Tag Archives: Charles Bronson

THE MECHANIC (1972) – Celebrate the New Year with one of Charles Bronson’s most iconic roles!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

THE MECHANIC features an iconic performance by Charles Bronson, a performance that would represent a blueprint for the type of character he would play in many films…the strong, silent, unstoppable, man of action.  Bronson plays Arthur Bishop, a hit man with a gift for planning and executing his hits in a way that make the deaths look like natural deaths rather than murders.  Facing health issues and loneliness, he takes on a young protégé named Steve McKenna, played by Jan-Michael Vincent.  This upsets his bosses in the underworld because he takes on the apprentice without asking them.  Will they allow him to train up this new protégé and complete tag team hits going forward, or will they decide that Bishop is no longer worth the risk?          

I’ll start off by stating up front that I love THE MECHANIC.  The first Charles Bronson movie I ever owned on VHS was a nearly unwatchable, 2nd hand version of the film, but I still tried to watch it.  The first Charles Bronson movie I ever saw on the big screen was a beautiful 35mm print of the film at the Mahoning Drive-in theater in Lehighton, PA.  I also believe that this film has the best ending of any Charles Bronson film.  Needless to say, the following review will be full of praise, so if you’re looking for a real critical take on the piece, this is probably not the place to look!

To start off, THE MECHANIC has a uniquely amazing opening sequence.  The first 16 minutes of the film features hitman Bishop going through the mundane tasks of setting up a hit.  We watch him set up shop across the street from the mark, we watch him break into the mark’s apartment to rig the things needed to accomplish the hit, we watch him squeeze a wax ball, etc.  Bishop speaks no dialogue during these 16 minutes, and the only things we hear are the sounds of the soundtrack and the street.  Bronson’s unique screen presence makes it mesmerizing.  Could you imagine an action film trying this strategy in this day and age?   

Once Bishop has successfully completed the first hit, we’re introduced to Bishop’s world outside of what we’d observed during the opening sequence.  We meet Harry McKenna (Keenan Wynn), the “uncle-like” figure who has gotten himself in trouble with the organization.  We’re not surprised who’s given the job to eliminate this problem.  We meet Harry’s son Steve (Jan-Michael Vincent) who hits it off with Bishop at the funeral where their relationship really begins.  On a side note, the film’s script featured these two characters as gay men, and the sexuality element was going to be a major way that Steve would get close enough to Bishop to gain his trust.  That part of the script was changed to get Bronson and secure financing for the film.  Since that element is not part of the movie I’ll move on.  We meet a prostitute (Jill Ireland) who’s visited by Bishop.  This is a very interesting scene that gives us a strong insight into just how lonely Bishop is and also helps us understand why he’s open to the idea of bringing on an apprentice.  I think Jill Ireland is quite effective in her one scene.

Once the various characters are introduced, the film settles nicely into a mentoring relationship between Bishop & Steve.  The experienced hitman shares his knowledge, and we follow along with them as they complete various assignments.  The movie seems most interested in the relationship between the men, but this is an action movie, so we have a couple of very solid action sequences in the middle portion of the film, as well as the end.  Director Michael Winner, who directed Charles Bronson in six different films, stages these sequences extremely well, especially the sequence that ends the film in Naples, Italy.  We see necks snapped.  We see faces knuckle punched.  We see a motorcycle chase ending with a motorcycle flying off a cliff and exploding into a ball of flames upon impact.  We see boats exploding.  We see Bronson using my favorite weapon, the pump shotgun, with expert precision.  We see cars chasing each other along the Italian coast.  We see bombs being dropped out of moving cars with precision timing to blow up the cars behind them.  We even see a bulldozer pushing a moving car off the side of a cliff.  It’s some amazing stuff, with Bronson & Vincent appearing quite badass at times.  And then the ending, the ending that proves just how awesome Bishop truly is!  I won’t say anymore about that.  Just watch and enjoy! 

**BONUS CONTENT** – We dedicated an episode of the “This Week in Charles Bronson” podcast to THE MECHANIC. It was one of the most enjoyable episodes for me to record. If you’re interested in learning more about the film from a group of guys who love Charles Bronson, give it a listen!

Walking in the footsteps of MR. MAJESTYK – taking my love of cinema on down the road (Part 3)!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Some of my favorite trips have been related to my obsession with movies and Charles Bronson. Today, I share a wonderful day that my wife and I spent in Southern Colorado. I hope you enjoy!

In September of 2022, my wife and I attended two different out of state weddings. First, we drove to Casper, WY, and officiated a wedding for the children of some of Sierra’s long time friends. After leaving Casper, we headed towards Estes Park, CO, for another friend’s wedding. While sitting on the deck of our lodge in Estes Park, listening to a beautiful Rocky Mountain stream flowing down below, an amazing idea just hit me like a brick, and I wouldn’t let it go. So, I started researching the filming locations for Charles Bronson’s MR. MAJESTYK because I knew it was filmed in southern Colorado. While Sierra slept, I began planning out a route for our tour of the locations. The next morning I hit her up about my plan, and she was game. Man, I’m a lucky guy!

