Taste the Anticipation - The Mechanic (1972)

Director: Michael Winner

Cast: Charles Bronson, Jan-Michael Vinent, Keenan Wynn, Jill Ireland

Country: United States

Rating: PG

Run Time: 100 minutes

Taste the Anticipation is a series dedicated to reviewing films in anticipation of a newer up and coming release. Whether it a previous franchise installment, a forgotten film within a director's immense oveure, or a thematically similar venture, anything is fair game as long as it relates to a newer cinematic product of sorts that I am anticipating.

It's been a while since I've reviewed some classic Bronson on my blog. Therefore, I thought that I'd give The Mechanic a revisit. I also wanted to revisit this film along with Simon West's remake in the wake of the announcement of the sequel; Mechanic: Resurrection. It's weird to say it but I guess The Mechanic has become a franchise of its own now. But alas, Statham is returning and that means more guns, bullets, and assassinations "Mechanic style."

If you ever need evidence of Bronson's bad-assery, look no further than his films from the late 1960's and early 1970's. These films feature Bronson at his most chiseled, fashionable, and bad ass. If I were to be more specific though, I would say to look towards the films that Bronson collaborated on with director Michael Winner. Bronson and Winner team ups like The Stone Killer and Death Wish showed how natural and simple it was to make a bad ass action movie in the 1970's. One of their best collaborations though is The Mechanic, an assassin film with great action and a great twist ending.

That's what you call an awesome title card.

Arthur Bishop (Charles Bronson) is a mechanic, or an assassin, for an unnamed group of people who use him to eliminate targets of theirs. Bishop is an expert planner who takes his time and plans his assassinations. He never rushes in like a cowboy or takes out someone unless he studies all of their habits and background. When Bishop eliminates a man named Big Harry, he attracts the attention of Big Harry's son Steve (Jan-Michael Vincent) at the funeral. Bishop's comments about Steve's personality and characteristics triggers an interest in Steve as to Bishop's secret profession. After much questioning, Bishop agrees to let Steve in on the assassination profession since having a back up would make jobs easier for him. Bishop trains Steve in the ways of concentration, martial arts, and gun fire to prepare him for his first task. However, Bishop angers the unnamed group who uses him once they find out that an outsider has been brought into the business. Bishop also comes to doubt Steve's loyalty to the business and their partnership as he grows increasingly suspicious of Steve's actions.

Man, it really has been awhile since I visited a truly awesome Bronson film. I forgot how bad ass and stylish the guy is. His outfits are amazing in this movie! I wish I dressed as good as he did. Anyways, Arthur Bishop is a great character because he isn't like every other movie assassin or Bronson character. He's a detached loner who likes to keep to himself, uses a prostitute to fake a real relationship, takes his time with his assassinations, and keeps up on his extracurricular activities. He's in to going to the aquarium, shooting skeet, scuba diving, and even karate. He also refuses to pay hospital bills. He just crumples that crap up tosses it in the garbage. Arthur Bishop is a great character brought to life by Bronson's real life detached and lonely personality.

We learn everything that we need too about Bishop in the film's slow burn opening sequence. Within 16 minutes, we see Bishop stalk a target, prepare to kill him, and than take the guy out. However, there is no dialog in all of these 16 minutes. Director Michael Winner relies purely on visual storytelling to introduce us to Bishop and his profession. It's truly masterful filmmaking. Winner doesn't hold our hand or incorporate any unnecessary narration. He just lets the visuals do all of the work.

The weary mentor and the young apprentice.

I also can't go without mentioning co-lead Jan Michael Vincent as Steve. Much like Bronson, Vincent is cold and emotionless. He makes for a good co-lead who holds his own next to Bronson. He and Bronson also have a great mentor/apprentice relationship that makes the film a passing of the torch kind of story. I typically love films about passing the torch from the older generation to the younger generation in one way or another.

When The Mechanic was originally scripted, Steve and Bishop were written as gay lovers. However, the film's producers found financing hard to come by. Therefore, changes were made and the two became simply friends. Even though I already love the film the way it is, I am very curious as to how the film would have played out with the two being homosexual. A dynamic like this would have added far more to the film and made it that much more unique and complex in contrast to other hit man and assassin pictures of the time. This homosexual dynamic is either unintentionally or intentionally teased during Steven and Bishop's first meeting as they trade interesting eye glances at one another before even saying, "Hello." If you asked me, there is something going on in their eyes.

