History Film / Deathwish

* {{Retirony}}: In ''Death Wish 3''. As if her hooking up with Paul isn't bad enough, by the time Kathryn Davis declares her intent to quit her job as a public defender and move to a new city for a fresh start, it's obvious she's doomed.

''Death Wish'' is a 1974 action-crime-drama film based on the 1972 novel by Brian Garfield[[hottip:*:(Who also wrote ''DeathSentence''). The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson (the actor, not [[{{Bronson}} the prisoner]]) as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a {{vigilante}} after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers. The film was a major commercial success and generated a movie franchise lasting four sequels over a twenty-year period.

''Death Wish'' is a 1974 action-crime-drama film based on the 1972 novel by Brian Garfield. The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson (the actor, not [[{{Bronson}} the prisoner]]) as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a {{vigilante}} after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers. The film was a major commercial success and generated a movie franchise lasting four sequels over a twenty-year period.

The Death Wish Pentalogy:

* CaliforniaDoubling: ''Death Wish 3'' was set in New York, but filmed in London.
* BigNo: Freddie Flakes before being blown up and burned to death by a remote controlled soccer ball controlled by Paul in Death Wish V:
-->'''Paul''': Hey, Freddie. I'm gonna take care of your dandruff problem for you.
-->'''Freddie''': Nooooooooooooooooooo!!!
-->[Paul detonates soccer ball, blowing up freddie and burning him to death]

* DisposableWoman: Kersey's wife in the first film, his daughter in the second, girlfriends in the third, fourth, and fifth films, numerous non-Kersey women in all films--basically, if you're female and hang around Paul Kersey you're pretty much screwed.
** Subverted with his girlfriend in the second film. She still disappears after breaking up with him (after finding out that he's a vigilante) but at least she's alive.
* FilmOfTheBook
* HandCannon: His friend "Wildey" (more specifically, the .475 Wildey Magnum. Currently the most powerful semiautomatic handgun in the world).
* [[KarmaHoudini Karma Houdini]]: The three muggers from the first film.
* MayDecemberRomance: Bronson is 25-30 years older than his love interests in films ''3'', ''4'', and ''5''.

* RapeAsDrama: Kersey's daughter was raped when his wife killed, all for drama and motivation. Also the rape/murder is played for [[GratitousRape exploitation turn-on]], which makes all of the subsequent action seem more than a bit hypocritical. This is another one of the series' notorious traits, as she is raped again during the second film (along with Kersey's housekeeper), and numerous women meet the same fate during the other movies.

* RevolversAreJustBetter: Kersey carries around a revolver for most of the films

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/deathwish_2083.jpg

* HeyItsThatGuy: JeffGoldblum had his screen debut in the first movie, playing one of the criminals who attack Kersey's wife and daughter.
** LaurenceFishburne in the first sequel
** DannyTrejo in The Crackdown
** [[StarTrektheNextGeneration Marina Sirtis]] in Death Wish 3.
** DenzelWashington was one of the muggers in the first film.
** [[SesameStreet Maria]] (Sonia Manzano) has a tiny bit part as a grocery clerk in the first film.
** [[BillandTedsExcellentAdventure Bill]] (Alex Winter) as a small bit rapist in Death Wish 3.

* RapeAsDrama: Kersey's daughter was raped when his wife killed, all for drama and motivation. Also the rape/murder is played for [[GratituousRape exploitation turn-on]], which makes all of the subsequent action seem more than a bit hypocritical. This is another one of the series' notorious traits, as she is raped again during the second film (along with Kersey's housekeeper), and numerous women meet the same fate during the other movies.

* UnwittingPawn: Paul becomes one in The Crackdown.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse - In the third movie, Kersey's friend leaves in the middle of a town-wide gunfight to reload his zip gun. He doesn't appear again. He's probably deader than a doornail.
* WretchedHive: New York

-->[Paul detonates soccer ball blowing up freddie and burning to death]

* MayDecemberRomance: Bronson is 25-30 years older than his love interests in the films ''3'', ''4'', and ''5''.