I always tell my friends on my “This Week in Charles Bronson” Facebook page that my visit to Southern Colorado on September 6th, 2022 was one of the great days of my life. As we visited the filming locations for MR. MAJESTYK in Canon City, Manzanola, and La Junta, I felt like I was hanging out with the spirit of Charles Bronson. One of the most interesting things about the experience is how similar the locations looked in 1974 and 2022, a span of 48 years. It’s so important to find that woman in life who let’s you be you, and Sierra spent time with me as I made videos of my experiece, reenacted certain scenes from the movie, and took pictures at every specific location I could find. We ended up spending that night at a hotel in Dodge City, KS, which somehow seems like the perfect ending to a fairy tale of a day!

I shared the picture at the top from the interesting “tunnel” locations in Canon City, Colorado. This was our first stop of the day. There’s an interesting scene in MR. MAJESTYK where melon farmer Vince Majestyk (Bronson) lures hitman Frank Renda (Al Lettieri) into his hunting country which featured those amazing rock tunnels. I always thought they were so cool. This is actually a hiking trail called The Tunnel Drive Trail that runs alongside the Arkansas River and Royal Gorge Route Railroad.

After leaving Canon City, we went to the town of Manzanola. This is the town where the bar and cafe sequences are filmed in MR. MAJESTYK. In the movie, the bar was painted white. For some reason, they’ve gone for pink at this point!

It was in Manzanola where I reenacted a scene where Vince Majestyk walks across the street to supervise the hiring of his melon picking crew. I found out that it’s actually a very busy highway, US Route 50, to be exact. I tried to cross the street about the same place where Charles Bronson did, but I also had to try to not to get run over. You can see a car passing by as I walk in the picture below. I made sure that interesting “triangle” doorway was present in both pictures.

We were hoping to have lunch at “The Majestyk Cafe” in Manzanola, but it was closed the day after Labor Day in 2022. I found the owners’ thoughts on Colorado’s mask mandates at the time to be interesting. Check out the picture of the door below. If I ever make it out that way again, hopefully we’ll get to check out their lunch special!

After leaving Manzanola, we went to La Junta where we visited a few more locations. You can see below that La Junta’s Police and Fire department building is still using the same signage.

One of the best scenes in the entire film is the sequence where they break hitman Frank Renda out of the prison transport bus. That scene is also filmed in La Junta. It starts at the Zavala Building with one of Renda’s henchman putting a stocking over his head. You can see a plaque that says “Zavala Building” behind Taylor Lacher below. We found that spot.

I took so many more pictures that day. I also recorded several videos as I visited the various locations. They are documented as the “Adventures of the Colorado Crains” on the This Week in Charles Bronson YouTube page. It was an awesome day, and I hope you enjoyed a few of the highlights!

The Mahoning Drive-In and THE MECHANIC, MR. MAJESTYK, and DEATH WISH 3 – taking my love of cinema on down the road (Part 2)!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Some of my favorite trips have been related to my obsession with movies and Charles Bronson. Today, I share a wonderful trip that my wife and I took to Pennsylvania and the Mahoning Drive-In in 2022. I hope you enjoy!

I was scrolling through Facebook back in the spring of 2022, when an advertisement came up for a “Charles Bronson” night at the Mahoning Drive-In in Lehighton, Pennsylvania on June 24th, 2022. The movies that would be playing that night were THE MECHANIC, MR. MAJESTYK, and DEATH WISH 3, all of which are in my top 10 Bronson films, with MR. MAJESTYK topping out all the way up at #2. I checked the distance and time from my house, and it came back around 1,200 miles and 17 hours. For most people, this is probably where the story ends, but not for Bradley Crain. You see, I had never been able to see Bronson on the big screen, and it was definitely on my bucket list. First, I just started casually mentioning the possibility of going to my wife Sierra, just to gauge her reaction. She didn’t think I was serious. Based on that distance, I knew I was going to have to come up with a better reason than “I just want to go.” Then a brilliant idea hit me. Sierra’s dad only lived about 6 hours from Lehighton, so I promised we’d go spend a couple of days with him after the movie night. She bit, and the rest, as they say, is history. It was a wonderful June night in Pennsylvania, and Lehighton is in a beautiful part of the state.

Aside from watching the movies themselves at the drive-in, I also got to meet an idol of mine, Paul Talbot. Paul has written the definitive, behind-the-scenes, books on the movies of Charles Bronson, with “Bronson’s Loose: The Making of the Death Wish Films” and “Bronson’s Loose Again: On the set with Charles Bronson.” He is a genuinely kind and welcoming man who I now consider a friend.

My wife and I had an amazing time at the movies, and we also had a great visit with her dad for a couple of days. I’m so glad we made that trip, as he would pass away less than a year later. We only saw him one more time after that trip. As much as I loved the night with Bronson, having those additional days with my amazing father-in-law was even more special.      

