Death Wish

Going in: I haven't seen the original but I think this will be a standard action film. I'm looking for this to be light thematically but heavy on the action. Expecting a 7 and 7.

Popcorn: 6/10. I'll probably only see this the once. As per the trailer, the main character's family is assaulted and there were some scenes that as a dad were hard to watch. I might rent it once or twice because my son likes these kinds of movies. But, like I said, it's hard to watch in some places.

Art: 6.5/10. Not surprising for an action film but I think this could have been so much more. The acting had some really good moments but the story had some problems.

Acting: 3/3. This is Bruce frickin' Willis. Camila Morrone was the unexpected surprise (there were two scenes that she nailed and I loved it). A lot of emotions throughout the movie.

Music: 1/2. This was a typical action flick so there's going to be an upbeat song that's motivation for a sequence or two right after the first act. Yes, there was. No, it was not original. Nothing else sticks out musically.

Cinematography: 1/2. There were some nice shots, but I'd seen them before. It was obvious I was in Chicago, but nothing screamed at me. Then again, this is an action movie so I didn't expect much either. There was one shot I enjoyed, but it wasn't what I would call a stand-out.

Art Dept: 1/2. There was not a whole lot to do here. The costuming is difficult for modern films but the set design was pretty tropish. 

Editing: 1/2. The editor didn't really shine but then again, the trend in action movies lately is that it's choppy and it's overdone. This wasn't. They had opportunities that I was dreading, but the editing remained clean.

Story: 2/4. I was the most disappointed here. I know that part of this is bad timing. The movie already had a release date and the Parkland school shooting happened right before it came out. But still. The doctor, who's JOB is to save lives, doesn't have much of a journey to overcome that training and experience. I wish that he had been forced to use guns when he didn't want to and that it had been structured to make him use them, that there had been more reluctance (not as a statement about gun control, but about physicians). The B and C plots didn't influence the story much. Not much flaw in the character: he's well off, a good job, pretty stable. Dialog was a bit cheesy in places but I expected that. (minor spoiler) I also kept expecting him to see someone he had shot on the operating table but that never happened. Some reliance on coincidence.

Directing: 1/3. I would say this was mediocre. Nothing too exceptional except the acting.

Production: 1/2. This story could have been worth watching but it almost seemed to glorify guns rather than explore. Like I said, I have no problem in a movie with guns. But if we're going to explore themes, there should be some exploration. This tried but didn't present any options.