Death Wish (1974)

A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks in which he randomly goes out and kills would-be muggers on the mean streets after dark.

Director:

Michael Winner

Writers:

Brian Garfield (novel), Wendell Mayes (screenplay)

Stars:

Charles Bronson, Hope Lange, Vincent Gardenia

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charles Bronson	...	Paul Kersey
Hope Lange	...	Joanna Kersey
Vincent Gardenia	...	Frank Ochoa
Steven Keats	...	Jack Toby
William Redfield	...	Sam Kreutzer
Stuart Margolin	...	Aimes Jainchill
Stephen Elliott	...	Police Commissioner
Kathleen Tolan	...	Carol Toby
Jack Wallace	...	Hank
Fred J. Scollay	...	District Attorney (as Fred Scollay)
Chris Gampel	...	Ives
Robert Kya-Hill	...	Joe Charles
Edward Grover	...	Lt. Briggs (as Ed Grover)
Jeff Goldblum	...	Freak #1
Christopher Logan	...	Freak #2

Storyline

Open-minded architect Paul Kersey returns to New York City from vacationing with his wife, feeling on top of the world. At the office, his cynical coworker gives him the welcome-back with a warning on the rising crime rate. But Paul, a bleeding-heart liberal, thinks of crime as being caused by poverty. However his coworker's ranting proves to be more than true when Paul's wife is killed and his daughter is raped in his own apartment. The police have no reliable leads and his overly sensitive son-in-law only exacerbates Paul's feeling of hopelessness. He is now facing the reality that the police can't be everywhere at once. Out of sympathy his boss gives him an assignment in sunny Arizona where Paul gets a taste of the Old West ideals. He returns to New York with a compromised view on muggers...

---

Plot Keywords:

gang rape | vigilante | husband mourns wife | home invasion | rape victim | 

---

Taglines:

Judge. Jury. Executioner.

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English Italian German French

Release Date:

24 July 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Sidewalk Vigilante

Filming Locations:

Bear Down Gym, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$22,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dino De Laurentiis Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The role of Paul Kersey was originally intended for Steve McQueen, who turned it down.

---

Goofs

When Ochoa has a locksmith pick the lock to Kersey's apartment door, he broke the law, as he did not have a warrant. The gauze with the blood taken by Ochoa could never be used against Kersey, if they charged him in court. Any half-decent lawyer, or even a paralegal would know this.

---

Quotes

Paul Kersey: Do you believe in Jesus? You're gonna meet Him.

---

Crazy Credits

Actresses Olympia Dukakis ('Cop at the Precinct') and Marcia Jean Kurtz as Marcia Jean-Kurtz ('Woman at Airport') get credited in opening credits only. There's no mention of them in the closing credits.

---

Alternate Versions

Following the introduction of the Video Recordings Act in 1984, Death Wish was withdrawn from proposed video release in 1987. When it was finally released in the UK in 2000 (and shown on television two years later), the film had been quietly trimmed by the BBFC to remove 29 seconds from the rape scene including shots of clear nudity and Carol's bottom being sprayed with paint. The film was finally passed completely uncut by the BBFC in June 2006 and all previous edits were waived.

---

Connections

Referenced in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

---

Soundtracks

Revenge Suite (Striking Back - Riverside Park - The Alley - Last Stop - 8th Avenue Station)
Written and Performed by Herbie Hancock
Arranged and Conducted by Herbie Hancock & Jerry Peters

User Reviews

Solid Fare

Here is a film whose quality and appeal, much like Sylvester Stallone's Rocky, may be overshadowed by a seemingly endless line of inferior sequels. But Death Wish is a real crowd-pleaser filled with emotion, drama, action and suspense. It's the story of Paul Kersey, a family man (and former Conscientus Objector in Korea) whose wife and daughter fall victim to a brutal attack at the hands of unknown thugs. Yet Kersey doesn't get mad, he gets even as a one-man judge, jury and executioner against those who prey on the innocent. Bronson delivers an underrated performance in a movie that constantly asks the viewer, "What would you do?"