the island, while anyone to actively participates, shall get an additional payment. People are fitting with tracking devices and given contact lenses fitted with cameras. These lenses give everyone their scary looking eyes.
He even uses the word 'Purge', which is loved by the other man. Set in the not too distant future, the world is of economic failure and social turmoil, with everyone about to break, unless they are filthy rich. Neither the Republicans or Democrats are in charge of the US now. Instead, a group called The New Founding Fathers of America is on top and they plan on experimenting on Staten Island. They plan on letting everyone release their inhibitions for 12 hours, offering the residents $5,000 to stay on the island, while anyone to actively participates, shall get an additional payment. People are fitting with tracking devices and given contact lenses fitted with cameras. These lenses give everyone their scary looking eyes.
The story moves on to introduce us to Dimitri, played by Y'lan Noel, our cheap 50 Cent. He tells his dealers that they are to make their way off the Island for protection. One guy, Capital A, steps up and says that he wants to purge. This doesn't go down well and Dimitri gets his trusted friend Blaise to take down Capital A and reaffirm his orders. Elsewhere, we meet a brother and sister, Nya and Isaiah. She is already seen as a caring sister, looking after her younger brother, with her age not being too much more than his own. She makes sure he is off to an education but instead, he is seen on a street corner selling drugs. He has a run in with Skeletor, that gives him a little slit with a knife for good-times. He even mentions going after his sister on the night of purge. Isaiah heads back home to tend to his wound, where he is caught by Nya, just before she heads out to protest against the purge.
Whilst doing so, we can see the queues of desperate people signing up. Later, Nya is off to confront Dimitri, knowing that Isaiah is selling for him. We can clearly see there is a past relationship between these two, romantic probably. Dimitri claims that he never knew and wouldn't have allowed it, moving the conversation onto the purge and offering to protect the brother and sister on the night.
Whilst doing so, we can see the queues of desperate people signing up. Later, Nya is off to confront Dimitri, knowing that Isaiah is selling for him. We can clearly see there is a past relationship between these two, romantic probably. Dimitri claims that he never knew and wouldn't have allowed it, moving the conversation onto the purge and offering to protect the brother and sister on the night.
That night, the TV starts to broadcast, claiming that many people have left the Island, with Nya joining some of her friends in a nearby church. A massive siren sets off and the TV channels put up a warning, signalling the start of the purge. She thinks that Isaiah has gone to stay with his uncle off the Island but no no. We've seen him sign up for the purge and is on the search for Skeletor after their confrontation. Dmitri has decided to stay in his office and Capital A has sent two hookers his way for a decent night in. Isaiah is off out with his gun and we cut to a man robbing an ATM machine, seconds later he is killed by Skeletor, which is witnessed live on TV as the first killing. The NFFA party also observe that there are more parties being thrown in the streets than major crimes. Skeletor has walked into one of these parties and begins a killing frenzy with some dancers. Isaiah is in the same location and holds a gun to him but fails to do the deed and instead runs, with Skeletor on his tail. They end up running through some pretty bad neighbourhoods where other killings have started taking place. He gets injured on a jagged piece of metal before finding a safe place and calling Nya.
Nya ends up setting straight off to find her brother whilst the scene cuts to Dimitri welcoming his two women. I instantly smell blood and don't trust these girls. With good reason too as they start an attack, which Dimitri eventually wins and learns who they were sent by. Capital A wanted control of the block whilst the girls wanted to be paid for purging. Nya has made it to her brother and they try to make their way back to the church, finding it has been broken into and nearly everyone has been slaughtered. She finds two of her friends and make their way back to their apartment block and are met by their third mate, who made it through the streets somehow. On the streets, gangs have appeared from nowhere and started causing carnage, in all sorts of vehicles. At the NFFA headquarters, we learn that these gangs have been sent in by the government to start shaking things up. May Updale, played by Marisa Tomei, the only person I recognise, finds out this information and confronts the party leaders.
