Good movie but grossly overrated

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Funny how the fifth and final movie in the "Death Wish" movies turned out to actually be the best of them all. And it only took them 20 years to improve the formula. Odd, huh?Now, I have already mentioned that "Death Wish V: The Face of Death" is the best of the five movies, and that is attributed to the fact that it had the most mature and well-rounded of all five storylines told in the franchise.Funny how Paul Kersey loses someone he loves in every single movie, and yet he keeps going. Why not just isolate himself in the countryside? Bam, end of tragic losses and deaths.Well, I think that "Death Wish V: The Face of Death" as actually a nice way to tie up the franchise and leave it to rest. Wait, that's not true is it? Not with the 2018 remake with Bruce Willis hitting the cinema.Personally, I think that the "Death Wish" movies will always belong to Charles Bronson, because he embodied the Paul Kersey character and he was the face representing the franchise.If you enjoyed the previous four movies, then you definitely also will enjoy the fifth and final, yes final!, movie in the "Death Wish" franchise.

I'll admit, despite my love for the series as I explored them all for the very first time within this past year, I was a little weary going into this one for a number of reasons. First of all, that cover is just awful. It looks like a Made-for-TV movie. It's also not an entry in the decades long franchise that anyone ever mentions. At least, not in my experience. But I needed to finish the franchise, even if I wasn't particularly all that excited about this one.Truthfully, it took a good 30 minutes for me to really get into it. Much like the cover art, it has a very Made-for-TV quality about it. Yet it's not a bad looking film. Writer/director Allan A. Goldstein does give the film an overall nice look, despite the film looking limited to an extent. But still, he's an odd choice for something like this, especially when you look at all the previous entries. Nothing in Goldstein's past filmography would lead you to believe he could deliver a solid Death Wish film. Nothing. My guess is Menaham Golan got him cheap. So I was kind of thrown off with that for a bit, but I'm glad I stuck it through because the film only got better and better as it moved along. In fact, simply based on how the film looked and started right off the bat, I was not at all expecting it to go where it ultimately did in terms of the action and violence.Poor Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson). The guy just cannot catch a break. It doesn't matter where he moves, or how many years have passed since the last catastrophe, he just seems to attract trouble and torment. It's like it's never far behind, always just waiting in the wings for the absolute worst moment to strike, and it always does. Essentially, that's what the Death Wish films feed off of, and it's what makes them the films they are. But seriously, how much can one man take before he loses his mind? Thankfully that hasn't happened yet, and whenever tragedy strikes, Kersey shifts into revenge mode to deliver some vigilante justice, but you'd think that by now he would just stop dating altogether. I mean, every single woman in his life, whether it be a family member or love interest, dies simply because they are a woman in a Death Wish film. That's just the formula Michael Winner began with in the first film, and carried on into the second, and it's a formula the series has continued even going into this one. Now that I think about it, I can't recall a woman close to him dying in Part 3, but I could be wrong. And the kills. Oh the kills! When they finally do come into play, they're pretty spectacular. I'll just leave it at that.The cast is pretty solid, but aside from Bronson returning, the only real standout is the casting of Michael Parks as the main villain, who does a formidable job in the role as a slimy, cantankerous businessman who runs his businesses like the mob. Speaking of casting, Bronson was 72 when he made this, which just blows my mind. The guy doesn't look a day over 60 and age has not slowed him down one bit.So the film itself turned out to be a lot better than I anticipated. It takes a bit to get used to it's particular TV atmosphere, but that doesn't really last long because soon enough, it begins to slowly resemble the kind of film you were looking forward to right from the start. There's really nothing about the story that set's it apart from any of the other previous entries; the woman he loves is killed, so he goes out for revenge. Same ol' story. Though it has a lower body count than most of the other films, it's the way and manner that these sorry sons of bitches are killed that kind of blew me away. There may be less killing, but it's pretty brutal all the same. I also have to give credit to Allan A. Goldstein, the director. When the action kicked in, the film took on a whole new life and it was awesome. Whether it be a chase, shootout, fist fight or execution, the film kind of shifts gears and I kind of wish there was more violence because the film was so much better when there was. I really dig it. It's almost as if the film was directed by 2 different people, and for all I know, maybe the 2nd unit or assistant director's had something to do with that. In either case, you can bet your ass that when it comes to the "revenge" aspect to the film, Death Wish V: The Face of Death does in fact deliver the goods in a big way.Despite all my praises, because it is indeed a highly enjoyable film and better than I was expecting, it doesn't come off as one of the best in the series. In fact, taking into consideration that they're all pretty great each in their own very specific way, this would easily be the weakest in the series. But rest assured, that doesn't make it a bad film in any way. If there's anything Death Wish V proves, it's that it has a lot of things stacked against it right from the get-go, yet ultimately prevails despite it's numerous obstacles. It caught me off guard in a good way, and while it might not be the best entry in the franchise, it's vastly superior to a lot of the paint-by-numbers copycats that were prominent in this genre on both the big and little screen. It's a great film, you just have to give it a chance.www.robotGEEKSCultCinema.blogspot.com

Despite the fact that I still managed to enjoy this movie despite its many, MANY flaws, I have to admit I'm sad that the series ended this way. It started off great, and while it was going downhill with all the sequels (thankfully not as many as Nightmare on Elm Street or Friday the 13th) it still remained an entertaining series all the way down to the fifth and final movie. The quality dropped considerably with each stupidly fun sequel, until finally we reach 'The Face of Death': it seemed so much like a TV movie, all the way down to the opening credits and the wooden acting. Even Bronson seemed less charismatic than usual.Anyway, Kersey now has himself a family of three with him. That is, until the mom has her face disfigured with a mirror ('Face of Death,' get it?), the daughter is kidnapped, and...... actually, nothing happens to the maid. Shocking.Kersy may as well have named everyone he meets 'Kenny,' because no matter where he goes all of these Kenny clones are killed within the first twenty minutes of the movie (forty, tops). Once again, Kersey wants revenge, and he'll get it. Because we wouldn't have a movie if he didn't. The daughter is kidnapped by her mobster dad, played by Michael Parks, who proves to be a really nasty piece of work.'The Face of Death,' while it is a tired sequel, still manages to have its moments. Remote control soccer balls (that EXPLODE), badass exits after committing a murder just TWO SECONDS before a cop goes in the same door without noticing the murderer leave; silly dialogue, nudity, brutal violence, and the sleaze that this exploitation franchise is known for.Unfortunately, the acting is the worst it's ever been, and the quality is also the lowest in the franchise. Despite that, it still delivers some fun and good-natured vengeance.And vats of hot wax.It's worth a watch, if only to say that you saw everything this series had to offer (although you could say that after just watching the first three). The series ends on a low note, which is a shame, but it gets the job done in a sort of half-baked way."If you need my help, call me."No, Mr. Kersey. You've suffered enough. Goodbye.

Charles Bronson is back for the last time as vigilante Paul Kersey. Many years after Part IV, Paul Kersey is now living in the witness protection program(for undisclosed reasons) whose girlfriend(Lesley -Anne Down) is the ex-wife of a powerful mobster, who wants sole custody of their daughter, and retaliates against her, while at the same time trying to expand his empire in New York. Kersey must come out of retirement, and become the famous vigilante again.Charles Bronson is still remarkably game for his age, though looks bored in the film, which, despite some potential, is just tired and uninspired, though Michael Parks is good as the mob leader. Poorly directed , and filmed cheaply, sequel will be an unsatisfying end to the series, though Paul Kersey's last line to a policeman is good, and a nice coda for the character. Charles Bronson's last theatrical film.