My first view of Bronson on the big screen was the iconic opening of THE MECHANIC. I snapped the picture below:

Paul Talbot was so gracious with his time with each fan of his books on Charles Bronson. He also introduced each film that night with interesting facts and stories about the various productions. He was nice enough to take this picture with me and Sierra:

While at the drive-in that night, I joined the “This Week in Charles Bronson” podcast for my first ever contribution as the boots on the ground correspondent for the event. I have since had the opportunity to meet some of my Bronson-movie idols, and even members of Bronson’s own family through my activity with the podcast. I’ve attached a link to the episode from the Mahoning Drive-In that night.

All in all, this was one of the most enjoyable trips of my life! Soon, I’ll share my adventures in Colorado later that summer visiting the filming locations of MR. MAJESTYK!

YES VIRGINIA, THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS (1991) – Charles Bronson made a Christmas movie, and it’s a family classic at my house. 

Posted on by Bradley Crain

On December 8, 1991, YES VIRGINIA, THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS, starring Charles Bronson, made its world premiere on the ABC Network. I was 18 years old and working at the local grocery store that night so I had to set up my VCR to record the film. I was so nervous that something might happen to mess up my timed recording. In those days, all it took was a quick power flicker and your recording was screwed. I was so happy when I got home that night and everything had gone perfectly. I was a starving Bronson superfan who had not seen anything new from the man since KINJITE: FORBIDDEN SUBJECTS had been released in February of 1989. Since KINJITE’S release, Charles Bronson had faced the most difficult emotional times of his life. The love of his life, Jill Ireland, had fought valiantly against cancer but lost her battle with the disease in May of 1990. When he chose to start working again, his first two films, THE INDIAN RUNNER and YES VIRGINIA, featured him in roles where he was playing a man who is dealing with the pain from having recently lost his wife. These were tough times for the aging star, and it seems he was working out some deep emotional struggles in these two performances. At the time, the prospect of Charles Bronson performing in a heartwarming Christmas movie about a classic newspaper editorial was such a surprising film choice. I was all in! 

YES VIRGINIA opens with renowned journalist for The New York Sun newspaper, Francis P. Church, cleaning the snow off of his recently deceased wife and daughter’s tombstones. He turns away to take a drink of whiskey out of shame and then walks away. It seems that since they passed away, Church has become a shell of his former self. He has a lot of guilt because he was always away on newspaper business instead of being at home with his family. He’s dealing with that pain by drinking way too much. He’s not working on the stories he’s been assigned by his editor, Edward P. Mitchell (Ed Asner), and it seems he’s lost the will to live. 

At the same time that Francis Church is dealing with his issues, we’re introduced to the O’Hanlon clan. James O’Hanlon (Richard Thomas) is the head of the family that includes his wife Evie (Tamsin Kelsey), daughter Virginia (Katharine Isabelle), and sons Teddy and Sean. We meet James on the same day that he loses his job for beating up a bigot who was insulting his Irish heritage. We follow him as he attempts to find a job so he can provide for his family. His sweet-natured daughter Virginia is having some issues of her own. One day while playing jump rope at school, some of the other girls decide to tell her that there is no such thing as Santa Claus. This cause’s Virginia a lot of stress, so she asks her dad if it’s true. Holding yesterday’s copy of the New York Sun, he tells her that if he sees it written in The Sun, he knows it’s true. Being a smart young lady, she decides to write her own letter to The Sun. 

And this is where the two stories converge. Editor Mitchell assigns Church the job of answering Virginia’s question. This turns out to be just what he needs to begin seeing the good in the world around him again.  

That night in December of 1991, even after working the late shift at the grocery store, there was no way I was going to wait until the next day to watch a new Charles Bronson movie for the first time in almost 3 years. I pressed play and settled in for a film that is dealing with some really serious subject matter. The main characters are dealing with severe depression, alcoholism, bigotry, extreme poverty, and attitudes of indifference and disbelief towards Santa Claus himself! Sounds like an uplifting story doesn’t it? The truth is that it is a very uplifting story because it features people with good hearts who care about the people around them. Sure, there are some jerks in the movie. This is one of those kinds of movies where those jerks end up getting their asses kicked. James O’Hanlon and his friend Donelli get the opportunity to beat up the bigots who call them potlickers and poured their beer on them. As a fan of Bronson, one of the most satisfying scenes in the movie is when Church punches out the smug, elitist A-hole, Cornelius Barrington (John Novak) who’s being disrespectful about one of Church’s female co-workers. Those scenes are satisfying, but my favorite parts of the movie are the sentimental acts of kindness we get to see throughout the film. We see co-workers taking care of co-workers. We see neighbors taking care of neighbors. We see family members taking care of each other at different times and different ways. It’s so satisfying when we see good things happen to these good people simply because someone cares enough to be kind. 

