Death Wish

Death Wish

Starring Bruce Willis, Vincent D'Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Camila Morrone

Directed by Eli Roth

The Story:
Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is living the affluent upper class life with his wife Lucy (Elisabeth Shue) and daughter Jordan (Camila Morrone) while around them the mean streets of Chicago eat up violence on a daily basis.  One night, violence hits home as Lucy and Jordan are attacked during a home burglary, resulting in Lucy's death and Jordan's severe injuries.

Paul is angered when detectives Raines (Dean Norris) and Jackson (Kimberly Elise) aren't getting any answers, so he takes matters into his own hands, taking to the streets of Chicago to dish out his own brand of vigilante justice, being nicknamed the Grim Reaper.  He searches for those responsible for his wife's death, while being seen as either a hero or a menace to society.

The Synopsis:
In a case of terrible timing, "Death Wish" was released mere weeks after the shocking school shooting in Florida, in the middle of a heated debate about gun control.  Eli Roth's "Death Wish" seemingly takes the tone that everyone should be armed, because with a gun you can protect your family, or, you know, enact strict vengeance against anyone you think is responsible.

It's odd, because a film like this seems as timely as ever, even if it's a remake of a 1974 film starring the late Charles Bronson (and four subsequent sequels, none of which I see this remake having in the future).  It takes place in Chicago where - as we're informed several times throughout the film - violence is rampant and people are getting shot on a daily basis (which is also true in real life, so I see it as no accident Roth changed the location from New York City to the Windy City), a town where the police are overburdened and where cases go cold on the daily.  It's the perfect city for a vigilante to reside, a night angel who enacts his own brand of judgment, resulting in the deaths of several bad guys.  Throughout the film, there's debates over whether this vigilante - known as the Grim Reaper - is a benefit or menace to society, a question that can be debated by anyone anywhere.  It's a timely topic, with no clear answer.  Yes, it's obviously illegal to take the law into your own hands, but if it helps get dangerous people off the street, maybe the ends justify the means.

Unfortunately, "Death Wish" doesn't care to answer the important questions, but rather serve as a forgettable revenge film with all the traditional tropes you'd find in a film of this caliber.  Man looses his wife, goes on a frantic search for her killers, and somehow finds them with relative ease whereas the police seem totally inept.  It's like the film wanted to be in the 80s, but used all the modern technologies to its advantage as well - despite the fact that, even though the family is incredibly rich, they never seemed to turn on their home alarm system.

You'd think an action legend like Bruce Willis could turn this film into a humdrum forgettable film into something "Die Hard"esque, but not even he could save the paper-thin plot.  It's interesting because he seemed to float through this film, like he was as bored with acting in it as we were bored seeing it.  Vincent D'Onofrio is wasted as Paul's brother who doesn't serve any real purpose in the film whatsoever, and the remainder of the actors are as interchangeable and forgettable as the others (with the notable exceptions of "Breaking Bad" star Dean Norris and Kimberly Elise as the detectives, who are so infuriatingly stupid it's aggravating).

Eli Roth is best known for being an excellent horror director, bringing to the big screen some of the bloodiest films of recent memory including "Cabin Fever" and "Hostel," and while there's hints of his sheer violent brilliance here (the particular scene at the mechanics is most notable and the only memorable part of the film), the violence is confined to gunfire and stunts his own ability to make a truly bloody murder-fest.  Ultimately, it's one of those films you begin to forget as soon as you leave the theater.

The Summary:
Chalk this up to another remake that never needed to be made, "Death Wish" is filled with traditional revenge tropes that are so tiresome and monotonous you easily forget about it shortly after it ends.

The Score: D+