
***
Liberal, mild-mannered New Yorker (Charles Bronson) turns vigilante after an assault on his wife and daughter leaves the former dead and the latter in a catatonic state, becoming in the process a public hero and a police headache. Less restrained and more exciting than the Brian Garfield book on which it is based, but also somewhat less believable as a result. Still, this is satisfying escapism for anyone who is concerned about violent crime or who believes that self-defense is the answer. Includes a brilliant bit of adaptation (the screenplay was written by Wendell Mayes) that much improves an important trip to Tucson, where the city and a business client (smartly played by Stuart Margolin) put the finishing touches on the vigilante's psychological turn toward retribution. Followed by four sequels.
Liberal, mild-mannered New Yorker (Charles Bronson) turns vigilante after an assault on his wife and daughter leaves the former dead and the latter in a catatonic state, becoming in the process a public hero and a police headache. Less restrained and more exciting than the Brian Garfield book on which it is based, but also somewhat less believable as a result. Still, this is satisfying escapism for anyone who is concerned about violent crime or who believes that self-defense is the answer. Includes a brilliant bit of adaptation (the screenplay was written by Wendell Mayes) that much improves an important trip to Tucson, where the city and a business client (smartly played by Stuart Margolin) put the finishing touches on the vigilante's psychological turn toward retribution. Followed by four sequels.