Death Wish II-Micheal Winner

Death Wish, the first title to spawn a slew of bastard replicant's, was revered both by critics and audiences alike, etched in history as the first unfiltered vigilante hero film of its kind, catapulting Charles Bronson into the 70's version of Liam Neeson (despite the heinous depiction of home invasion, rape, and subsequent murder of a mans wife).

When Paul Kersey slowly morphs from prominent architect into a vigilante seeking to avenge the death of his loved ones by balancing out karmaic scales through the bloodshed of other criminals (who had no connection with the original crime), it was done with finesse and managed to garner the sympathy of the audience, and thus Michael Winner lived up to his last name both at the box office and in the critical circles.

Much like the steady decline of Halloween sequels following the mastery of the original, Winner saw dollar signs attached to every droplet of blood that was spilled in the execution of punks, and in Death Wish 2 he focused exclusively on these scenes and threw the carefully crafted story line into the trunk of a vehicle motored on exploitative oil.

The fact that Kersey is an architect is only brushed upon for the purpose of necessity and the reasoning for his relocation to Las Angeles is only mentioned in passing. Once Winner gets those perfunctory elements out of the way Kersey's daughter, housekeeper, and wife march like proverbial cattle into the waiting wings of an abattoir of savage punks to be violated against their will and dehumanized to the point of death.

After the token rape scene happens the film begins to crest over a roller coaster ride of ridiculousness and Kersey—who's unfathomably bad luck of losing not one, but two wives now, mind you, to a home invasion rape/murder—can now forsake his part time duties as an architect for millionaires to go on a shooting rampage of those who desecrated his west coast posterity.

This brief summary of the plot should be more than enough to provide you with a sense of the ludicrous tone which this movie shucks and jives to. Kersey shows little to no after-effects of trauma once his family is done for and the ineptitude of the police department begins to tilt this scale more towards black comedy than it does your atypical dark action film. Which sets up nicely for Death Wish 3, where Winner completely abandons all reason whatsoever and simply unleashes Bronson's Kersey in a warzoneesque ghetto to kill at will any face painted punk he pleases with complete support of the neighborhood in tow.

*One of the funniest movies, I might add, that I have ever seen, and is in regular rotation at least once a year.*

If seeing some unfiltered Charles Bronson doing what he does best (bereft of any sort of plot) is your thing, than Death Wish 2 will slake any thirst you have for bullets, mayhem, and carnal depravity. But if you were hoping for a deeper dig into the mentally anguished side of Kersey as he tries to recollect himself from unspeakable atrocities he endured back East, you will be sorely disappointed. And, depending on your flavor of steeze, it doesn't get any better henceforth.

Stars: **

Verdict: Pass

Cousins: Death Wish 3, Missing in Action, The Terminator, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Ten to Midnight