I happen to love all of the Death Wishes dearly, mostly 1-4. In this sequel Paul finds himself in a new relationship in a new city. (boy does he drift a lot) So his step daughter starts hanging out with a bad crowd, and dies from a drug overdose. Mr. Kersey, pretty much accepting vigilantism as a way of life at this point tries to find the source of the drugs and neutralize it and the movie follows that plot, and you also have the obligatory useless asshole cops who get on Paul's case about his past, etc. It's another satisfying installment of justice to this series. We all get the feeling of just wanting to rid all of the cartels and dealers, but like the previous two Death Wishe's there are some plot holes, but you have to overlook them to see the broader picture. Just put yourself in Kersey's shoes and you will enjoy the movie. I also was really happy at the fact that there was no rape scenes, those get tiring and annoying to see even though it is reality.

Once again, Charles Bronson plays architect-turned-vigilante Paul Kersey in this fourth film in the 'Death Wish' franchise. Often cited as the weakest entry in the series, 'Death Wish 4' suffers from leaden dialogue (especially when Kersey is consoling his grief-stricken girlfriend) and limited character progression. On the plus side though, the film has a fresh and original plot with a nod towards 'Yojimbo' as Kersey is hired play off rival drug cartels against one another, leading each to believing that the other is trying to sabotage their business. Kersey has some pretty nifty weapons this time too, including an incendiary device in a wine bottle, and with the experienced J. Lee Thompson at the helm, it is a slick-looking production. The opening scene is especially remarkable with clever use of fish-eye lensing and deliberately edited cutaways (in which hoodlums appear and disappear) drumming up incredible tension. There is also well edited sequence later on in which Kersey's gun-fighting gets redirected to a local ice rink, and the open ending is pitch perfect. The plot is arguably a bit too intricate for its own good with a twist in the final third that does not necessarily add a lot to the film, though it does tie in well with the idea of Kersey being used as a pawn to dirty work that could not otherwise be done (an angle sort of explored in 'Death Wish 3' with Ed Lauter's corrupt cop). This might well be a lot different to the thought-provoking original 1974 movie, but as far as sequels go, 'Death Wish 4' is very decent of its type.

This Bronson film is not a crime-thriller like the first two films. This 4th film is more like Death Wish III - it's all action and not much of a story. Like the 3rd film in the series, this 4th film has Paul Kersey (Bronson) kicking the bad-guy's. The movie is good if you want a movie that is mainly all action - gun shooting and things being blown up - then Death Wish 4 is a good choice to watch. Film bonus: You will get to watch an 80's arcade room shot up in this film.I personally am more into the first two films which are good crime-thrillers and great vigilante stories. Starting from Death Wish III forward - the film saga turns into simply shoot-them-up action without the great stories like the first two flicks in the series.5/10

Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) is back in LA. This time he's been with his girlfriend Karen Sheldon (Kay Lenz) for 2 years. Her daughter Erica Sheldon (Dana Barron) dies from a drug OD, and he's out for revenge. Then a rich and powerful newspaper man Nathan White (John P. Ryan) hires Kersey for his dead daughter who's also lost to drugs.The action starts pretty quick. There isn't much deliberations any more. He's after the boyfriend, and the dealer right away. He got his first kill before 15 minutes. When White offers the cartel, he actually takes a few days. It just doesn't have much tension anymore. It moves slowly as he has to investigate the cartels. The action takes awhile to get started. They just miss the point. We don't want Kersey to tap their phones, investigate the gangs, and maneuver a gang war. We don't care about double dealing. We just want him to kick butt and ask questions later.