Death Wish II
DIRECTOR Michael Winner pretty much created the blueprint for successful vigilante revenge thrillers when he delivered Death Wish in 1974.
Bleak, downbeat and brutal, it clicked with audiences of the era, pulling in impressive box office receipts all over the world and making its world-weary lead Charles Bronson a global superstar in the process.
It's odd then to think that the sequel didn't arrive for a full eight years. Maybe it took that long for Winner to convince Bronson that his future lay in re-hashing that same dead-eyed revenge killer rather than doing something more creative with his obvious on screen talents?
Whatever the reason, Death Wish II finally bludgeoned its way onto cinema screens in 1982 and, to mark its 40th anniversary, Vinegar Syndrome have released a nifty Blu-ray edition of the film for anyone eager to relive the bloody tale one more time.
The story picks up where the first film left off with Paul Kersey (Bronson) attempting to rebuild his life with his daughter Carol (Robin Sherwood) in Los Angeles. She's still suffering from the violent death of her mother, so Kersey and his new partner Geri (played by Bronson's real life wife Jill Ireland) try to cheer her up by taking her out on the town.
Predictably, disaster strikes when Kersey is mugged by a gang of street punks. Kersey fights them off but they steal his wallet which gives them his home address which they swiftly exploit.
Before you know it the gang have broken into his homestead and brutally assaulted his housemaid and abducted his daughter, whom they proceed to savagely abuse. The trauma of this attack leads to his daughter's suicide and Kersey is quickly back on the streets dishing out his own brand of bloody justice.
There's a nasty and exploitative feel to this that makes you feel uncomfortable throughout, but there's no denying the enigmatic screen presence of Bronson. He looks beaten down by life and there's a melancholy in his eyes that ensures this basic revenge thriller rises above the level of straight-to-video nonsense.
He's also utterly merciless in his cold-hearted need for closure and the body count and bloody violence on show is high from start to finish.
Not everyone is as memorable as Bronson, sadly. Jill Ireland is nondescript at best as Kersey's new love interest, and most of the gang are overplaying the 'mean streets' shtick wildly.
Led Zep fans will enjoy the rock heavy soundtrack from guitarist Jimmy Page and those who care about such things will be pleased to know that this is the fully uncut version of the film, which means the nastiness quota is up a notch from previous DVD and Blu-ray releases.
This extras-packed edition feels like the final word on a film that maybe doesn't deserve such fancy treatment. Fans of Charles Bronson will love the chance to revel in his vigilante with a cold eye and colder heart, but others may shudder at the callous and casual violence and misogyny on show in Michael Winner's rough and ready revenge fable.