Bronson's wife Jill Ireland (Death Wish 2) also pops up as a prostitute that pretends to be Bishop's lover. Even though her appearance is simply a cameo, Ireland's role as the prostitute is important in explaining how distant Bishop is from reality and world. 

I always love a good motor cycle chase.

The Mechanic is surprisingly only rated PG even though it includes a heavy body count, implied sex, explosions, and a scene where Steve's girlfriend slices her wrists with razor blades. Man, how the ratings system has changed over the years. I also read up on reviews of the film's initial release and found it interesting to note that critics disliked the film for its many action scenes (note: there are a whopping two set pieces, that's it). This is quite humorous to read considering how ridiculously action packed the likes of John Wick and The Raid 2 were this year and yet both of those films received very positive reviews. Man, how critics have change over the years!

As far as slam bam action comes, The Mechanic keeps its action to a minimum, opting for quality over quantity. The two stand out set pieces (the only one's I might add) are the motorcycle chase after Steve's first assassination and the big car chase and shootout in Italy. I can't remember the last time I saw an action film devote some time to a motorcycle chase but I love the one found here. As Bishop chases after a target on motorcycle, the two traverse through hills, ride over a man's parked car, and crash a rich family's pool party. You have to love a chase that ends with a dummy going off of a cliff on a bike into a firey explosion.

The action scenes, 70's fashion design, and Italian setting found in the final act makes the film look like a Euro-crime thriller a-la Enzo G. Castalleri's The Big Racket or Street Law. Bishop and Steven have a great gunfight between a helping of assassins that makes for great entertainment. Bishop lands the best kill of the film when he jump starts a bulldozer and plows an assassin inside of his car off of a cliff. Talk about an overkill.

As many fans of The Mechanic know, the film ends with a great twist ending that sort of puts the cherry on top of the whole experience. In a film that is all about people killing one another, the final moments are saddening yet satisfying. Unfortunately, I think that the ending is a tad rushed. I'm talking about the very final shot of the film that delivers the ultimate bang to the twist. If Winner had slowed the ending down and allowed more time for the audience to take in the surprise, than I think that it would have worked far better. It's surprising to see Winner rush the finale in contrast to how slow he allowed the rest of the film to play out. However, it's still a great ending.

No one pumps a shotgun better than Bronson.

Winner's The Mechanic is a special kind of action film that pairs the typical lonely assassin story with a completely unexpected ending. Critics of 1972 would love this film in contrast to today's slam bam action flicks. It takes far more time with its characters and their mentoring than any film of today does. I also think that Bronson delivers one of his best roles here too. The role feels slightly reflexive in how it incorporates Bronson's true to life detached personality. In conclusion, I would place The Mechanic on the list of other great lone assassin/hit men films like Leon: The Professional, The Bourne Identity, Le Samourai, The American, and Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai. Highly recommended!

Rating: 8/10 - One of Michael Winner's best action films. Check it out!

Franchise:
The Mechanic (dir. Michael Winner, 1972)
The Mechanic (dir. Simon West, 2011)
Mechanic: Resurrection (dir. Dennis Gansel, 2016)

R.I.P. - Menahem Golan (1929 - 2014)

Menahem Golan has passed away. Any die hard action fan should recognize the name Golan if they have ever seen films such as Enter the Ninja, Over the Top, Death Wish 4: The Crackdown, Masters of the Universe, Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Cyborg, American Ninja, Cobra, The Delta Force, Invasion U.S.A., Missing In Action, Ninja III: The Domination, Exterminator 2, and countless upon countless other action films. Menahem was a producer of many low budget schlocky action films in the 70's, 80's and early 90's. He and his cousin Yoram produced over 200 films and even created their own production company. They also directed a few of their films as well.

Golan is a lot like the iconic producer Roger Corman. He produced numerous action films on very low budgets and churned out either crappy, decent, or quality action films (my personal favorite film he ever had his hands on is none other than Death Wish 4: The Crackdown). Much like Corman, many of Golan's films are a joke to critics but beloved by die hard film buffs. He and his cousin produced fun and crappy movies that gave actors like Chuck Norris and Charles Bronson all of their work in the 1980's. It is also worth mentioning that Menahem and Yoram distributed several hit foreign films in the United States. He even has an Oscar nomination to his name for producing Operation Thunderbolt (as well as numerous Razzies). 

