The First Purge

Unfortunately the characters are so poorly written that the political provocations hang in the air like birthday balloons.

It's efficiently done. It's quite grueling. And what I like about it is that central idea... It's solid.

The Purge films are B-movies, and so this ultraviolence mostly works, though its social commentary is served a little too rare to stomach easily.

The ideas evaporate and the gun violence, ultimately, is all that remains. Which, perhaps, is deliberate, and very American, but deadening all the same.

It's really direct, and it's really damning. I like this movie a lot.

It is surprisingly powerful and hard to watch.

The entertainment value is about the same as before, failing to change up the formula to a worthwhile degree – even if the finale (disappointingly doused in CG blood effects and largely repetitive) is appropriately action-packed and bloodthirsty.

Although it is fiction, its disturbing resemblance to reality makes this installment a minor entry within the saga, although it still maintains its validity as social criticism. [Full review in Spanish]

It is a confused movie for a confusing time.

Despite its goofiness and inflated sense of relevance, “The First Purge” is serviceable throwaway entertainment....But it’s still not a movie to recommend. It’s more of the same in slightly (and I do mean slightly) different packaging.