Bruce Willis Vincent
D’Onofrio
Elisabeth Shue
Camila Morrone
Dean Norris
Kimberly Elise
This is a film that will definitely appeal to
gun enthusiasts. It not only
glorifies guns, but it drums in the message throughout about how important they
are for protection. Why, a gun can
shoot an intruder in seconds, while
it takes police minutes to reach you,
exclaims the young, attractive gun dealer at the Jolly Roger. The film opens up with numerous
announcements of all the murders in Chicago, saying to the audience, “Be
afraid.”
Then we get a picture of a golden family: Father (Willis) a surgeon, mother
(devoted and earning a Ph.D.), daughter (Morrone) just accepted by her
first-choice university, and loyal uncle (D’Onofrio) who is needy, but clearly
loves his brother and his family.
Heinous things then happen to the wife and daughter, leaving the father,
Paul, in despair. He is a
successful surgeon used to solving medical problems, and when he learns from
Detective Raines (Norris) how slowly his investigations are proceeding and how
few murders are actually solved, this, coupled with his guilt about not
protecting his family, spurs him into action.
Paul begins to educate himself about guns and
practices shooting. But he also
has time on his hands and starts wandering the streets and riding buses, hoping
he will run into a white van with three men inside (his only clue about the
intruders). He doesn’t see that,
but he does see crimes being committed and feels behooved to intervene, which
he does in a car jacking and when a young boy is shot in the leg by the “Ice
Cream Man.”
His interventions earn him a reputation, which,
with his determination in finding the perpetrators in his own case, serves to
encourage him in vigilantism. Now,
keep in mind, this is Bruce Willis the actor; he will be imminently successful,
will be a perfect shot, and will have the best and biggest guns at his
disposal. What follows is
entertaining if you like that kind of story and if you can ignore all the blood
and torture that follows.
It’s hard to see what the purpose is in movies
like Death Wish, which glorify guns
and vigilante heroism, beyond that of supporting the National Rifle Association
(NRA), which probably helped finance this film. While the deaths that Paul wreaks seem justified in the heat
and emotion of the moment, it sets a bad precedent for execution without the
benefit of trial by jury.
Films such as this are troubling to me,
especially when I hear audience reactions (like chuckles and laughs) that
clearly indicate so many do not comprehend the enormity of the gun issue. This is not “light entertainment”, nor
should it be. The only redeemable
aspect of this film is that the acting is very good.
This is a bad model for anyone to
follow, even if you think you can be as successful a vigilante as a Bruce
Willis character.
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