Golan is also notable for being one of the very first producers to really see the potential of superhero films. Golan produced Captain America (1990), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, and almost produced the very first screen adaptation of Spider-Man. Even though all of these films are pure crap, Golan is to be commended for trying to breakout into the superhero business before Marvel Studios and Warner Bros. started churning out superhero films in the mid to late 2000's.

Whenever I see a movie with Golan's name on it, I get a smile to my face. I know exactly what I am in for and expect a low budget-schlock filled time. He's really just a lesser known Roger Corman and his name should be known better. Sure his action films were no Commando, First Blood, or Die Hard. However, they had a special quality of their own and the word Cannon Group is synonymous with Golan and his action films. Rest in peace to Cannon Group and Menahem Golan!

My Two Cents: November Viewing

I haven't watched too many films that have excited me enough to fully review them. Therefore, I thought I'd give a thought or two about some films I've watched this month. Maybe a more in depth review will come later. But for now, here's my two cents on some action flicks I've viewed this month.

Title: Machine Gun McCain

Year: 1969

Country: Italian

Director: Giuliano Montaldo

Starring: John Cassavetes, Britt Ekland, Peter Falk, Gena Rowlands, etc.

Rating: 6.5/10 - I found this Italian mobster film to be pretty disappointing at first. After having dwelled on it for a few weeks though, I think that Machine Gun McCain is a fine little film that has some great parts to it that are far better than its whole. Cassavetes is awesome as Hank McCain, a real bastard of a thief who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. The Morricone music is also awesome too. I don't recommend a purchase (an impulse buy I regret), but I do recommend a rental. For fans of Italian cinema and John Cassavetes only.

Title: Faster

Year: 2010

Country: U.S.

Director: George Tilman Jr.

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Billy Bob Thorton, Carla Gugino, Maggie Grace, etc.

Rating: 7/10 - I recently purchased both this film and this year's Snitch for $8 each on blu ray. I figured they would be two cheap but enjoyable B action flicks starring Dwayne Johnson. I started with Faster first. This noirish revenge thriller starts off pretty good but really loses you by the end. I enjoyed its R rating, performances, and seriousness. The action scenes are very short and hardly exist at all unfortunately. I really enjoyed Johnson in this and found this kind of film to be what Johnson should pursue for the rest of his career. The genre was great, but the final act was pretty weak.

Title: A Company Man

Year: 2012

Country: South Korea

Director: Im San Yoon

Starring: So Ji-Sub, Lee Mi-yeon, Kwak Do-won, Kim Dong-jun, etc.

Rating: 9/10 - My faith in action films is always restored whenever I visit one of the new Asian releases from the distribution company Well Go USA. This is a great hitman film. It is packed with great drama and great action too. The final shootout is one of the best I have ever seen too. The flick also has nice photography, editing, tension, and top notch performances. I highly recommend this action packed drama. It reminds you why foreign action is almost better than all of the U.S.'s releases.

Title: Messenger of Death

Year: 1988

Country: U.S.

Director: J. Lee Thompson

Starring: Charles Bronson, Trish Van Devere, Laurence Luckinbill, Daniel Benzali, etc.

Rating: 7/10 - It isn't a good month of action without a Bronson flick! I really should not be giving this movie a "7" but I actually am. The late '80's Cannon/Bronson films are so lousy and cheap. However, I actually found myself enjoying this one. While very light on the action, the mystery that kicks off the film really pulls you and makes you wonder what will happen next. Around the half way point, the film falls into generic territory and begins to run around in annoying circles that makes you just want to fast forward to the ending already. The highlight of the film occurs when Bronson picks up a shotgun during a funeral and blasts a coffin to reveal that no corpse was inside of it at all. Revealing the truth: Bronson style! If you want a good 1980's Cannon/Bronson/Thompson team up, check out Death Wish 4: The Crackdown!

Death Wish (1974) - Review

Series: Death Wish (1/5)

Director: Michael Winner

Starring: Charles Bronson, Vincent Gardenia, Hope Lange, William Redfield, Jeff Goldblum

Country: U.S.

It's hard to believe that this little film would go on to spawn a whole franchise of gun-toting vigilantism. But here is the little film that could, Death Wish, kicking butt and taking names. It's the original vigilante film, and arguably the all time finest one ever made.

Now that's what you call a title card.

