Death Wish Review

A film like "Death Wish" can never come out at a good time, but despite general critic reception, this remake is a fairly taut little thriller. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis), a surgeon whose wife is killed and daughter is left in a coma after a violent home invasion, questions gun store employee Bethany (Kirby Bliss Blanton) about the process of purchasing a gun in Chicago. "Oh, no one fails the test" she says, or something like that. He does not walk out with a piece, but gives a satirical nod to the camera at how painless the process is. How could a movie be pro-gun if it comments on how easy it is to buy and use them?

But Kersey doesn't get his first gun and suddenly become "John McClane," he fumbles, slicing his hand at his first stab at vigilantism. It is a refreshing change from these usual movies, where the hero is some ex-military guy or cop- Paul's a doctor! I mean sure, he does become a pretty good shot by the time the credits roll, but with every bullet fired he becomes a bit more confident pulling the trigger. Bruce is surprisingly good at this; despite his career as action star, he looks uncomfortable at the prospects of owning and using a gun, and turns to online tutorials on how to clean, load and fire them. He's convincing here, every bit as fit for the role as Charles Bronson was. It isn't glorifying violence, it is a commentary on how easy it is for someone to become so aggressive.

End social observation.

Director Eli Roth, of the bloody "Hostel" movies fame, is surprisingly restraint here, with all the expected gory bits cut down to quick cuts, barely shown. Why the intestines spill in the first place show just how deteriorated Kersey is, as his vigilante episodes become less about killing and more about torture. The camera never fetishises on the blood, with it lasting only a few seconds on screen, but he handles the slower moments with general finesse, giving Bruce a chance to do things other than his usual reluctant-hero schtick. The supporting cast, including Vincent D'Onofrio as his brother Frank and Elisabeth Shue as his brief wife, bring more to the screen than the script asks them for.

Just like in the original film, Paul has a couple of detectives nearby, who grow to suspect of him, just one piece of evidence away from convicting him. But new here is that his first act of vengeance is caught on camera and posted around social media. It floods the internet, radio talk shows, and leads to at least one copy-cat on the streets of Chicago. It is a decent refresh of musty old material. Things do wrap up in the end a bit too cleanly, but that's how the first one did, so why change it?

As a remake, it gets the job done for those looking for something more extreme than your usual Liam Neeson outing. It is less excessive than the sequels that followed the 1974 original, and about on par with 2007's "Death Sentence," based on the the book sequel to the first book. (Yeah, somehow a franchise like "Death Wish" is complicated. Also, somehow it is a franchise.) Without the politically charged world outside the multiplex, it is a movie where people shoot each other. If you liked last year's "The Foreigner," I probably sat next to you in the theater.