Considering that whole moving-to-L.A. thing didn’t work out (see: Death Wish II), vigilante architect Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) returns to the Big Apple — the very town he was told to skedaddle from — in Death Wish 3. Only the numbering system of the title has changed; trouble still follows Paul like his magnetic-filament mustache.
His first stop off the bus is the apartment of a Korean War buddy who’s just been fatally beaten by the neighborhood punks, and Paul is immediately pinned for the murder and tossed in jail. Lucky for him, Lt. Shriker (Ed Lauter, Cujo) knows how trigger-happy Paul is, and agrees to let him loose in exchange for helping NYPD squash the gang activity.
Their crime spree goes down in a six-block ‘hood that returning director Michael Winner depicts as comically dangerous. One of the most prolific gang members is called Giggler (Kirk Taylor, Full Metal Jacket), so named because he giggles when he runs — y’know, like a real tough guy. Paul won’t stand for it, setting booby traps in the apartments and pulling out his ol’ .475 Magnum, which he says, “makes a real mess.”
The same could be said of this sequel, except it is enjoyable trash cast in the unmistakable Cannon Films mold. Its reputation is sealed by the extraordinarily violent extended climax, in which the residents rise up against the bad guys, and everybody shoots everyone else, all to a terribly discordant score by Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page.
And as for Bronson, he is — once more — the man. —Rod Lott
The latter death Wish Films remind me of video games. Shot ridiculous amount of ammo, Grab reload. Get hit. Be at death door. Find First aid kit, Heal. Run out to fight as if you never got hit.
This is closer to a movie version of a First Person Shooter than any thing base on a video game.