Charles Bronson picks up where he left off in the famous "Death Wish" movie of 1976, going after punks and eliminating them. The only differences: he's moved from New York to Los Angeles and the violence is more graphic.

Despite the B-movie feel to this (produced by the kings of the cheapo movies of that era (70s and early 80s) : Golan/Globus, it still is very enjoyable and satisfying - if revenge is your thing. Here, Bronson revenges the death of his daughter. At least her death is quick and bloodless, unlike the unpleasant rape-and-murder scene in the first film.

Also, unlike the first film there is no need for a long setup. Bronson gets back in his vigilante mode in a hurry here and never lets up. If you want a short dose (an hour and a half) of action, this is your movie. One of the gang members in here, by the way, is a young Laurence Fishburne.

The negatives are (1) sub-par acting performances by Bronson and his real-life wife, Jill Ireland; (2) some blatant credibility problems with the story ( such as how Bronson could get across town all bloody but never be noticed;) and (3) not exactly the most intelligent dialog!

Yet, this is still an appealing movie to our conditioned satisfaction for instant revenge. So, if you've had a bad day and need a release of your hostilities, this is a good remedy!

When I saw this film years ago on television in a heavily censored version I didn't think much of it at all; it felt scuzzy, cheap, a dullish retread of the original. Seeing it today in its uncut form, I think time has been kind to it and it's a decent movie in its own right. The rape scenes are problematic and far too graphic for their own good, but the rest is a taut, well-directed thriller. Winner's use of shadow and the setting of the real-life scuzzy streets of Los Angeles works a treat and Bronson's taciturn hero is more impassive than ever. A bleak, nihilistic and gruelling slice of action from the heart of the 1980s, and as gritty as it gets.

Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) is back this time in L.A. He is living with his fragile daughter, and has a new girlfriend Geri Nichols (Jill Ireland). A cartoonish gang steals his wallet, and when they go to rob his house, they rape and kill his housekeeper. When Kersey and his daughter come home, they kidnap her, then rape, and finally she dies while trying to escape. Now Kersey's killing again, and everybody in NY is afraid that the story of how they let him go the first time around will finally get out.

Things are getting more cartoony. The thugs are dressing more silly. Bronson is even trying out a catch phrase saying Goodbye to one of the killers as he shoots him down. He's more Rambo than man. Even when the gang outclasses him in number and in firepower, he can take them all down. He best a beast of a man in hand to hand fighting, when that beast was kicking the entire police squad just moments before in the movie. The era has truly changed. It is no longer the paranoid '70s. It's the Rambo style action of the '80s.