“Death Wish II” MOVIE REVIEW

 

 

“Death Wish II”

 

MOVIE REVIEW

 

Death Wish II is a 1982 American vigilante action film directed by Michael Winner. It's the second film in the Death Wish Films series. In the story, architect Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) relocates to Los Angeles with his daughter (Robin Sherwood). Kersey decides to become a vigilante again after his daughter is murdered by several gang members. In contrast to the original, in which he pursues every criminal he encounters, Kersey only pursues the attackers of his family. The sequel deviates significantly from Brian Garfield's novels Death Wish and Death Sentence, redefining the Paul Kersey character. Death Wish 3 came after it.

Paul Kersey has recovered from his shattered life and moved on four years after the events of the first fil, and is now dating Geri Nichols, a Los Angeles radio reporter. They travel to the mental hospital to pick up Paul's daughter, Carol. They spend the afternoon at a fairground, where a gang of Nirvana, Punkcut, Stomper, Cutter, and Jiver steal Paul's wallet. When Paul chases them, the gang splits up; he goes after Jiver, whom he corners in an alley but lets the hood go after Jiver tells Paul that he does not have the wallet. The gang discovers Paul's address in his wallet and then breaks into his home. They gag and restrain Rosario, Paul's housekeeper, before raping her in turns. Paul is beaten unconscious when he returns home with his daughter. Rosario attempts to call the cops, but Nirvana murders her with his crowbar. Carol is kidnapped and taken to their hideout, where one of the gang members rapes her. Carol tries to flee by running through a plate-glass window, but she trips and falls onto an iron fence, where she is fatally impaled. When the cops arrive, Lieutenant Mankewicz requests Paul's assistance in identifying the muggers, but Paul refuses. He takes his Beretta Model 84 handgun to a low-rent inner-city hotel as a base of operations after Carol's funeral. The following evening, he witnesses and follows Stomper into an abandoned building where a drug deal is about to take place. Before shooting Stomper twice, Paul shoots one of the dealers and orders the others to leave. The following night, he hears screams from a couple being assaulted in a parking garage by four muggers, including Jiver. Paul murders two rapists and injures Jiver. Paul then pursues Jiver's blood trail into an abandoned warehouse and murders him.

The LAPD suspects that the murders are the work of a vigilante and seeks advice from the NYPD, who dealt with a vigilante spree years before. NYPD Detective Frank Ochoa suspects it's Paul again and is dispatched to assist with the investigation. Ochoa is concerned that if Paul is apprehended, he will reveal that he was released without charge for killing the ten muggers in New York City. Ochoa meets with Mankewicz, who suspects Ochoa is not telling him the whole truth. Ochoa walks into Geri's apartment and informs her of Paul's previous vigilante killing spree in New York City. Geri confronts Paul about Ochoa's revelation after he returns home, but he denies it. Ochoa follows Paul to a nearby square, where Paul is tailing the remaining three gang members. He follows them to an abandoned park where a large arms and drug transaction is taking place. A sniper scouts Paul and attempts to murder him, but Ochoa warns Paul and shoots the sniper fatally. Nirvana kills Ochoa, Paul shoots Cutter in the head, and another dealer injures Punkcut. The arms dealer tries to flee, but Paul shoots him, causing his car to crash and explode, but Nirvana escapes. Paul is told by Ochoa to avenge him before he dies. Paul escapes, and Punkcut dies from his injuries after giving the police information about Nirvana.

One of Geri's colleagues informs Paul that the police are preparing a tactical unit to apprehend Nirvana. He obtains a police scanner and, by listening in on police radio traffic, determines when and where the arrest will take place. He drives to the location to kill him, but Nirvana, who is high on PCP, slashes his arm and stabs a few officers as he attempts to flee. He is committed to a mental institution after being tried and found to be criminally insane. Geri is working on a story about the case and the death penalty, and she takes Paul to the hospital to meet the doctor who is treating Nirvana. During his stay, Paul steals another doctor's white lab coat and identification card, which he uses to enter the asylum and confront Nirvana. After repeatedly stabbing Paul with a shiv, Nirvana plunges his arm into a high-voltage panel, which Paul activates, electrocuting him fatally. Donald Kay, a sympathetic hospital orderly, recognizes Paul from the newspaper coverage of Carol's murder and gives him three minutes to flee before raising the alarm. Geri goes to Paul's house and discovers that he created a fake doctor's ID. She realizes Paul is the vigilante that Ochoa claims he is after hearing a news report about Nirvana's death on the radio. She removes her engagement ring and walks away, while Paul returns home moments later. 

Paul mentions a new architectural design a few months later. His boss invites him to a party to celebrate the new design. When asked if he can attend, Paul responds, "What else would I be doing?" As the film concludes, Paul returns to the streets of Los Angeles at night to continue his vigilante killing spree.

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