* RapeAsDrama: Kersey's daughter was raped when his wife killed, all for drama and motivation. Also the rape/murder is played for exploitation turn-on, which makes all of the subsequent action seem more than a bit hypocritical. This is another one of the series' notorious traits, as she is raped again during the second film (along with Kersey's housekeeper), and numerous women meet the same fate during the other movies.

** Subverted with his girlfriend in the second film. She still disappears after breaking up with him (after finding out that he's a vigilante, but at least she's alive).

** [[BillandTedsExcellentAdventure Bill]] (Alex Winter) in Death Wish 3.

** [[BillandTedsExcellentAdventure Bill S. Preston Esq.]] (Alex Winter) was Hermosa, a Hispanic gang member in Death Wish 3.

* BigNo: Freddie Flakes after being blown up by a remote controlled soccer ball controlled by Paul in Death Wish V:

* BigNo: Freddie Flakes after being blown up by a remote controlled soccer bally controllled by Paul in Death Wish V:

Death Wish and its sequels:

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3PQwRBRgw&feature=related I told you...I warned you I'd kill her, I warned you I'd kil-"]](is immediately turned into a pile burning LudicrousGibs)
** Pretty much the entire last fifteen minutes of ''Death Wish 3''.
* CultClassic: ''Death Wish 3''.

* {{Sequelitis}}
* SoBadItsGood: ''Death Wish 3''.
* UnfortunateImplications: Kersey seems to kill mostly black men but movie itself seems to lampshade this. "What do you want, racial equality among muggers?"

* DisposableWoman: Kersey's wife in the first film, his daughter in the second, girlfriends in the third, fourth, and fifth films, numerous non-Kersey women in all films--basically, if you're female and hang around Paul Kersey you're pretty much screwed..
** Subverted with his girlfriend in the second film. She still disappears after breaking up with him (after finding out that he's a vigilante, but at least she's alive.

* HandCannon: His friend "Wildey" (more specifically, the .475 Wildey Magnum. Currently the most powerful semiautomatic handgun in the world.)

* CartwrightCurse: See DisposableWoman entry below.

** One of the series most notorious traits, but his girlfriend in the second film is a shocking aversion of this trope. She merely breaks up with him and disappears after finding out he's a vigilante.

* DisposableWoman: Kersey's wife.
** One of the series most notorious traits. Actually, if you're female and hang around Paul Kersey you're pretty much screwed.

* RapeAsDrama: Kersey's daughter was raped when his wife killed, all for drama and motivation. Also the rape/murder is played for exploitation turn-on, which makes all of the subsequent action seem more than a bit hypocritical.

''Death Wish'' is a 1974 action-crime-drama film based on the 1972 novel by Brian Garfield. The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson (the actor, not ''{{Bronson}}'', the prisoner) as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a {{vigilante}} after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers. The film was a major commercial success and generated a movie franchise lasting four sequels over a twenty-year period.

''Death Wish'' is a 1974 action-crime-drama film based on the 1972 novel by Brian Garfield. The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson(not ''{{Bronson}}'') as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a {{vigilante}} after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers. The film was a major commercial success and generated a movie franchise lasting four sequels over a twenty-year period.

''Death Wish'' is a 1974 action-crime-drama film based on the 1972 novel by Brian Garfield. The film was directed by Michael Winner and stars Charles Bronson as Paul Kersey, a man who becomes a {{vigilante}} after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually assaulted by muggers. The film was a major commercial success and generated a movie franchise lasting four sequels over a twenty-year period.

->'''Rapist''': "Who the fuck are you?"
->'''Paul Kersey''': "''Death.''"

* WretchedHive: New York
* XanatosSucker: Paul becomes one in The Crackdown.
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* MoreDakka: In ''Death Wish 3'' and ''Death Wish 4'', Kersey uses a WW2 era machine gun and a assult rifle/grenade launcher combo respectively.

** Denzel Washington was one of the muggers in the first film.

*RapeAsDrama: Kersey's daughter was raped when his wife killed, all for drama and motivation.