Death Wish 3 - Why all the hate? 

The first Death Wish was an instant hit - showing mild-mannered liberal, Paul Kersey, dishing out his own brand of justice to muggers all over New York. Part 2 capitalised on the success and is seen as a good film too (although how often are sequels ever revered as being better than the first?). Then came part 3 and everyone suddenly hated it.

I suppose Death Wish 3 is to parts 1 and 2 like Aliens is to Alien. DW1 and 2 were slow and creepy, building up tension before each of the (surprisingly few) kills. Part 3 just has Kersey mowing down muggers with a machine gun.

Okay, so it's kind of lost its social commentary aspect, but it's still a great action film. So what if some of the creeps are kind of stereotypical and a bit dumb. Since when was a street hood a criminal mastermind?

Death Wish 3 is probably the most far-fetched of the series (so far - I won't get on to parts 4 and 5), but if you're tired of soft justice for criminals, then you'll be nodding your head to the sound of Kersey's `Wilby' Magnum going off.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that