Death Wish (2018 film)

Paul Kersey, a trauma surgeon, lives with his wife Lucy and daughter Jordan in Chicago. When the family visits a restaurant with Paul's brother Frank, a valet parking attendant named Miguel secretly copies their address after hearing that they plan to stay out. Paul is suddenly called to the hospital, where Jordan and Lucy return home just as three armed criminals break into the house, leading to Lucy being shot and Jordan sustains a head injury when they try to fight back. Lucy dies from her injuries and Jordan survives, but is left in a coma. Paul becomes frustrated with the lack of police progress on the case, contemplating purchasing a firearm. When a gang member is brought to the hospital and his gun falls out, Paul secretly takes it and practices shooting. Later, Paul uses it to stop a carjacking, injuring his left hand in the process. A captured video of the carjacking goes viral, earning Paul the nickname Grim Reaper. After treating a boy who was attacked for refusing to sell drugs for a dealer called "Ice Cream Man", Paul shoots down Ice Cream Man in broad daylight. The news reports consistently demonstrate divided opinions of support and condemnation of Paul's developing war against violent criminals. Later at the hospital, Paul recognizes a dying Miguel on his operating table wearing a watch stolen from his house. Paul hacks into Miguel's phone, leading him to a liquor store that fences stolen goods. The owner Ponytail recognizes Paul and messages another criminal Fish. Fish sneaks in and accidentally kills Ponytail, while trying to shoot Paul. Fish mentions the second member of the group, Joe, before Paul kills him. The cops visit Paul to discuss the case and Paul destroys the phones to cover his tracks. Finding Joe at an auto body shop, Paul tortures him and Joe divulges that the third robber Knox had murdered Lucy. Paul later kills Joe and Knox calls Paul, arranging to meet in a nightclub bathroom, where they exchange fire and wound each other. Paul gets away, while Knox goes to the police and gives them a physical description of Paul. Arriving home, Paul is confronted by Frank, who answers the front door and is questioned by the detectives of his brother's whereabouts. During the intervention, the hospital calls to tell Paul that Jordan has regained consciousness. A week later, Paul leaves the hospital with Jordan, but Knox also joins them in the elevator on the way out of the hospital. Knox inadvertently gives Paul an idea that he is the guy he exchanged gunshots with at the nightclub. Because of that encounter, Paul knows that Knox will eventually come for him and Jordan so he legally buys weapons to defend himself and Jordan. As Knox cases his house for an ambush, Paul glimpses a man running across the lawn and orders Jordan to hide and call the police. After killing Knox's men, Paul is shot and wounded by Knox, but manages to pull out a hidden rifle while Knox got distracted from Jordan’s scream and kills him. The police arrive and accept Paul's story after he hints that he is done with vigilantism. A few months later, Paul drops off Jordan at New York University, where he spots a person stealing a bag from a bellhop. Paul calls out the person and points a finger gun at him. ==Cast==

• Bruce Willis as Paul Kersey • Vincent D'Onofrio as Frank Kersey • Elisabeth Shue as Lucy Kersey • Dean Norris as Detective Kevin Raines • Beau Knapp as Knox • Kimberly Elise as Detective Leonore Jackson • Camila Morrone as Jordan Kersey • Jack Kesy as The Fish • Ronnie Gene Blevins as Joe • Kirby Bliss Blanton as Bethany ==Production==

