For the third “Death Wish” films the roman numerals were ditched and so was any sense of realism. “Death Wish 3” is a very silly film and while that’s its best attribute, it’s also the thing that’s hindering it the most.

“Death Wish 3” will no doubt make audiences laugh with its cartoonish portrayal of gang violence as we see Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson “Dirty Dozen”, “Death Wish”) returns to New York to bring down criminals but now he seems to be a professional vigilante. The film is kind-of boring throughout most of it as Bronson picks off the occasional gangster but then the ending is all-out war as you’re treated to one of the stupidest yet somehow most entertaining shoot ‘em up finales you’ll ever see.

Bronson lacks the realism and the heart seen in the previous “Death Wish” films but then again, the whole film seems to be lacking in those areas. Although it’s nice to see Kersey fighting for a different reason than before, it just seems forced and unnecessary. The criminals aren’t particularly exciting and neither are the people Kersey is protecting and that’s why this film seems so wooden in comparison to the earlier ones.

The last section of the film is non-stop chaos and it’s actually a lot of fun and there are a few good moments here and there but all-round it’s a disappointing sequel. “Death Wish 3” was the last film long-time collaborators Michael Winner and Charles Bronson worked on together (they’d done the first two “Death Wish” films together among other things) and I’m not surprised they split because Winner has made a lifeless film here. “Death Wish 3” is not a bad film but it’s the type of soulless action film that is easy target practice for both haters and satirists.