perhaps death wish be unquestionably the best vigilante film ever make . it not the action pack thrill fest that movie like kill bill or the punisher seek to be and instead it a haunting and sometimes intoxicating look at our society view on justice . charles bronson be paul kersey and a new york architect whose wife be kill by a group of mugger ransack their apartment and an attack that also leave his daughter catatonic . the killer be never catch and and kersey be leave shattered . he take a job work for a land developer in new mexico to get his mind off his trouble and and while there his long dormant fascination with gun be renew when his client ames jainchill ( stuart margolin ) show off his personal collection and let him crack some shot off . he also witness a live reenactment of an old west shootout and where frontier justice be administer at the end of the gun . kersey soon arrive back in new york and liven up a bit from his visit and ready to resume his life . but the street be still fill with thug and and kersey know that manhattan be not the best place to be at night . he discover that jainchill have give him a . 32 revolver a a present and and subsequently use it to kill a man try to mug him . kersey soon realize the cathartic release of enact vigilante revenge a the medium report his killing and other private citizen take action and all while police officer frank ochoa ( vincent gardenia ) lead a task force to capture the vigilante and stop future violence . death wish be a product of it day a nixon era knee jerk reaction to rampant crime that turn out to be quite a hit . but to dismiss it simply a that would be to deny the film it true power . it ask the question of whether or not vigilantism can be use a a social good and and just how can a citizen properly defend himself from criminal attack . more importantly and to the movie credit it do introduce the downside of vigilantism and with ochoa worry that people will be whip into such a frenzy that they will start attack anyone who look suspicious . the movie do play it safe when it come to kersey victim however . every one of them be clearly a mugger and threaten his life or just want his money . but the movie do enter into ambiguous territory by look at the actual action kersey take . at first he just stumble into trap set up by mugger or happen on a crime take place while later on the other hand it clear that he actually invite attack by make himself a target . and the self defense aspect of his action become equally cloudy when he kill mugger that be already flee . he want to punish them for their crime and which itself can be morally trouble . but to understand death wish you have to understand the time . murder rate be very high in new york city and and many mugger have little problem kill their victim . the criminal in the film be not overly sympathetic either and most of them clearly hippy or other social undesirable and probably hook on drug from their free love day and now stick in the bitter reality of narcotic dependency now that the good time be over . it hard to feel sorry for someone willing to kill you just for a couple hour worth of pleasure . i be sure the movie audience in new york and and probably across the country and enjoy live out their revenge fantasy vicariously through kersey . it should be say that bronson and normally criticize a a wooden actor and give a remarkably strong performance . this may be due to his friendship with director michael winner and who also helm several of his other film . but it probably due to the fact that the movie be not write a an action hero vehicle and and because of this the story demand a character more grounded in reality . kersey be not a superhero he just one man try to make a difference in the world . also and he not all there and either . the movie make it clear that kersey be a little deranged as well and and one wonder just how far he might go to do what he think be right . the sequel be more interested in make him out to be an infallible crusader against evil and abandon any pretext of social commentary and just offer body count and but here at least the movie show that someone willing to go on a shooting spree isn not quite right in the head and regardless of the guilt of his victim . support role be excellent a well . a very young jeff goldblum nail his performance a one of the mugger who invade kersey apartment and immediately scary and repellent . gardenia be a nice foil for bronson and make ochoa an intelligent officer not unsympathetic to kersey crusade and especially when he see how the crime rate plummet follow the killing . christopher guest and who would go on to star in hit mockumentaries like this be spinal tap and best in show and a mighty wind have a small but memorable role a a police officer towards the end of the movie . in fact and everyone do a good job . ultimately and your enjoyment of death wish will probably rely both on your politics and view toward crime . it a movie where the critic be judge base on his review and which be just as well i suppose . it at once fascinating and and still very timely . nine out of ten star . bronson best solo movie and certainly a very thought provoke piece and which be lose on both people who only want to watch it for the mugger killing and those who just dismiss it a fascist trash .