The film's protagonist, Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson), is an architect with a wife and an older daughter. While he is at work one day, some punks follow his wife home and break in. The punks rape his daughter and murder his wife, leaving Bronson with a deceased loved one and an emotionally scarred one as well. Kersey becomes sickened with the crime in the city, realizing that the police do hardly anything about it. Kersey than takes a trip to Arizona to meet a client of his, Ames Jainchill (Stuart Margolin in a very memorable performance). Jainchill reminds Kersey what it is like to hold a gun and that protecting oneself is an essential skill to know. After his enlightening trip and successful business deal, Kersey receives a gift from Jainchill. Upon arriving home, Kersey opens up his gift to find that he is now the proud owner of a revolver. He than decides to wander the streets late at night, becoming a notorious night time vigilante in the process.

One Flew Over the Badass Architect

Death Wish is a gritty, raw, and realistic action film. The film's stock is very grainy and grimey looking. The action comes quick and violently. The film's director, Michael Winner, opts for shock and suspense over grandiose action hero antics and silliness with these action scenes (but wait until you see their Death Wish 3 collaboration, oh boy). All of the scenes usually involve Charles Bronson coming across some punks. Either they come to him or Bronson baits the thugs in a way. When they come near him, Bronson blasts the punks and walks off like a beast. These scenes give off a very realistic vibe because they are short and sweet. There is no need for full blown gunfights here. A vigilante does what they need to do and doesn't think twice about it.

Death Wish benefits from being both an awesome action film and a good drama as well. This was one of the first films to ever tackle vigilantism in a very violent and serious way. The rape scene that sets off the plot is pretty disturbing. It's not exploitative (you can be the judge of that) but is still pretty graphic.

"That, that's chaos theory."

After this happens, Paul Kersey retreats to himself. He keeps a lot of his emotions tucked in and never full blown cries. It is after a while that he takes up vigilantism as a way to cope with things. I find this interesting because it also really reflects the actor Charles Bronson. He was a known loner, choosing to rather sit in a trailer alone instead of talking amongst everyone else. And he liked being a loner, he wasn't just acting that way and not admitting it. So, I really love that his personality heavily reflects on the character as well. Bronson pulls off being the every man so well. You believe everything he does and say so well. His rugged face and everyday job as an architect really humanizes him.

"Now I have to buy a new newspaper!"

As serious as Death Wish sounds, there is at least some fun to be had in viewing it.  A really great character is that of Vincent Gardenia's, a sniffling cop named Frank. I don't know why the guy is so sick but it's kind of hilarious. He spends the whole movie hunting down Kersey and blowing his nose into a tissue as well. I don't know if they were trying to give the film some comedic relief but I love this guy. Christopher Guest also has a pop up as a cop who found Kersey's gun. Guest just cranked this movie's rating from a 10 to an 11. That's right. Denzel Washington also has a small appearance as one of the thugs that gets gunned down by Bronson. But, the one notable role that is impossible to miss is that of the punk character played by Jeff Goldblum. He's a terrible slime ball and the one who who rapes Bronson's daughter! It's a shame Bronson never finds him, because I would've loved to see him get blasted.

Vigilante - city style. Judge, jury, and executioner. 

This film has some great aesthetics as well. The squibs are nice and bloody. It gives the film a nice horror vibe too. The score by Herbie Hancock is also awesome. It has a great '70's vibe to it complete with sweet synthesized lines of music. The editing of the gun fights are nice and simple. No crappy shaky cam here folks. These were the days when you could actually view the action going on.

Death Wish is just great. Michael Winner and Charles Bronson are at the top of their game here. They started an action franchise that is a legendary one for the books. They kickstarted the vigilante sub-genre, cemented Bronson's status as a star, and became forever immortalized as action Gods.

"I'll see you next time...in the sequel!"

Rating: 9/10 - The original vigilante film that defined how a gritty urban action film was supposed to be made. Death Wish is essential action viewing! Highly recommended.

The Extras:
Best Kill: Without a doubt, it goes to the death of the dang punk who slices up Bronson's newspaper. You do not mess with a man's newspaper!
Best Line/Exchange: As Bronson talks with his daughter's annoying husband, he asks him who people are that don't fight back against crime. His son in law replies, "Ordinary citizens?" This is a great line that says a lot about society's fear in the film and in our world as well.
Best Action Scene: While the action is very short and sweet all throughout the film, I would give it to the final scene where Paul is jumped by three punks on a flight of stairs. I think this scene features the most intense editing and gun fire in the entire film.

Also Check Out:
Death Wish 2 (1982): The film's first sequel is a pretty solid action film that amps up both its action (alright!) and its rape (ehh). Worth checking out for fans of this film and '80's action in general.