The cast in this film is so good. Of course Charles Bronson is excellent as Francis P. Church. You can really feel his character’s grief, and you can understand why he runs away to the bottle. And knowing that Bronson had recently lost his wife in real life only adds to the emotional power of the performance. And I think Katharine Isabelle is so good as Virginia. The wrong person in her role could have ruined the film. They got it right with Katharine. Ed Asner is perfect as Edgar P. Mitchell, with just the right combination of toughness and caring. I really enjoy seeing the two grizzled veterans, Bronson and Asner, working together. And finally, I like  Richard Thomas in this movie as well. He plays the highs and lows of his character in a dramatic way without going too far. The main cast had to be good for the movie to work, and they more than fit the bill. 

And what about that famous editorial where Church answers Virginia’s question, “Is there a Santa Claus?” I just love the scene in the movie when the sweet girl gets her answer. I won’t spoil it for you with all the details, but I will say that it features so much thoughtfulness and thankfulness leading up to the reading of the actual editorial that ran in New York Sun in 1897. And the look on Virginia’s face when her dad reads “Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus” is priceless. It’s the perfect example of why I love the movie, and therefore, it’s a perfect ending to the film. 

BONUS CONTENT – I had the great privilege to be part of an interview with Lindsay Ireland, Charles Bronson’s and Jill Ireland’s niece, as part of the “This Week in Charles Bronson” podcast. She gives so much insight into her uncle and aunt. She also provides additional context on just how hard Jill’s passing was on Bronson just prior to filming YES VIRGINIA, THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS. I’ve linked the interview below if you want to know more.

SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL (1958) – Charles Bronson headlines a classic Hollywood western for the first time in his career!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

1958 was an interesting year for 36-year-old Charles Bronson. After mostly playing character parts on movies and TV for the first part of the decade, Bronson would star in four movies in 1958 and also headline his own TV show. On first glance, the western SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL would appear to fit nicely into the image that Bronson would project during the heights of his popularity in the 70’s and 80’s. But upon further inspection, this little gem shows us a side of Bronson we rarely would get to see in his heyday.

The story opens with Luke Welsh, played by Bronson, riding into a dusty western town. After dropping his horse off at the livery stable, Welsh strolls into the local restaurant and immediately confronts town citizen Con Maynor. It’s here that we learn that Welsh is a bounty hunter and Maynor is a wanted man. A gunfight ensues and Maynor is gunned down. All Welsh needs is the local authorities to confirm the identity of Maynor so Welsh can collect his bounty. Unfortunately for Welsh, it seems the townsfolk like Con Maynor so they refuse to confirm his identity. This leads to Welsh having to stay in town until he can get someone, anyone, to agree to the name of the dead man. 

All of this sounds pretty normal for a western headlined by Charles Bronson. He is a tough guy of action for sure, but there are several things in the film that are quite unique in the Bronson filmography. Let me explain. First, Bronson’s character, Luke Welsh, is extremely insecure about his height, and this turns out to be an ongoing plot device in the film. In the gunfight with Maynor that opens the film, the wanted man refers to Welsh as “pint-sized,” and after gunning him down, Welsh responds with “how tall are you now, big man?” Later in the film, the local storekeeper, Mrs. Bonaventura, notices Welsh looking up at a mannequin in the store that he is standing by. Being a wise lady, she immediately recognizes his insecurity and offers him kind words and encouragement multiple times throughout the film. Many people who have followed Bronson’s career know that the actor was, in fact, insecure about his height and would often insist that his co-stars be no taller than him. I think Bronson’s ability to sympathize with this element of the character would result in a very strong performance. When you think of the characters he played after he hit it big, this type of insecurity would not be featured again in his work.

Another thing that makes SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL unique is the fact that Charles Bronson’s character Luke Welsh shows more vulnerability in his relationships than what we would see later in his career. I’ll use his relationship with the lonely young woman, Sally Crane, to illustrate this point. After recognizing how rough her hands are from her work at the restaurant, Welsh goes out of his way to purchase her some hand cream at Mrs. Bonaventura’s shop. When he’s giving her the hand cream in her room, he notices just how plain the room is and begins to see that Sally is doing everything in her power to not be noticed and has shut herself off from the world. He recognizes that they’re both just a couple of misfits, with him hiding behind a gun and her hiding behind her apron. Welsh speaks so softly and sweetly to her at different times in the film. I think Bronson does a fine job with this side of his character and shows he could have played more roles with romantic overtones. Even in his films with his wife Jill Ireland, Bronson would rarely show such vulnerability with his female co-stars in future films. 

Finally, the actual showdown at Boot Hill that takes place at the end of the film plays out nothing like you would expect in later films like THE MECHANIC, MR. MAJESTYK or DEATH WISH 3. After getting to know many of the local people like Sally & Mrs. Bonaventura, and after having grown tired of never having a place to call home, Welsh makes the only decision that will allow him to stay. I won’t spoil it for you, but in my opinion, it’s an unexpected and wonderful ending for these characters who I had really grown to like throughout the course of this compact, 71 minute film. I highly recommend SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL!

