Death Wish (1974)
November 30, 2022 4:01 PM - Subscribe
A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks. In self-defense, the vengeful man kills muggers on the mean streets after dark.
The first in the Death Wish franchise, and arguably a bit nuanced in its portrayal of trauma and PTSD as contributing factors to the main character's (Paul Kersey) vigilante turn; things go rapidly downhill in the sequels, becoming almost self-parodies of lunatic over-the-top White Man Solves Everything With Guns stories.
The first Death Wish still has a veneer of respectability; Charles Bronson was at the time still a reasonably respectable actor, coming off everything from the Magnificent Seven to Mr. Majestyk. An absolutely dynamite score by Herbie Hancock, of all people. The first screen appearance of Jeff Goldblum, a blink-and-you-miss-him "freak" with undeniable screen presence.
Worth watching? It's an artifact of its time, for sure, and a damn sight better than any of the sequels, including the 2018 Bruce Willis remake, which is a bit harder to mock now due to retroactive knowledge of his aphasia and not knowing when exactly it started.
The first in the Death Wish franchise, and arguably a bit nuanced in its portrayal of trauma and PTSD as contributing factors to the main character's (Paul Kersey) vigilante turn; things go rapidly downhill in the sequels, becoming almost self-parodies of lunatic over-the-top White Man Solves Everything With Guns stories.
The first Death Wish still has a veneer of respectability; Charles Bronson was at the time still a reasonably respectable actor, coming off everything from the Magnificent Seven to Mr. Majestyk. An absolutely dynamite score by Herbie Hancock, of all people. The first screen appearance of Jeff Goldblum, a blink-and-you-miss-him "freak" with undeniable screen presence.
Worth watching? It's an artifact of its time, for sure, and a damn sight better than any of the sequels, including the 2018 Bruce Willis remake, which is a bit harder to mock now due to retroactive knowledge of his aphasia and not knowing when exactly it started.
Yes, Jeff Goldblum looks especially menacing in a Jughead hat.
posted by 2N2222 at 7:10 PM on November 30, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by 2N2222 at 7:10 PM on November 30, 2022 [5 favorites]
The blog post about the history of the Jughead Hat linked to in a “previously on MF” thread seems to have gone private, but some info can be found at this Laughing Squid post.
posted by Ranucci at 10:36 AM on December 1, 2022
posted by Ranucci at 10:36 AM on December 1, 2022
Wayback Machine link to the defunct Jughead Hat article. Amazing stuff!
posted by Shepherd at 3:54 PM on December 1, 2022
posted by Shepherd at 3:54 PM on December 1, 2022
"Be careful when you make a Death Wish because a Death Wish always comes true."
posted by yonega at 6:09 PM on December 4, 2022
posted by yonega at 6:09 PM on December 4, 2022
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posted by The Hamms Bear at 7:03 PM on November 30, 2022 [2 favorites]