DEATH WISH (2018)
Today we are taking a look at the reimagining of “Death Wish”
Directed by Eli Roth and Starring Bruce Willis, Vincent D'Onofrio, Elizabeth Shue, and Camilla Morrone. This film follows a trauma surgeon whos family is attacked during a burglary, sending him on his own personal mission of vigilante justice.
I went in to this one as a fan of the original Death Wish films, hoping that Eli Roth would do it justice. I'm sad to say that I didn't have a whole lot of confidence, given that Roth's last few film havent been very good to say the least. Thought he does have good work under his belt, so there is hope each time he makes a film that he will get his act together.
That being said, This film was indeed an improvement on his last couple, Buuuut, it still wasn't all that good. Bruce Willis's performace in this was as wooden as what a woodchuck chucks if a woodchuck could chuck wood. Every moment he is on screen, he remains as dry and emotionless as humanly possible. While the rest of the cast does...fine. The bad guys are bad, the good guys are good...what more can you ask for from a supporting cast I guess...aside from, ya know, Depth!
Lets face it, this movie was for the most part cookie cutter. The special effects in the film were great, and handled well. Roth didn't linger on the violence as much as he has in the past, which I have to respect, it shows a maturity that he has never really been known for.
Though I did think some of them were unecessarily over the top.
For a lot of this film it kind of felt like a collection of action sequences and killing sequences that were just strung together. Not to say that the action sequences were bad, but I would have like some more solid scenes to bridge them together.
Bruce Willis's performance in this one has to be one of the worst I have ever seen from him. He is so bland and stone faced in every scene that I can't help but wonder if this was supposed to be some kind of creative choice between him and Roth that just didn't work.
He barely shows any emotion throughout the film, and the few moments he does are at a level that just don't make me believe in him.
The whole film is intercut with footage from this podcast/ radio show thing talking about Willis's vigilante acts. This is something I hate when films do, it feels like a lazy way to bridge gaps between scenes. In this film it almost feels like a forced way to make the revenge film subgenre relevant to today's mindless tech obsessed tweens.
In my opinion this one did more harm to the memory of the original Death Wish films, then good. However, The film is entertaining for the most part. It can be enjoyable. It's a film that is tolerable, it has some decent moments in it. But it's not one that I'm gonna watch time and time again. The best way I can describe it as a whole, is that it's just...Fine.
After careful consideration, I have to give “Death Wish” a
This was one I honestly wanted to be great, despite Eli Roth's track record lately, I had high hopes that he would redeem himself with this one which in a lot of ways I do feel that he did.
I feel that maybe he is trying to turn over a new leaf, and become a bit more of a mature film maker, who might be trying new things.
If you have a chance to see this film this weekend, I would definitely consider it. It's worth a watch at least once. My only suggestion is to go into it knowing what to expect, so that you won't be disappointed.