We dedicated an episode of the THIS WEEK IN CHARLES BRONSON podcast to this solid western. I’ve attached the link below if you want to know even more about SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL.

MURPHY’S LAW – Don’t F#&k with Jack Murphy!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

I became obsessed with actor Charles Bronson in 1986 after receiving a VHS copy of DEATH WISH 3 as a Christmas present. Going along with that obsession was my desire to see every Charles Bronson movie that had ever been made. As much as I enjoyed re-watching DEATH WISH 3, it was always a treat when I could rent a different Bronson film at the video store. The current Bronson movie at the video store in 1987 that appealed to me as a 13 year old boy was MURPHY’S LAW, so I wanted to rent it as often as possible. There were even a couple of times when different friends asked me to spend the night, and I had one requirement for saying yes… that we rent MURPHY’S LAW! Y’all, don’t think too bad of me for this admission. Remember, I was only 13 years old, I couldn’t drive, and I didn’t have a job so if I had to use a friend’s mom to get my Bronson fix, that’s just what I had to do! Based on the timing of my initial Bronson obsession, DEATH WISH 3 and MURPHY’S LAW are 1-2 in the films that I’ve watched the most times during my life.

In MURPHY’S LAW, Charles Bronson plays Jack Murphy, a tough cop who seems to be experiencing a series of unfortunate events:

  1. A thief named Arabella McGee (Kathleen Wilhoite) tries to steal Murphy’s car and drives it through the window of a pizzaria. We know that’s his car because he loudly proclaims, “That’s MY car!!” He even wastes money on a sack of groceries by throwing it at his car while she’s driving away. He’s able to chase her down on foot, but she kicks him in the testicles and runs off leaving him doubled over in pain, grocery-less, and clutching the family jewels!
  2. A mafia kingpin named Frank Vincenzo (Richard Romanus) wants to kill him because Murphy was forced to shoot and kill the kingpin’s brother. We know the cop and the kingpin don’t like each other, because a little before the shooting they have a slight disagreement in front of the mafioso’s mother over whether the brother is a scum-sucking pimp or a talent agent. Unable to resolve the debate amicably, the mafioso inquires as to whether or not Jack has ever heard of “Murphy’s Law, if anything can possibly go wrong it will?” Murphy responds with an alternative version of Murphy’s Law, the only law that he knows, and one that I greatly prefer. You get the feeling that this argument may be revisited later in the film.     
  3. Murphy’s now ex-wife Jan (Angel Tompkins) is performing extremely artistic striptease routines at a local club called Madam Tong’s. She’s also making love to the manager of the club. Rather than drinking at home alone until he passes out like most depressed men, Murphy hangs out at Madam Tong’s watching her shake her goodies for a bunch of horny lowlifes, before following them home and watching from outside until they turn off the bedroom lights. Very sad indeed.
  4. And here’s the worst part, on one of those typical nights where he’s obsessively stalking his wife, another mystery woman (Carrie Snodgress) knocks him in the head, shoots the slimy manager and Mrs. Murphy with his gun, and then frames him for their murders. Arrested for the murders and subsequently handcuffed to the thief who tried to steal his car, Murphy must stage a daring helicopter jailbreak in order to find out who framed him and clear his name before everything and everyone he holds dear is taken from him!

There are several reasons that I loved MURPHY’S LAW back in the eighties, and that I still enjoy it now. First, of course, is Charles Bronson. He was around 64 years old when he filmed MURPHY’S LAW, but he’s still in great physical condition in 1986. One of Bronson’s greatest strengths is his screen presence, and he still dominates each frame he’s in. Second, the film has an excellent supporting cast. Carrie Snodgress is having a ball playing the main villain in the film. I’ve seen her in quite a few movies, like PALE RIDER with Clint Eastwood, and 8 SECONDS with Luke Perry, but I’ve never seen her in a role like this. Snodgress was nominated for an Oscar for her role in a 1970 film called DIARY OF A MAD HOUSEWIFE. I’ve never seen that one before, but I should probably check it out! I love Kathleen Wilhoite as Arabella McGee, the thief who ends up handcuffed to Bronson. Her vocabulary, while probably not very realistic for the streets of LA at the time, was hilarious to me as a teenager. I enjoy calling the people I love “snot licking donkey farts” on occasion to this very day. It’s Kathleen Wilhoite singing the title song over the closing credits! And Robert F. Lyons is very special to me in his role as Art Penney, Jack Murphy’s partner. We got to interview him on the THIS WEEK IN CHARLES BRONSON podcast about his roles on DEATH WISH 2, 10 TO MIDNIGHT, and MURPHY’S LAW. He was so generous with his time, and just a hell of a nice guy! I’ve attached a link to the YouTube video of the interview with Mr. Lyons if you’re interested in the great stories he tells us about his time in Hollywood! Finally, MURPHY’S LAW was directed by J. Lee Thompson, my personal favorite director who worked with Bronson. Thompson directed Bronson in 9 different films, beginning with ST. IVES in 1976 and ending with KINJITE: FORBIDDEN SUBJECTS in 1989. No matter the material, you always knew that Thompson would deliver a film with a certain quality that made Bronson look good!

