Synopsis
After his wife is murdered by street punks, a pacifistic New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad, prowling the streets for would-be muggers after dark.
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Cast
- Charles BronsonPaul Kersey
- Hope LangeJoanna Kersey
- Vincent GardeniaFrank Ochoa
- Steven KeatsJack Toby
- William RedfieldSam Kreutzer
- Stuart MargolinAimes Jainchill
- Stephen ElliottPolice Commissioner
- Kathleen TolanCarol Toby
- Jack WallaceHank
- Fred J. ScollayDistrict Attorney
Recommendations
- 75
Chicago Sun-Times
In Death Wish we get just about the definitive Bronson; rarely has a leading role contained fewer words or more violence. - 60
Village Voice
If it were even remotely realistic, it would be intolerable, but the first half of its premise, Bronson as a bleeding-heart liberal who turns, because of a personal tragedy into a gun-toting vigilante, is so patently unconvincing as to make the payoff an irresistibly entertaining exercise in backlash titillation. [29 Aug 1974, p.65] - 60
Village Voice
An enjoyable bad movie instead of a purely offensive one. [01 Aug 1974, p.67] - 50
Time Out
The sense of location is strong, emphasising a hostile, nightmarish terrain; but Winner's recourse to caricature when dealing with police and thugs, and his virtually overt sympathies with the confused, violent Bronson, make for uncritical, simplistic viewing. - 40
The New York Times
Death Wish is so cannily fabricated that it sometimes succeeds in arousing the most primitive kind of anger. Yet it's a despicable movie, one that raises complex questions in order to offer bigoted, frivolous, oversimplified answers. - 40
TV Guide Magazine
The violence is excessive and the plot predictable, although there is some style to director Winner's approach. - 40
Variety
Poisonous incitement to do-it-yourself law enforcement is the vulgar exploitation hook on which Death Wish is awkwardly hung.
