Death Wish 3 (1985) - Review

Series: Death Wish (3/5)

Director: Michael Winner

Starring: Charles Bronson, Deborah Raffin, Ed Lauter, Gavin O'Herlihy

Country: U.S.

Note: As of Oct. '13, the review format changed. Some reviews like this one have the old format.

Short and Sweet: 

Paul Kersey becomes a full blown killing machine as he racks up the kills like nobody's business in this silly and bland sequel.

Screening Source:

I viewed the MGM Region 1 DVD copy of the film. 

Note: Death Wish 2 was also referred to as Death Wish II. I read that the reason the third film did not use a roman numeral is because Cannon Films, the production company, did a survey that concluded that 50% of people didn't understand roman numerals. Wow. Even though this film does not have an alternate title, that information was too good not to share.

This title card is 3 times more awesome thanks to Jimmy Page.

Plot:

Paul Kersey returns to New York City to visit an old friend. However, like all of the people that Kersey cares for in life, his friend is mugged and murdered by a bunch of punks. Kersey finds that the area of New York City that his friend lived in is quite a crazy place. In fact, its filled with a whole army of crazy punks that were probably denied entry into The Warriors. Therefore, he decides to stick around and help clean up the place Death Wish style! That means you run around with a freakin' Browning machine gun and hold the steaming hot barrel in yours hands and blasts the crap out of your enemies.

Unlike Death Wish 2, Death Wish 3 does not directly duplicate its first film. Instead, it places Kersey in a neighborhood that becomes inspired by his vigilantism. The film has a very bland plot that barely can maintain your attention. Some choice moments are badass, but the rest of it is all pretty boring. That is up until the film's final action scene where all hell breaks loose. It's a basic action movie plot, so any idiot can follow it. I give Michael Winner kudos for not doing the exact same thing all over again. However, he just needed to make things more interesting up until the film's final battle. There just isn't enough going on to keep me interested.

This image pretty much sums it all up.

Notable Performances:

Charles Bronson as Paul Kersey - Third time is the charm right? Well, not really. Kersey has gone from your everyday vigilantist to a one many army! The action junkie in me loves those kill scenes, but all of the other dramatic scenes just don't play the same as they should be. In Death Wish and Death Wish 2, Bronson had actual drama to deal with (i.e. the death of his family, trying to keep a secret from his loved ones, confronting the consequences of vigilantism). In this film, Bronson just goes with the flow of the film's events. It doesn't matter if a girl is raped or gunned down, he acts the same the whole way through. Still, you would be hard pressed to find such a bad ass action hero at Bronson's age, so we need to give Bronson slack there. Something about this film just rubbed me the wrong way when it came to Kersey. Oh well, I've got two more Death Wish films left, maybe Bronson will prove me wrong.

Deborah Raffin as Kathryn Davis - I want to yell to this chick, "Run!" If you are a female and you fall in love with Paul Kersey, just direct yourself to the first two Death Wish films. You are guaranteed to get raped, shot, emotionally scarred, or murdered. Otherwise, she's a cute girlfriend for the guy.

Ed Lauter as Richard Shriker - Shriker is like an antagonizing police chief for Kersey along the lines of who Harry Callahan has to deal with in each of his films. He's a pretty silly character, disliking Kersey one moment and needing him the next. However, he pops up along side Kersey during the film's final action scene. It is like Player 2 just popped in their controller and joined in on the fun with Player 1. 

Gavin O'Herlihy as Manny Fraker - It ain't Death Wish unless there is some crazy punk killing and raping women. And Manny Fraker is that punk. He's the leader of the villainous punks in this film. Their costume design is so uninspired, all they did was paint a few black and red lines on their face. But hey, it's Cannon Films. This guy is a complete psycho and a great villain for Kersey to combat. He's the first villain of the series to be labeled specifically as the main villain from start to finish. I can't spoil his final confrontation with Kersey, but it is so ridiculous and crazy. Overall, he's a good crazy villain that you'll despise all the way through the film.

"I'm gonna kill an old lady because of you."

The Rundown:

The film is also what I like to call a "build up film". A "build up film" is a film that places all of its action and dramatic revelations in its last third of the film. This means that the first two thirds of the film are going to be slow and have little to no action whatsoever. Therefore, the filmmakers believe that their big final epic showdown is going to make the film work. Some examples of this include all of the Transformers films, Man of Steel, and Commando. The problem with this is that everything leading up to the finale has to be either extremely interesting or very dramatically compelling. In Death Wish 3's case, it does not keep things interesting and does not make the wait worth it. I think the final shootout is great on its own, but not worth the bland hour wait that it takes to get to it. Kersey is more interesting when he is on a mission, like in the first two films. He simply wanders around in this film until the crap hits the fan.

In order to enjoy this film, you have to let go of the fact that this will no longer be serious along the lines of the first two films (even though Death Wish 2 is in the crazy territory of Death Wish 3, it has both of its feet planted in realism and absurdity). Once you have done that, there are some fun things to enjoy. For example, Jimmy Page is back again as the film's composer. He's as awesome as ever. The film also has a huge weapon variety. Kersey uses a revolver, a Wildey Magnum pistol, a Browning machine gun, and even a freakin Bazooka! He even buys the Bazooka in the mail and it comes wrapped in brown paper! I would love to know who his seller is because that is one easy to obtain Bazooka.

This is also the last Death Wish film that Michael Winner directed. It's pretty interesting to see Bronson and Winner turn this franchise completely upside down from one extreme to the other. I feel that Winner did a fine job with the first sequel, but went a little too far with this second sequel.

No more small guns for Kersey.

Action:

It's hard to find an actual action scene up until the final war. There are small moments of violence, but nothing that amounts up to a full blown action scene. So, take my word for it when I say you really do have to wait until the finale to get the action you came for.

Finale - The biggest action scene in the entire Death Wish franchise. And what a crazy one at that. Kersey finally says screw the bad guys, let's bring the fight to them. With his Wildey Magnum, a WW2 Browning machinge gun, and the help of the entire neighborhood and police force, an all out war breaks out in New York. Kersey guns down more punks in this scene alone than in any of the other movies. It's an all out massacre and the reason to see the film.

That guy's plunger vs. Bronson's Browning Machine Gun.

Best Bits:

Favorite Kill:

A thug uses a crowbar to pry open a door. As the door opens, a plank of wood swings up and stabs him in the face with a knife. The thug stumbles backwards and falls off of the railings and to his death! This isn't even a Bronson kill and its easily the most memorable death.

Favorite Line/Exchange:

Bronson - "It's my car."

Thug 1 - "Now you gonna die!" *whips out knife*

Bronson - BANG!

Favorite Action Scene:

The only one.

Favorite Supporting Character:

I loved Manny Fraker, the leader of the evil gang. This guy kills an old lady just because Bronson wronged him while in jail! He also meets quite the explosive death.

"Fight the power!"

Conclusion:

Death Wish 3 is a mixed bag. It's an exercise in absurdity and ridiculousness. It kicks tons of butt and delivers an eye popping shootout for the ages. In doing so, the film ridicules what Death Wish started out as and turns Paul Kersey into an Arnold Schwarzenegger-esque hero. You can make your own opinion based on that information. I for one feel it is a step in the wrong direction. Regardless of how you feel about this film, I feel that it would be best enjoyed with a bunch of friends who love ridiculous action movies. Everytime Bronson caps a punk everyone can go, "Ohhh!" However, I still recommend this film. It's a lot better than some other action sequels out there.