The Punisher (2004): Thomas Jane stars in this Marvel comic book adaptation that has many similarities to the character of Paul Kersey. Each are vigilantes who never take no for an answer and gun down their enemies with no remorse. It's a solid film and reminds me of Death Wish in the sense that it is a blend of heavy drama and light action.

The Mechanic (1973): If you want another Winner/Bronson team up from the glorious '70's, than check out this very awesome assassin thriller from the two. It came before Death Wish and was the film that got the studio's attention when it came time to find a director for the film.

Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987) - Review

Series: Death Wish (4/5)

Director: J. Lee Thompson

Starring: Charles Bronson, Kay Lenz, John P. Ryan, Perry Lopez, and Danny Trejo

Country: U.S.

Death Wish 4: The Crackdown arrives on the scene and single handedly saves the Death Wish franchise. With a steady balance of drama and action, the film comes as a breath of fresh air after the dull third film. 

It's quite clear right what helps make the film a breath of fresh air to begin with. For one, the film is no longer about killing common rapists and thieves. Instead, Kersey is gunning to take down drug dealers and organized crime now. The filmmakers were wise to create a new plot that is far more engaging and less repetitive than the last film. Kersey waits around for an all out city war in Death Wish 3, making things quite a dull and drab affair. In this film however, Kersey is on a mission a la Death Wish 2, which makes things far more interesting. The film was also wise to steady and pace its action all throughout the film.

Michael Winner is no longer carrying the franchise on his shoulders either. After three films, the director's chair is handed over to Cannon Production's J. Lee Thompson. Winner had a masterpiece on his hands with Death Wish, a good sequel with Death Wish 2, and a disappointing sequel with Death Wish 3. Therefore, it makes sense that Winner did not continue with the franchise. It was best that someone else stepped in to freshen things up. Thompson does a fine job, crafting a very right-winged actioner that sets out to attack the cocaine drug craze of the '80s.

"Bronson no like Pac-Man!"

The plot is as follows. Paul Kersey has returned to Los Angeles (Man, Kersey is just back and forth between L.A. and N.Y. in these movies). He has a new girlfriend (His fourth in the series! Wonder how long she'll live...) and his old architect job back as well. One day, his girlfriend's daughter turns up dead due to a drug overdose. Distraught, Kersey's girlfriend turns to her journalism and tries to find out what she can about the drug dealers of Los Angeles. 

Kersey on the either hand gets roped into things entirely differently. A man named Jonathan White approaches Kersey. He knows that Kersey was once the famous vigilante and how badly Kersey wants to take out the drug dealers in the city for killing his girlfriend's daughter. White wishes to provide Kersey with weapons to take out the dealers and information on their whereabouts. In exchange for eliminating crime, White won't tell the police about Kersey's whereabouts and Kersey will get his revenge on the dealers as well. With everything set in place, Paul Kersey sets out to find and murder all of the men involved in drug trafficking in the city. What follows is numerous great action scenes, a plot twist, and even a Danny Trejo appearance!

Just another action icon killing the ever famous Trejo.

Death Wish 4: The Crackdown starts off as a pretty serious drama. Kersey's girlfriend's daughter dies due to drugs. His girlfriend, Karen, than starts to realize that a lot of young kids are being killed by drugs as well. When I saw these scenes, I started to feel that the film was actually going to be a pretty serious action film. Granted, the action would be cheesy. But could this be the return to the aesthetics of the great original Death Wish?

Unfortunately, Death Wish 4: The Crackdown completely forgets about this. As soon as we see Karen take an interest in the drug world, her character completely vanishes! Seriously, I cannot believe this happened. All of the Death Wish films so far have always portrayed Kersey getting involved with a lovely woman. As he goes on his vigilante rampages, Kersey has to hide the truth from his loved ones. The films bounce back and forth between awesome shootouts and tense scenes of drama. This film doesn't have a single scene of this whatsoever. As soon as Paul Kersey meets Nathan White, the rest of the film's scene feature either the police, the mob, or Bronson. I think this is the film's biggest weakness.  I honestly cannot believe that the film abandons her character until the finale to turn her into a damsel in distress. It also makes no sense that they would introduce the storyline of her trying to investigate the criminal underworld and than completely discard it. The film truly only cared about Bronson killing bad guys.

I'm quite the everyday architect with this here assault rifle.

