Death Wish (DVD) [2018]

I very nearly passed this one up because in recent years Bruce Willis has not been involved in anything but drab roles in the main (several cameo slots) ...however curiosity at around £10 purchase price got the better of me.Like many i remember well the 1974 original starring the craggy Charles Bronson, and i myself was wary of this re-make.However, the film kinda reinvents the role some, in this Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a Trauma-Surgeon at a Chicago hospital (in the original film he's an architect living and working in New York)The film however does of course follow a similar theme when after an attack at his home his wife dies and daughter is left in a coma.Paul realising that there was little hope of bringing those responsible to justice with crime figures out of control in the city sets about attempting to serve justice upon those responsible, along the way during his search sorting out many criminal issues with gun in hand (previously having had little to do with guns)so much so he becomes dubbed 'The Grim Reaper'A much better effort from Bruce than in recent times in my view, certainly worth a glance though i have to admit i do prefer the 1974 version.

If what you're after is exactly the same as the original film with Charles Bronson then you will probably be disappointed. My 5-star rating is me trying to reflect on its merit alone. Bruce Willis actually acts really well; you'll notice that. There is something deeply meaningful and emotional in his performance. This isn't just a funny action man hero, but rather someone whose emotions run throughout. Without wanting to spoil the film for you, throughout you feel yourself going from total sympathy and being 'with' the character to, at many different turns, being left questioning whether you still support him. Eli Roth really equips the viewer to engage with the character and his actions and to question the loyalty to the character which the opening of the film gently persuades you to begin with. It's one of the best remakes I've seen in a while, and yet I stress again, don't expect the same film as Bronson's. Watch it - you won't regret it. Bruce is back, he truly is!

Not quite great but good.Some spoilersI’ve read reviews that say what a terrible film this is but really cant agree.The problem most of these negative reviews have is that this film is NOT a moral film.It doesn’t have a message that what you’re watching is right or wrong. Gun control is shown as practically non-existent in America but its certainly not a film that seems to be making that point as a bad thing.Bruce Willis’s character is a surgeon and while hes at work his house is invaded and his wife and daughter are shot when things go wrong eg one guy trying it on with the daughter, rather than just take stuff and go. Wife dies, daughter in a coma. The Police seem too busy as there’s not enough of them (true everywhere) so after some time, the husband acquires a criminals gun from work and decides to even things up a bit.Im not really into the torture-fest films like Hostel that I believe the director of this has done previously, but I did enjoy watching the ‘bad guys’ get their just deserts. One was particularly painful but I was watching it (with slightly clenched teeth) thinking ‘that’s bad but you really do deserved it!’.I think a fair assessment would be that it’s a decent revenge thriller with no moral bias, no real surprises but one that I enjoyed. If you like this type of film I can’t see why you wouldn’t enjoy this too.Cheers

I have to admit that I was sceptical about looking at this remake, since Bruce has done a few iffy movies recently. However, what prompted and maybe inspired me was the simple fact that I have unfortunately never liked the original movie. I am a massive Death Wish II fan, but I don't like the fact that in the original Death Wish, which I did see once, the muggers are not caught and I did not like that one little bit. I don't care what the original premise of the book was, the movie was simply not good enough and so I only went for the sequel. I wondered therefore what the remake would be like and I couldn't imagine the attackers not being caught.Obviously, I needn't have wondered. The paybacks are brutal, he does get them and It was a cracking remake. Bruce Willis was in top form on this film for me. There are some nuances with this, not least of which that Bruce Willis' Paul Kersey is a doctor, a surgeon, not an architect, like in the original Charles Bronson version and the muggers are not muggers, but it is a robbery that goes bad, but it is still a violent crime, so no different there really.The opening shot is amazing and the movie continues to crackle from start to finish and proved me totally wrong about what it would be like. I liked it so much that I bought a copy on Blu ray. (I had originally borrowed the dvd from my brother).There is nothing more to say about it on here other than well done to Eli Roth, whom I was not a fan of, because of Hostel, and this is the first film he has made which I like. A big well done to Bruce Willis too. He can still kick ass with the best of them, but he has always been so much more than that. A fine actor with depth, heart and integrity. It's rare I believe that a remake can outdo the original, but in this case, it has. Sorry, Charlie, but well done, Bruce.