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Binge: The Death Wish Franchise

Binge: The Death Wish Franchise

By dorrk, May 28th 2018

Eli Roth's 2018 remake of Death Wish, which releases on Bluray next week, inspired me to go back and explore the original Death Wish, its many sequels, and even a couple of unlikely spin-offs. Even though the new version, starring Bruce Willis, left me underwhelmed, I was delighted to discover that not only is Michael Winner's original 1974 adaptation of Brian Garfield's novel solid and serious, and not nearly as sleazy as I had remembered, but that most of its ridiculous sequels are nonetheless lively and entertaining examples of their eras' B-movie shlock. Even the 1975 Turkish "mockbuster" rip-off, Cellat (a.k.a. The Executioner), with its campy regurgitation of the 1974 Charles Bronson hit, is a worthwhile accessory to a franchise that remained surprisingly fun across a span of 20 years.

Flickcharting the Death Wish franchise

Trailers for the Death Wish franchise, 1974-2018