A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks. In self-defense, the vengeful man kills muggers on the mean streets after dark.
Where to Watch Death Wish
- Patrick WaiJune 5, 2026This is the original Death Wish, and even if it was not the first revenge movie, you can definitely feel how much it helped set the template for so many that came after it. For a 1970s film, it still holds up pretty well because it gives you just enough of everything: drama, intrigue, violence, and action, without drowning in any one of them. The movie also does a great job making New York look dirty, dangerous, and completely frayed at the edges, while the Arizona scenes give it a nice shift in atmosphere and make the whole thing feel bigger than just one grim city revenge story. Bronson is as cool as ever, and I actually liked that the police were smarter and more competent than I expected, which made the movie feel a little less cartoonish than a lot of later vigilante films. Revenge movies have come a long way since then, but this one is still very enjoyable and easy to see as the blueprint for a whole genre.
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Death Wish was released on July 24, 1974.
Death Wish was directed by Michael Winner.
Death Wish has a runtime of 1h 33m.
Death Wish was produced by Bobby Roberts, Hal Landers, Dino De Laurentiis.
A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks. In self-defense, the vengeful man kills muggers on the mean streets after dark.
The key characters in Death Wish are Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson), Joanna Kersey (Hope Lange), Frank Ochoa (Vincent Gardenia).
Death Wish is rated R.
Death Wish is an Action, Crime, Drama film.
Death Wish has an audience rating of 6.9 out of 10.
Death Wish had a budget of $3M.
Death Wish has made $76.6M at the box office.