But as I said before, this film is great because it gives us Kersey on a mission. And when Kersey is on a mission, he is at his best as a character. There are quite a few scenes of Kersey either stalking bad guys, infiltrating their underground, going in with a disguise, and so on. It's quite fun to see Kersey get into so many different situations. He kills the baddies with a big variety of weapons, ranging from an exploding wine bottle, a simple pistol, a silenced MAC-10, and a grenade launching assault rifle. All of the action scenes are top notch too. They're even gorier than before and shot well too. There's no complaints at all about the framing either. The action scenes are steadily paced from start to finish as well. The film even concludes with a big shootout amongst all of the film's other action scenes. I'm really happy they still held out to pack a big finale. It makes the film far more exhilarating.

The flick also has a really memorable supporting cast. John P. Ryan is very creepy as Nathan White, a rich man who speaks with a chilling monotone voice. Kay Lenz is probably the cutest girlfriend that Bronson has in the entire series as well. I just don't understand how all of these young hot women are coming after the elder Bronson. Oh well. Perry Lopez is also hilariously over the top as Ed Zacharias, the film's main mobster villain. Cult icon Danny Trejo also has an appearance as one of Zacharias' henchmen. He receives one of the film's most memorable deaths as well, by an exploding wine bottle! The film's cops are all played nicely too. Everyone is far more memorable than any other character in the whole franchise (beside's Frank Ocha, he's the cop to beat).

"You've only seen Death Wish 3 times? Not enough!" BANG!

The film has a bland score unfortunately. It's probably bland because the score belongs to another Cannon film called Invasion U.S.A. I can't believe that a company in the freakin' 80's was recycling scores. I understand old Universal monster films doing it, but this is ridiculous. None of the music matches any of the moments in the film unfortunately. I'm a big score hound, so to see this film suffer from a bad score is quite a low blow to the film. Death Wish 1-3 had such memorable scores. This one, not so much. I also love how '80's this film is. Several scenes take place in video arcades, a disco roller rink, and even a V/H/S store. Even the title is totally '80's. This isn't just Death Wish 4, oh no. Bronson is cracking down on bad guys ladies and gentlemen! Therefore, the film's title wants to remind you of that. In all honesty, this is my favorite title of the series, the added "The Crackdown" line oozes with badassery.

The money shot.

Rating: 7/10 - The fourth Death Wish is a solid actioner with lots of action, a decent story, and memorable supporting characters as well. It's no masterpiece, but after four films in, this is about as good as it gets.

The Extras:

Best Kill: 

No other kill in the film matches up to the absurdity of the final kill in the film. Let's just say that it is quite the "explosive" finish.

Best Action Scene: 

I'm going to give it to the set up scene where Bronson tricks the two rival mob gangs into an all out shootout. My favorite moment is when one of the guys pulls out two revolvers and blasts some dude in the face. The guy spins around and goes head first into a car window! This scene also features the image of Charles Bronson walking with a rifle resting on his shoulder. It's just freakin' epic. One of the best Bronson images hands down.

Best Line/Exchange: 

Kersey gets caught in the kitchen of one of the gang's top assassins. When the man asks Kersey what he is doing in his kitchen, Kersey replies, "I was making a sandwhich." He than slams the oven door onto the man's hand! Hilarious!

Also Check Out: 

Death Wish V: The Face of Death (1994) - After this film, things only go down hill for Death Wish yet again. After six years, the fifth and final film in the franchise would be released. However, I think that if you have made it all the way up to Death Wish 4 for goodness sakes, you have to finish the series.

Invasion U.S.A. (1985) - If you enjoyed the music from this film well than you'll love the soundtrack to Invasion U.S.A. Why is that you say? Because it's the same exact film score that's why! Both made by Cannon, the films' scores demonstrates just how low budget a company Cannon really was. The film is also a cheesy '80s actioner that is not worth watching for more than its awesome action scenes, great one liners, and Chuck freakin' Norris.

The Dead Pool (1987) - While my least favorite Dirty Harry film, the final Dirty Harry film came out the same time as Death Wish 4. If you need another '80s actioner starring an aging action icon, The Dead Pool is the film for you.

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.

Death Wish 2 (1982) - Review

Series: Death Wish (2/5)
Alternate Title: Death Wish II

Director: Michael Winner

Starring: Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Vincent Gardenia, Laurence Fishburne
Country: U.S.

Note: As of Oct. 2013, the review format changed. Some reviews like this one have the old format.