She is taken to a neighbourhood and chucked out of a car. There she is instantly shot dead. The leader of the purge orders the footage to be deleted. Meanwhile, Capital A is out for answers on what happened to Dimitri. He catches up with the beaten girls and is ambushed by Dimitri and his men. They draw guns and Capital A is dead. The gang get in their car and head to meet the rest of their crew before they are crashed into by a flaming vehicle. Purgers step out to finish the job but Dimitri overpowers one, steals his gun and ends the rest. This drug dealer has suddenly turned into a complete killer. Meeting some others from his crew, who are cornered by people dressed in KKK outfits, he wipes them out before heading to the apartment blocks. The NFFA have other ideas though. They have sent drones to kill the gang, with only Dimitri surviving by hiding under his car.
She is taken to a neighbourhood and chucked out of a car. There she is instantly shot dead. The leader of the purge orders the footage to be deleted. Meanwhile, Capital A is out for answers on what happened to Dimitri. He catches up with the beaten girls and is ambushed by Dimitri and his men. They draw guns and Capital A is dead. The gang get in their car and head to meet the rest of their crew before they are crashed into by a flaming vehicle. Purgers step out to finish the job but Dimitri overpowers one, steals his gun and ends the rest. This drug dealer has suddenly turned into a complete killer. Meeting some others from his crew, who are cornered by people dressed in KKK outfits, he wipes them out before heading to the apartment blocks. The NFFA have other ideas though. They have sent drones to kill the gang, with only Dimitri surviving by hiding under his car.
Dimitri's first thoughts are to contact Nya. He sees a lot of mercenaries heading to the apartment blocks because it has been too quiet in the purge. He wants her to stay hidden until he can get there. The mercs start gunning down everyone in site and Dmitri grabs any guns that he can and makes his way up the floors after them, taking down anyone that he doesn't trust.
He finally makes it closer to Nya and Co before some mercs break into the apartment and Nya opens fire on them before Isaiah stabs them multiple times. The other mercs prepare an RPG until an unlikely person stops them. In steps Skeletor, slaying three and is shot dead by Dimitri. He runs into the bedroom, grabbing a C4 and chucking it before taking cover and ending the rest of the merc's lives. What's left of the inhabitants, make their way battered and bruised onto the streets, as the sirens sound to signal the end of the purge. People immediately see Dimitri as a hero in the circumstances, as Isaiah asks about what happens next. Dimitri believes it is time to fight back. The movie ends with the leader of the NFFA stating that the purge was a huge success and next year, IT'S NATIONWIDE.
He finally makes it closer to Nya and Co before some mercs break into the apartment and Nya opens fire on them before Isaiah stabs them multiple times. The other mercs prepare an RPG until an unlikely person stops them. In steps Skeletor, slaying three and is shot dead by Dimitri. He runs into the bedroom, grabbing a C4 and chucking it before taking cover and ending the rest of the merc's lives. What's left of the inhabitants, make their way battered and bruised onto the streets, as the sirens sound to signal the end of the purge. People immediately see Dimitri as a hero in the circumstances, as Isaiah asks about what happens next. Dimitri believes it is time to fight back. The movie ends with the leader of the NFFA stating that the purge was a huge success and next year, IT'S NATIONWIDE.
Did this movie leave me interested in more? Yes, with a but. I want to go back and see what the others had to offer, just to see how the movies told a story without there being an explanation about where it all started. As for the movie itself, there was nothing special about the storyline. It was something generic that we have come to know in many many other movies, the bad guy turning good and being the saviour and that was always going to happen from the beginning. The acting was ok, with not many well-known faces but this could be a start for some. I really enjoyed the creepiness that the movie did bring though. A very dark idea of a franchise, which is another reason I want to see the other and find out what kind of characters we are going to come across. One major thing about this movie is that there is a lot of focus on the black community within this movie with it focusing on them being slaughtered by the white community which could surely do nothing but create a wider divide within society outside of the cinema. It may not seem much but a lot of people like to run with these kinds of things on viewing a movie. Overall, I wouldn't mind purging this one from my mind.
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