Development Development on the film began already back in 2006, when Sylvester Stallone announced that he would be directing and starring in a remake of Death Wish (1974). Stallone told Ain't It Cool News, "Instead of the Charles Bronson character being an architect, my version would have him as a very good cop who had incredible success without ever using his gun. So when the attack on his family happens, he's really thrown into a moral dilemma in proceeding to carry out his revenge." He later told the publication that he was no longer involved after "creative differences" and became busy with work on other projects. In a 2009 interview with MTV, Stallone stated that he was again considering the project. In late January 2012, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that a remake would be written and directed by Joe Carnahan. The film was originally set to star Liam Neeson and Frank Grillo. Carnahan too left the project in February 2013 due to "creative differences", but received sole writing credit for the completed film. He was replaced as director with Gerardo Naranjo, who was interested in casting Benicio Del Toro in the lead role; this version also never came to fruition. Willis was chosen for the role of Paul Kersey. Others that were considered for the role were Russell Crowe, Matt Damon, Will Smith, Brad Pitt, Liam Neeson, Kurt Russell, Michael Keaton, Christopher Lambert, Dennis Quaid, Richard Gere, Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford, Don Johnson, Peter Weller, Ron Perlman, Stephen Lang, Michael Biehn, Tommy Lee Jones, Jeff Bridges and Arnold Schwarzenegger. In May, Keshales and Papushado quit the project after MGM declined to allow them to rewrite Joe Carnahan's original script, which had been approved by Willis. On August 25, 2016, Vincent D'Onofrio was cast alongside Willis to play Paul Kersey's brother, while Dean Norris also joined the film. On October 7, 2016, Kimberly Elise and Camila Morrone were cast in the film to play Detective Jackson and Jordan Kersey. Later on October 17, 2016, Ronnie Gene Blevins was cast in the film. Filming Principal photography began in September 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. In October 2016, filming began in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ==Release==

In June 2017, it was announced that Annapurna Pictures would distribute the film on behalf of MGM and release it on November 22, 2017. In October 2017, it was announced that the film's release was being delayed until March 2, 2018 and that MGM would handle the film's distribution in the United States, with Annapurna handling its international distribution. ==Reception==

Box office Death Wish grossed $34.9 million in the United States and Canada and $21 million in other countries; worldwide, it grossed $55.9 million. The film's budget was $30 million. In the United States and Canada, Death Wish was released alongside Red Sparrow, and was projected to gross $10–20 million from 2,847 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $4.2 million on its first day (including $650,000 from Thursday night previews) and $13 million in its opening weekend, finishing third behind Black Panther ($66.7 million in its third week) and Red Sparrow ($17 million). 55% of its audience was male, while 89% was over the age of 25. It dropped 49% to $6.6 million in its second weekend, finishing at 7th. Critical response Death Wish received largely negative reviews from critics. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews and an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "Death Wish is little more than a rote retelling that lacks the grit and conviction of the original—and also suffers from spectacularly bad timing." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 31 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 1 out of 4 stars and said, "For a while, director Roth plays this stuff relatively straight, and Willis periodically reminds us he can act (the grieving Kersey cries a fair bit here). The script contains a reference to AR-15 rifles; by the end, Willis goes full Willis when his adversaries return to the sanctity of the family home." Many critics noted the timing of the film's release, coming less than three weeks after the Parkland high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times called the film "imbecilic", and criticized its jokey tone and "morally unconflicted" approach to its subject matter. Similarly, The Guardians Amy Nicholson criticized the film for "[flatlining] the politics and [saturating] the pathos", and for insulting both sides of the gun control argument. The Hollywood Reporters John DeFore noted that the film does not attempt to "use genre metaphors to address real national debates", making the original film "look philosophical by comparison", and he also noted the improbable and contrived nature of Kersey's mission. Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Justin Chang called the film "a slick, straightforward revenge thriller as well as a sham provocation, pandering shamelessly to the viewer's bloodlust while trying to pass as self-aware satire". Chang compared the film unfavorably to Death Sentence (2007), citing the lack of consequences that Kersey faces. Some reviewers stood in defense of the film. Peter Howell of the Toronto Star stated that "Roth and Carnahan do an OK job updating Death Wish", and that the film accurately depicts the "casual way that Americans acquire and use guns". He felt, though, that Liam Neeson would have been a better choice for the lead role. Matthew Rozsa of Salon agreed that the film's release was timed poorly, but argued that "mass shootings have been ubiquitous for so long that I doubt there ever would have been an appropriate release date for a vigilante fantasy. ... It exists everywhere in our culture, from movies and video games to the right-wing talking points that regularly thwart gun control legislation." Rozsa considers Death Wish his guilty pleasure, recommending it as a "success" as well as "a competent popcorn muncher that moves at a brisk pace, is about as engaging as your average Law and Order episode and contains an appropriately glowering (if somewhat bored looking) Bruce Willis." The San Francisco Chronicles Mick Lasalle called it "way better than all the Death Wish sequels" and "easily the second best Death Wish movie ever made, and not a distant second." Accolades 39th Golden Raspberry Awards (February 23, 2019) • Worst Actor (Bruce Willis) (nominated) • Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel (nominated) ==Notes==