Short and Sweet:
Death Wish 2, for the lack of a better description, is essentially Death Wish all over again but with more rape and more action.

Screening Source:
I viewed the Region 1 MGM DVD copy of the film. I know their is a high definition Blu Ray but it is overpriced for having no bonus features and an alright transfer. Besides, I settled for $1 on this baby at the flea market. Before I say anything, if you find Death Wish 2 for $1 on DVD, drop that money and pick that sucker up. And if all of the other Death Wish's are there as well, get em!

I also want to note that this is the slightly edited version of the film. The only things that are edited in this version of the film are the two rape scenes early on in the film. I normally don't support editing out footage in a film for censorship reasons. However, seeing less of these two graphic rape scenes is fine by me. They are horrific and the less seen the better. What is there is already graphic enough. However, these edits hardly make the film count as an Unrated Cut in my opinion. You could argue against this, but I feel it still achieves the goal the Theatrical Cut was going for.

I smiled when I saw this title card. No lie, I was pumped.

Plot:

Paul Kersey (Bronson), has been living a peaceful life since his vigilante rampage in 1974's Death Wish. At the police's request, Bronson moved from New York to somewhere else. Kersey chose Los Angeles and continues his architecture work there. He has a new girlfriend, Geri (Ireland), and has been taking care of his mentally scarred daughter, Carol. However, some thugs decide to break into his house and almost the same thing as the first film occurs. Kersey's loved ones are raped and murdered. Instead of choosing to go after crime in general (like he did the first film), Kersey carefully plans his revenge on the men who raped and murdered his daughter. What follows is more sleazy nudity and graphic action than the first film even had. Summarizing this film is as simple as looking at one of the film's poster's taglines: Bronson's loose! It's as dumb and simple as they come.

Deja vu.

Notable Performances:
Charles Bronson as Paul Kersey - Bronson is just one bad motha. You do not mess with this guy. But he's also pretty cheesy. I love Charles Bronson. I think he is just a totally awesome action star and has a great screen prescence. However, I feel that he plays almost every role of his almost the same. He's quiet, somber, polite, and ruthless. This time around, Paul Kersey starts to turn into more of an action hero than just an everyday vigilante killer from the first film. I'll go more into this under The Rundown section of this review. Overall though, Bronson does just fine as Kersey once again. Regardless of how good or bad these Death Wish films are, Kersey just feels like an old friend. It's nice to just check up on him.

Jill Ireland as Geri Nichols - Bronson's love interest this time around is his own real life wife, Jill Ireland. She plays Geri, a very nice and kind lady. She's also extremely lucky to survive the film with not a scratch on her body. All of the people that Kersey cares for seem to die a horrible fate, as we have seen so far from Death Wish 1 and 2. So, to see her survive this film is just a blessing. I don't want to spoil too much as to what occurs between Geri and Kersey by the film's end, but I'll let you know that it is actually a depressing ending. It makes one contemplate the consequences that go hand in hand with being a vigilante.

Vincent Gardenia as Frank Ocha - This was a nice surprise to see Frank Ocha, the cop from the first film, back again. It's always cool when a franchise finds a way to bring back actors from previous installments. He gives the same performance as before. He's kind of a smart but bumbling cop who is constantly sick and sneezing (I really don't get it, but I feel bad for the guy). Kudos to Death Wish 2 for trying to connect things back to Death Wish with more than just Charles Bronson returning.

Laurence Fishburne and more as "The Villains" - All of the punks and thugs in Death Wish 1 are some pretty vile people, including the ones who do the terrible deed to Bronson's wife and daughter. But man, these guys are terrible! With names like Cutter, Jiver, and Punkcut, these guys are out for blood! Evil punks and thugs from the 70's and 80's are just absolutely crazy. I despise them but can't get enough of them, they are so entertaining to watch. It's no surprise that all of these guys meet their end by Bronson's gun too. Laurence Fishburne has the best death of them all. He holds a boom box over his face as cover as Bronson fires at him. The boom box explodes and Fishburne falls over as goo pours out of his mouth. It's so gross but totally awesome. Why would you choose a radio as cover from a bullet?

Someone's got a...DEATH WISH!

The Rundown:
Death Wish 2 brings back Charles Bronson, Vincent Gardenia, and director Michael Winner. I mention this because getting both a franchise's star and its original director back is always a good sign. Even the Dirty Harry series lost its original director after its first film. So, Death Wish 2 already has good potential. Besides the elements behind the camera, Death Wish 2 essentially recreates the same elements from the first film all over again. Here they are.

