The opening sequence


I have to applaud the creeps in the parking garage for their impeccable timing. Not only did they perfectly time the appearance of additional creeps each time that the blonde woman unsuccessfully cranked her car's engine before looking up, they also took the time to set up a backlight to look more menacing.

I also liked the ESB nod when Bronson rolled over the final creep.

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When the third guy appeared I figured it would continue that way and we'd end up with 30 guys with pantyhose on their head all staring at a woman with car problems, and maybe they'd pick her car up and carry it to the nearest repair shop.

The bad guys in Death Wish 3 had a real dancer type feeling to them, primarily 2 teeth guy. He's so peppy and graceful when he takes a beating or doing a little B&E. And now in Death Wish 4 the opening is this wonderfully choreographed scene. I like to imagine a 4th bad guy who remains hidden and helps them keep tempo and provides moral support...

A one and a two and Jim, and a three and a four and Bob, and a five and a six and Larry. Now hold and instill fear in the audience! Oh, Larry, your jaw is so menacing. You are in command! Own it ... and break! Good work everyone. Now let's head home and watch Dirty Dancing.

Are the rest of the movies like this too? It's like they hired a bunch of stage actors and dancers for these films.

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The time in DW3 when Kersey throws a right cross and lays out Tulio definitely reveals that Tony Britts has been trained in classical stage combat. And then when you add in the syncopated beeps that accentuate Captain Shriker's blinking headlights, and Fraker's little shuffle step on the way into his hideout to hand out a sticker hit. The whole film had a lot of moments that could have just as easily been choreographed by Bob Fosse, and of all of the films in the series, DW3 is the most likely candidate for adaptation into a Broadway show....or perhaps an off-Broadway show in a more fitting locale (Sutter and Belmont comes to mind).

DW4's opening is a metaphor into Kersey's own psyche. He's perpetually unlucky in love, as we see throughout the series, and we learn that he's not thwarting a violent rape, but sabotaging the consummation of his own intimate needs, and ultimately destroying himself.

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It helps in a small way that it was a dream.

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The only disturbing scene in the movie. Something about seeing rape just freaks me out. And yes, I saw THE ACCUSED and had to endure sitting beside a man who was actually laughing during that movie's rape scene. Still creeps me out.

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The only disturbing scene in the movie. Something about seeing rape just freaks me out. And yes, I saw THE ACCUSED and had to endure sitting beside a man who was actually laughing during that movie's rape scene. Still creeps me out.


The ones in the Death Wish movies are pretty tame, compared to Boys Don't Cry and Irreversible. Both are brilliant films, but not films that you'd want to watch over and over again. I prefer the cartoon violence of these films.

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