Death Wish (2018 film)

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.^[7][8]

In a 2009 interview with MTV, Stallone stated that he was again considering the project.^[9] In late January 2012, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that a remake would be written and directed by Joe Carnahan.^[10] The film was originally set to star Liam Neeson and Frank Grillo. Carnahan too left the project in February 2013 due to "creative differences",^[11] but received sole writing credit for the completed film.^[12] 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.^[11]

Casting

After the completed script lay dormant for 3 years, it was brought back up in March 2016, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM) announced that Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado would direct the film.^[13] 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.^[14]

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.^[14] In June, Eli Roth signed on to direct, with the script being rewritten by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski.^[15] On August 25, 2016, Vincent D'Onofrio was cast alongside Willis to play Paul Kersey's brother, while Dean Norris also joined the film.^[16] On October 7, 2016, Kimberly Elise and Camila Morrone were cast in the film to play Detective Jackson and Jordan Kersey.^[17] Later on October 17, 2016, Ronnie Gene Blevins was cast in the film.^[18]

Filming

Principal photography began in September 2016 in Chicago, Illinois.^[19] Later in October 2016, it began filming in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.^[20] During filming, Roth had spent a lot of time with multiple detectives in Chicago to get some important details about police stations correct.^{[citation needed]}

Box office

Death Wish grossed $34 million in the United States and Canada, and $15.6 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $49.6 million, against a production budget of $30 million.^[4][5]

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.^[25] 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.^[26] It dropped 49% to $6.6 million in its second weekend, finishing at 7th.^[27]

Critical response

Death Wish received largely negative reviews from critics. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 18% based on 163 reviews and an average rating of 4.1/10. 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."^[29] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 31 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".^[30] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.^[26]

The Chicago Sun-Times's Richard Roeper gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, writing, "Even with the social commentary, Death Wish isn't trying to be some intense, gritty, ripped-from-the-headlines docudrama ... A number of gruesome scenes are staged like something out of one of those Final Destination movies, with a bowling ball, a dart, a wrench and other conveniently handy items used as weapons of singular destruction. It's essentially revenge porn."^[31] 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."^[24]

Many critics noted the timing of the film's release, coming less than three weeks after the Parkland high school shooting in Parkland, Florida,^[32] alongside the positive portrayal of American gun culture.^[33] Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times called the film "imbecilic", and criticized its jokey tone and "morally unconflicted" approach to its subject matter.^[34] Similarly, The Guardian's Amy Nicholson criticized the film for "[flatlining] the politics and [saturating] the pathos", and for insulting both sides of the gun control argument.^[35]

The Hollywood Reporter's 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.^[36] 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),^[b] citing the lack of consequences that Kersey faces.^[37]

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.^[38] 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."^[32] The San Francisco Chronicle's 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."^[39]