I’ll always be a fan of MURPHY’S LAW, partly for nostalgic reasons, but mainly because I think it’s an entertaining mid-80’s action film for Bronson at a time when he was one of the kings of the video store!

TELEFON – Charles Bronson plays a KGB agent in a movie that inspired The Naked Gun and Tarantino’s Death Proof!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

When I was a kid, FOX-16 out of Little Rock, Arkansas would have “Charles Bronson weeks” where every night they’d show a different Bronson film.  I saw several of his films for the first time during those weeks and TELEFON was one of those movies.  I remember really enjoying it that first time I saw it, and I’ve always carried that positive feeling with me.  

The plot of TELEFON is pretty interesting.  In a nutshell, Charles Bronson is Russian KGB agent, Grigori Borsov, who’s been sent to the United States to stop radical Russian Nicolai Dalchimsky (Donald Pleasance), before he can set off more hypnotized human time bombs.  Lee Remick is a beautiful Russian agent (double agent?) who helps him with his mission.  

I personally think TELEFON is an underrated Charles Bronson film, and it seems like a movie that has almost been forgotten.  This is strange to me because it had quite the pedigree at the time of production.  Bronson was a huge star at the time, and the director was Don Siegel, the man behind such classics as DIRTY HARRY, ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ, and THE SHOOTIST.  The cast is exceptional as well, with Bronson being joined by the likes of Donald Pleasance, Lee Remick, Tyne Daly, Sheree North and Patrick Magee. The screenplay was co-written by Peter Hyams, who would go on to direct such excellent films as OUTLAND, THE STAR CHAMBER, and RUNNING SCARED.  My point of sharing all of this is that true professionals were at work in front of, and behind the camera, and they created a damn fine Cold War thriller.  I was glad that Shout Factory put out a nice blu ray of the film in January of 2024.  Hopefully film enthusiasts will begin discovering the film again.  

With that said, TELEFON isn’t a perfect film and I do have a few small complaints.  First, Charles Bronson doesn’t appear in the film until we’re already 21 minutes deep.  That’s a long time for me to have to wait for the man!  Second, Bronson and Remick don’t have a lot of sexual chemistry.  She’s beautiful and he oozes masculinity, but somehow it doesn’t really extend to a real connection between their characters.  That’s one of the reasons I like it when Bronson works with his wife Jill Ireland.  That chemistry is usually there between them.  Third, Donald Pleasance wears several wigs and looks kind of dorky at times.  Fourth, Sheree North wears a housecoat during her section of the film.  If you’ve seen her in BREAKOUT with Bronson from a couple of years earlier, you understand just what a missed opportunity that was.  Finally, Tyne Daly is so good in her small role, but she ultimately just kind of exits the film.  I’d have liked even more of her.  These are small complaints, with the exception of Bronson’s entrance & North’s wardrobe choice, that I don’t really hold against the movie.  

The last thing that I want to mention is that there are a couple interesting pop culture references to TELEFON in movies that came out later.  First, the writers of THE NAKED GUN borrowed the plot about hypnotized human time bombs in their own plot to assassinate the visiting Queen of England.  Certain scenes are taken directly from TELEFON.  I remember watching THE NAKED GUN in theaters in the late 80’s and wondering if I was the only person who realized this fact.  Second, in DEATH PROOF, Quentin Tarantino used the major plot device of quoting the Robert Frost poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” in order to trigger something. In TELEFON, it was human time bombs.  In DEATH PROOF, it was human lap dances.  God bless Quentin Tarantino!

JUBAL (1956) – Ford, Borgnine, Steiger, and Bronson star in a Shakespearean tragedy set in the old west!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

In 2023, our family (parents, siblings, kids, nieces & nephews, everybody) took a vacation to the Grand Teton National Park. It was one of the most enjoyable vacations I’ve ever been on. Of course, this dad got on his family’s nerves by continuously referencing the film JUBAL since it was filmed with the Grand Tetons in the background. I just kept thinking about the fact that we were hanging out near a place where Glenn Ford, Ernest Borgnine, Rod Steiger, and Charles Bronson worked on one of my favorite westerns. For good measure I mentioned SHANE a few times as well since it was also filmed there.

Nice guy rancher Shep Horgan (Ernest Borgnine) finds Jubal Troop (Glenn Ford) injured and at the point of death. He takes Jubal back to his ranch and they nurse him back to health. The two men hit it off and soon Shep asks Jubal to be his foreman. This doesn’t set well at all with the duplicitous Pinky (Rod Steiger) who’s used to being in charge.  It sets too well with Shep’s beautiful wife Mae (Valerie French) who takes the wrong kind of liking to Jubal, a habit that seems to keep rearing its head with the lonely lady. This eventually turns into a powder keg of betrayal, lies & misunderstandings. Charles Bronson has a small, but pivotal role as cowhand who’s there for Jubal when things get really rough.