- Everything starts off all peachy nice and perfect.
- Bronson's loved one is either raped or murdered.
- Bronson hunts down criminals during the late hours of the night.
- Bronson lies to others that he is doing nothing illegal.
- The police realize a vigilante is on their hands and they must deal with him.
- The police follow and track down Bronson in taxis and cars.
- At one point, Bronson is stabbed and realizes he is in over his head.

If there was ever a sequel that tried to duplicate the first film's success, Death Wish 2 is that sequel. You may think I dislike this film for this, but I really don't. If you can get over the fact that it is Death Wish all over again, this film is quite enjoyable. Bronson is turned into more of an action hero in this film, finding himself in bigger and crazier shootouts. He is also no longer a timid man. He knows who wronged him and makes sure to go after them with all of his force. I also liked how Bronson creates an outfit from Good Will as his night time get up. It's so awesome.

The film also has a more self aware soundtrack. It's composed by Led Zepplin's Jimmy Page. This time around we get some sweet guitar riffs to go along with Kersey's rampages. All of the gritty stripped down realism of the first film goes away once you hear Jimmy Page shredding away on an electronic guitar. The film also has some nice action editing and photography as well. None of it is incredible, but its nice, simple, and gets the job done.

My biggest issue with this film though has to lie with its vile rape scenes. Bronson's maid is raped and murdered in a horribly graphic scene that is utterly repulsive. I could never watch that scene ever again if I had too. The film amps up both its gore and blatant nudity as well. Death Wish 2 really feels like it is treading over into exploitation territory at some points. However, I think Michael Winner keep things restrained just enough to keep it from being a sleazy grind house film.

"Do you want the red pill or the blue pill?"

Action:
Parking Garage Shootout - Bronson follows a woman's screams to a terrible rape scene occurring. Unfortunately for the rapists, Bronson brought his gun with him and lets them have it real good. This is a short but sweet gun fight. Michael Winner really amps up the action in this film.

Park Shootout - Bronson stalks some of his daughter's killers to a dark park. Before you know it, bullets are flying and we have arrived to the film's biggest action scene. This is a totally awesome shootout, complete with epic kills and tons of gunfire. It ends on a great note as well.

Final Confrontation - Bronson confronts the final thug in this particularly brutal fist fight. What seems like a simple shoot and run for Bronson turns into a full blown fight complete with punching, kicking, glass breaking, tables turning, knife stabbing, and even electrocuting!

Bronson rocks his Good Will outfit like nobody else.

Best Bits:
Favorite Kill:
Bronson blasts a thug right through a ghetto blaster and into his face!

Favorite Line/Exchange:
Bronson - "Do you believe in Jesus boy?"
Thug - "Yes."
Bronson - "Well, you're gonna meet him." BANG!

Favorite Action Scene:
The shootout in the dark park is great. It features a lot of shooting with a variety of weapons. Its both intense, hilarious, and awesome.

Favorite Supporting Character:
I'm gonna give this to Officer Frank Ocha. The guy came all the way from the first Death Wish. I love that guy.

The happiness can only last so long in a Death Wish film.

Conclusion:
Death Wish 2 is an interesting sequel. Death Wish is a gritty drama filled with moments of intense violence. It has just enough action in it though for it to be considered a through and through action film. It remains a vigilante drama first and fore most by being realistic and ground breaking in its discussion of vigilantism. Death Wish 2 takes all of the elements from the first film and turns them into more of an amped up 80's action film. The action is bigger, the music is more current and hip, and Bronson is now a full blown action hero. While sleazier and nearly an exact duplicate of the first film, Death Wish 2 is a pretty good action sequel that is heavily underrated. It is fully recommended to all action and Bronson junkies. There's plenty to love here.

A Big Fat Welcome and Introduction to the Blog!

Death Wish (dir. Michael Winner, 1974, U.S.)

Welcome to Better Clear On Out the Back! This wonderful blog is here for one reason and one reason only: to review and talk about action films! There will be no sissy films on here! Slow motion gun toting, ever rising body counts, and hard core fist fights can all be found, analyzed, and loved right here people! For those wondering, this site's title comes from a quote in one of the greatest films of all time that I feel fits just perfectly into this site: Unforgiven (dir. Clint Eastwood, 1992, U.S.). So, let's get to posting!