**SPOILERS** The fifth last and most vicious and violent of all the "Death Wish" movies based on the sadistic and brutal scenes in the film, even though the body count in "Death Wish V" seemed to be the lowest of all the previous sequels with the exception of the original "Death Wish" back in 1974.

Paul Kersey, Charles Bronson, now thanks to the Withness Protection Program is living as an non-violent and law-abiding citizen in New York City, Paul is a professor of architecture at a local university. With his life back to normal, no more shooting of criminals, and having a classy and beautiful lady-friend Olivia Regent, Lesley-Anne Down, who has a cute and adorable daughter Chelsea, Erica Lancaster, things couldn't be better but then "They" came on the scene. What "They" did to Paul's future wife and to his and her friends, including little Chelsea, made Paul turn into the crime fighter and personal avenger that he tried to put behind him. In the end "They'll" never be the same, or in one piece, again after the outraged and infuriated Paul Kersey does "His Thing" or "Job" on them.

"They" are a Westie-like organized mobster gang headed by Paul's lover Olivia's former husband and little Chelsea's father Tommy O'Shea, Michael Parks. Tommy is a borderline psycho who loves to hurt and torture people that he doesn't like or who don't obey him as fast as he want's them too. Getting his hands on the garment industry in NYC Tommy has a stranglehold on Olivia who has a line of clothes thats produced from a business that she owns there.

The O'Shea mob starts to put the screws on Olivia's business and those working for her. The local D.A Tony Hoyle, Saul Rubinek, gets a number of workers in the garment center to agree to testify against O'Shea and his mob. Unknown to D.A Hoyle there's a member of his staff who's tipping off O'Shea to who's to testify and has the O'Shea mob murder them before he, D.A Hoyle, can provide them with police protection. One of those who's at first viciously mutilated and later murdered by the O'Shea Mob is non other then Olivia,this brings the wild animal out of the peaceful and kind Paul Kersey.

Charles Bronson's Paul Kersey takes on organized crime in "Death Wish 5" unlike the mostly unorganized street thugs and criminals that he took on in the previous four "Death Wish" films. Again like Kersey did in the earlier movies he does the bad guys in, and finishes them off, in the most spectacular ways that he can devise.

Even though he was 73 at the time in 1994 Charles Bronson is very believable as the avenging vigilante Paul Kersey knocking off the entire O'Shea Mob. Kersey does his unpleasant and bloody job not only with bullets but with cyanide-laced pastries exploding soccer balls and clothes making and knitting machinery.

Tommy O'Shea, as well as his gang, gets his comeuppances by being dropped, by Paul, into a boiling vat of acid and made to look a lot slimmer and 150 ponds lighter. Not realizing that their no match at all for the angry and rampaging Kersey the O'Shea mob tried to trap him, by kidnapping and holding hostage Chelsea, at the plant and do him in. Kersey was on to them from the start and in the end it was he who was the hunter and they, the O'Shea Mob, who were the hunted with the results, in this deadly cat-and-mouse game, being a forgone and bloody conclusion for them not Paul Kersey.

The beginning of this final installment of the long-running "Death Wish" series is shaky with inappropriate humor (even the title comes off as a tasteless pun, as a central character is disfigured by having her face bashed into a mirror) and a lot of mobster-movie clichés (the henchmen to Michael Parks' villain are howling stereotypes),writer-director Allan Goldstein transforms "Death Wish 5" into a surprisingly entertaining little crime thriller. Though frequently riddled with inept moments (the mobsters unload round after round into walls after their target has jumped out of sight) and plot holes (how is Kersey tracking the bad guys, and since when did he become an explosives expert?),the film is the most well-developed of the series in terms of character, plot, and pacing. I've never seen Charles Bronson more convincingly expressive than he is here, and Michael Parks ("Kill Bill, Volume 2") is utterly reptilian in his loathsomeness. While the plot is essentially a repeat of the previous films, it contains a confident gloss that lifts it out of exploitation and closer to a mainstream film--it isn't entirely successful, but rooting for Bronson never gets old.

After years in L.A., Paul Kersey is back in New York with his new fashion-based designer fiancée Olivia Regent and along with her young daughter Chelsea. Kersey has put away his old habits, until Olivia's ex-husband Tommy O'Shea (who happens to be mob figure) uses her business to run an illegal money laundry scheme and tries at every optometry of scary her from testifying against him in court. They go one step to far when they disfigure and then later on kill Olivia. By law Chelsea is to live with her father. This tips Kersey's world up side down and vengeance mode comes kicking back in.

What a crying shame. I'm shocked to see the user rating for this "Death Wish" instalment to be so low. Making it by far the weakest of the series. I don't agree, but hey you can't have it all your own way, right. Anyhow, this was the filth and final "Death Wish" to date and it was actually the first one I ever saw. Maybe that's why I seem to cut it a bit more slack then say number four.

So, it's been going on for twenty years and Charles Bronson (who was around 70 at time) is still around looking to quite fit and rather animated. Definitely more so than his two previous efforts. Back to form with his dry, ice-cool persona and showing some feeling along the way. What I like about this outing (other than being a improvement over "Death Wish 4") is that it seems to go back to the dark underbelly and cruel vibe (maybe more so) that worked in the earlier forays. Kersey is up against more upper-class foes, than the usual street pests. At heart is goes back to the basic, heavy-handed revenge yarn, where the detailed situations are harrowing and the violence is simply cold-blooded. He might not want to return the favour (as firstly he lets the cop do their job),but his finally forced back into his beloved side-trade, as it's in the blood and the loved ones are taken away from him… again. Once you start, there is no going back… even when the police know his secret. The way he subtly toys around with the guilty criminals to get them rather anxious, waiting for their turn to be mowed down. Only adds to that ominously nasty touch that waits and the dark humour has real snappiness to it here. The deaths scenes are at times wickedly inventive (well it beats going up to someone and just shooting them) and rapid stunt work is exceptionally pulled off with such thrilling poise. Oh and how can I forget about the gratuitous slow motion? Some times it works and other times your thinking… "Oh why?". Anyhow you gotta love it on this occasion!

As director (and writer) Allan Goldstein stylishly tailored it on a much larger scale that seemed to pay dividends with its competently showy set pieces and crisp pacing. There's always something there to hold your interest. In all, there's no denying it's by the numbers and the predictable plot has a fair share of clichés grounding it. Although it goes out there to delve a little deeper into the material (a highly witty and concise script: "Idiots with guns, make me nervous".) and truly making you feel for the characters. The hammy bad guys are typically portrayed as slimy, ruthless tyrants that deserve what they get. You'll sure be cheering on Kersey here, after you cop a taste of the lively performances of Michael Parks (who's tremendously scummy as Tommy O'Shea) and Robert Joy (makes light work as the paranoid nutter Freddie 'Flakes'). Lesley-Anne Down's presence simply glows and is credibly good as Olivia Regent. Giving able support are Saul Rubinek, Kenneth Welsh and Miguel Sandoval. The technical side of the production is soundly staged. The special effects are put to good use and come off well. What is nailed down is a traditionally sounding music score that likes too flutter about with loud echoing cues and the standard camera-work sufficiently frames every shot with nice scope.

By me saying it shares some common ground with the original films. I guess you'll be hoping for something rough around the edges and some exploitation to fit right in. Too bad, as that isn't going to happen. Those looking for the obligatory rape scene too (which appears in basically all four),forget it. This one is going for the mainstream pool. Even the ending has that cop-out feel about it with what has gone all before it.

For all your troubles it's nothing more than a glossed up, blunt action/crime vehicle for Bronson, which manages to mix the good and not-so-good aspects of the series. Only fans should bother.