I bought JUBAL on VHS early in my movie collecting days in the 80’s. Of course, they put Bronson’s face on the front of the box with the other stars, even though it was over-inflating the size of his role in the movie. But that’s okay because it was probably the first time a teenage Bradley ever watched a movie with old Hollywood stars like Ford, Borgnine & Steiger. I loved the movie, and I’ve since searched out each actor’s filmography to watch their best films. Steiger especially stands out as the evil Pinky. I’ve been a huge fan of his ever since.

JUBAL also turned me on to the director Delmer Daves. Daves is one of the great directors of that time period. It’s been nice seeing some of his work being released as part of the Criterion Collection. His other films include DARK PASSAGE with Humphrey Bogart, BROKEN ARROW with Jimmy Stewart, DRUM BEAT with Alan Ladd & Charles Bronson, THE LAST WAGON with Richard Widmark, and 3:10 TO YUMA again with Glenn Ford. Heck, the guy wrote the classic tearjerker AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER. The guy was awesome!

Just to finish off a little personal history related to our family’s trip to the Grand Tetons in 2023…. I recently took my blu-ray of JUBAL to my parents’ cabin and watched it with my Dad and Mom. Me and Dad looked at each other and smiled every time a beautiful shot of the Tetons was in the background, and those majestic mountains are featured in almost every shot. It was marvelous.

DEATH WISH V: THE FACE OF DEATH – The end.

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Picture it…it’s 1992 or 1993 and I’m back at my local Hastings Entertainment superstore browsing through an entertainment magazine. Surprisingly, I came across a bit of entertainment news that a 71 year old Charles Bronson had accepted an offer of $5 million to reprise his Paul Kersey character for a fifth time. I couldn’t help but wonder what possible direction that they could take the series that would be interesting. I didn’t see anything else about the movie for the next year or so, and then it showed up some time in 1994 available for rent at that same Hastings Entertainment superstore. As far as I know, it never played in theaters in Arkansas, although it did play in some theaters in other parts of the country prior to going to home video. I immediately rented the film, somewhat apprehensive of what it would be….

DEATH WISH V: THE FACE OF DEATH, begins with Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) back in New York. We first see him, looking quite dapper I might add, walking down the street in the garment district. He’s on his way to see his latest girlfriend, fashion designer Olivia Regent (Lesley Anne-Down), whose fashion show is currently underway. You immediately feel sorry for Ms. Regent as you know her prospects for survival are somewhere between slim and none since Kersey’s her man. It doesn’t help matters when her ex-husband, awkwardly impotent mobster Tommy O’Shea (Michael Parks) shows up and starts physically abusing her and her employees. You see, O’Shea is trying to force his ex-wife to use her fashion business to help him launder money from his various criminal activities. Kersey tries to convince Olivia to go to District Attorney Brian Hoyle (Saul Rubinek) to try to put O’Shea away. Unfortunately, there’s corruption in the D.A.’s office in the form of Hector Vasquez (Miguel Sandoval), who passes the information back to O’Shea. From this point forward, Ms. Regent’s life is in serious jeopardy and we all know Kersey’s record of keeping his women alive isn’t that great. I won’t give the details away, but let’s just say that events conspire so that the cursed Kersey will have to resume his old vigilante ways in pursuit of a justice that can never be provided to him by the law.  

I remember vividly my first ever viewing of DEATH WISH V back in 1994. I put the videotape in the VCR and watched several previews that looked crappy and didn’t give me a lot of hope for the movie. And then it started, and I have to admit I enjoyed it from the very beginning to the end. I guess my expectations were so low that it was a major relief when I realized that it was a reasonably well-made, audience satisfaction movie designed for people like me who simply enjoy seeing Bronson acting as an instrument of justice. I thought Bronson looked good for an action star over 70 years old. I really liked the movie’s sense of humor. Michael Parks overacted to the point of parody as O’Shea, and the character of Freddie Flakes (Robert Joy) was especially fun as a hitman with major dandruff problems. And there was something about Charles Bronson that was different in comparison to some of the earlier entries. Then I realized what it was, Bronson was having fun. He took out the bad guys with things like poisoned cannolis and exploding soccer balls, all with a twinkle in his eyes. In the 70’s, Bronson made several movies where his characters had that twinkle. It was nice to see it back. Bad things happened of course, but director Allan A. Goldstein kept a tone of black comedy that suited the movie and its aging star well. 

Even in 1994, watching DEATH WISH V felt like the end, not just of the DEATH WISH series, but of Bronson’s time as a movie star. As his biggest fan, that made me kind of sad. He would only make 3 more TV movies after this, those being the FAMILY OF COPS TV movies. And while there are some who don’t like DEATH WISH V and seem to go out of their way to put it down, I’m exactly the opposite. To me, DEATH WISH V: THE FACE OF DEATH is a gift to Charles Bronson fans and an enjoyable end to his signature series!

DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN – a missed opportunity in my life!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

I’m on Day 4 of my discussion of Charles Bronson’s DEATH WISH series in chronological order. This series has brought me countless hours of entertainment over the last 40 years, so enjoy and let me know your thoughts!

DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN was a bit of a missed opportunity in my early years of Bronson fandom. Let me explain. In the mid-80’s I became Charles Bronson’s biggest fan, an honor I possibly share with a few others. As a part of that fandom, a 14-year-old Brad would scour every available source for information about my hero, which at that time was mainly the entertainment section of the Arkansas Democrat, my grandma’s tabloids, and, when I could get a ride, the magazine rack at the Hastings Entertainment Superstore. This in-depth search for information eventually lead to me discovering that DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN would be playing at the movie theater in Conway, AR in November of 1987. I was so excited that I might actually get to see Charles Bronson on the big screen for the first time ever. Unfortunately, there were several factors working against me. First, it was rated R, so I was completely dependent on an adult taking me. Second, it was released in November which was in the heart of basketball season, and the only thing that was above Bronson in my life was the basketball court, especially since my dad was my coach. And third, my parents would only consider taking me to the movies on “dollar night,” which was Tuesday and almost always conflicted with my basketball game schedule. I remember driving by the theater and seeing DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN listed on the marquee and longing to go see it.  Alas, the stars, and the factors above, all aligned against me, and I would not be able to watch the film during its 2-week run in Conway, Arkansas. At this point in his career, Cannon would give Bronson’s films a short theatrical release and then release them to the home video market where Bronson was still a true moneymaking superstar.  DEATH WISH 4 earned the equivalent in today’s dollars of around $20,000,000 at the box office before going on to sale over 100,000 VHS cassettes to rental stores. It was Bronson’s most successful rental release of the franchise.  

DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN opens with Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) having nightmares about the man he has become after a decade of meting out vigilante justice. He has moved back to Los Angeles where he keeps himself busy with his work as an architect, as well as his relationship with his new lady friend, Karen (Kay Lenz). When Karen’s daughter Erica dies of a drug overdose, Kersey immediately finds the drug dealer who sold her the stuff and shoots him dead. Unfortunately, soon after it seems that someone has pictures of Kersey doing his vigilante deeds, and he finds himself being coerced by millionaire Nathan White (John P. Ryan) into pitting the two primary criminal drug organizations against each other in a turf war in an attempt to get them to take each other out. Nathan White’s own granddaughter had been destroyed by drugs, and this is his way of getting back at the criminals responsible for her death. Kersey begins killing drug dealers, suppliers, day laborers, security detail, you name it; if you’re associated with drugs in any way, whether it be at a video store, fish packing plant, fine restaurant, or skyscraping apartment complex, you are fair game for death. Kersey is able to sufficiently convince the heads of the competing drug organizations that they are at war with each other. This all culminates at the oil fields, where Kersey, armed with a high-powered rifle, is perched above the meeting of the two gangs. With one fateful shot, he is able to ignite the all-out war he and Nathan White have been looking for. Finally, the streets of Los Angeles are free from the drugs that are sucking the life out of its citizens, right. Or are they?

It was on VHS in April of 1988 that I finally got to see DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN. It’s the first movie in the series not directed by Michael Winner. J. Lee Thompson took over the reins and created a slick action film that lacked the odd, but interesting touches that Winner provided, but made up for it with stronger craftmanship. DEATH WISH 4 is a balls to the wall action extravaganza that barely rests long enough for the audience to catch their breath. My personal favorite scene of the film is the oil field shootout that produced some really cool, iconic images of Bronson walking with his rifle as he was finishing off the bad guys. I’ve heard DEATH WISH 4 referred to as the “lost Death Wish” film because it is spoken of less than parts 1, 2, or 3, and that may even be true, but it’s actually a very strong entry in the series.  

As Paul Harvey might say, this is the “rest of the story” of me finally getting to see Charles Bronson on the big screen.  After DEATH WISH 4 ended its run, I don’t know of another Bronson film playing at my local theater from that point forward, and I would have to settle to watch MESSENGER OF DEATH, KINJITE, THE INDIAN RUNNER, and DEATH WISH V all on home video. Then, in the summer of 2022, I became aware that the Mahoning Drive-In in Lehighton, PA was programming a Charles Bronson night featuring THE MECHANIC, MR. MAJESTYK and DEATH WISH 3.  My wife and I drove 17 hours from our home in Arkansas to watch those three movies on the big screen.  It was the greatest “movie-night” of my life and something I’ll never forget.  So, all’s well that ends well!

BONUS: Jesse Dabson had a part in DEATH WISH 4: THE CRACKDOWN. Jesse was interviewed on the THIS WEEK IN CHARLES BRONSON PODCAST, where he told my partner Eric Todd, and fellow Buchinsky Boys Chris Manson and Ryan Voss, about his experiences working on DEATH WISH 4, as well as other projects like PLATOON LEADER and ONE FALSE MOVE. Give it a listen if you get a chance!