So they've been talking about doing this for a minute and as of now, Bruce Willie is attached to star and Eli Roth just signed on to direct. I don't ask the question because I'm against remakes or think that Death Wish is some holy grail of film, but more so from the contextual aspect.
When Death Wish dropped, the crime rate was sky high, urban cities like New York were basically hell on earth, and the idea of a vigilante taking the law in his own hands was seen as wish-fulfillment for people who felt like the laws and the systems let them down. Cobra did the same thing for the 80s. To say nothing of the fact that Death Wish became a movie filled with race-bating and stereotypes and damn near said that a white man with a gun will save you because us black and brown people don't know how to act.
But the idea of vigilante justice today, especially when we've got situations like Orlando and Newtown, etc, is a tricky dance to do. Paul Kersey was portrayed as a hero and the country had a more simplified view of that type of shyt then. Now, I'm not so sure we can glorify a vigilante when the topic of guns has become such an issue and cops taking the law in their own hands and popping kids for holding toy guns. I'm sure there's a great way to make a new death wish movie by applying more nuance to it and making it a thoughtful piece of filmmaking and a character study, which is what the original tried to be and some people say accomplished although I disagree. With that said, Eli Roth is directing and I'm not sure if he's the most thoughtful cat to do that, but I could be wrong.
So what does the film room think?
Death Wish Remake Hires Eli Roth to Direct
When Death Wish dropped, the crime rate was sky high, urban cities like New York were basically hell on earth, and the idea of a vigilante taking the law in his own hands was seen as wish-fulfillment for people who felt like the laws and the systems let them down. Cobra did the same thing for the 80s. To say nothing of the fact that Death Wish became a movie filled with race-bating and stereotypes and damn near said that a white man with a gun will save you because us black and brown people don't know how to act.
But the idea of vigilante justice today, especially when we've got situations like Orlando and Newtown, etc, is a tricky dance to do. Paul Kersey was portrayed as a hero and the country had a more simplified view of that type of shyt then. Now, I'm not so sure we can glorify a vigilante when the topic of guns has become such an issue and cops taking the law in their own hands and popping kids for holding toy guns. I'm sure there's a great way to make a new death wish movie by applying more nuance to it and making it a thoughtful piece of filmmaking and a character study, which is what the original tried to be and some people say accomplished although I disagree. With that said, Eli Roth is directing and I'm not sure if he's the most thoughtful cat to do that, but I could be wrong.
So what does the film room think?
Death Wish Remake Hires Eli Roth to Direct
