Ever since I can remember, my personal philosophy could always be reduced to three easily digestible nuggets of wisdom: marriage is wholly incompatible with love, raising children (at best) might approximate MontezumaÂs Revenge, and, damn it all, stand tall for something. Failing that, leave your mark on the world, even if that mark is both half-assed and trivial, like seeing how long you could go without taking a shit, or subsisting on Hot Pockets for a month. Having long since dispensed with hopes and dreams, or even the prospect of retiring from the world of work with anything greater than a ticket to homelessness and disease, IÂve settled on the next best thing: milk every last ounce of joy, interest, and trivia from Death Wish 3. ItÂs the turnip that keeps on giving, with a lifeblood that has all but come to define my existence. IÂve said it all, it seems, but I have no desire to stop talking. Looking at it anew (as I do), pretty much twice a day, IÂve decided to see where a bit of brainstorming could get me. A second set of ABCs? Perhaps. A fictional biography of Shriker after Kersey walks into the sunset? Not bad. A full script for a remake that imagines an even bloodier climax, complete with dirty bombs and gang rapes? It could go anywhere. It would go anywhere. And, like an internet Ivan Drago, I write for me. If you enjoy this latest round of DW3 minutiae, so much the better. If youÂre bored, disgusted, or appalled, IÂll promise only to write even more. So relax, kiddies, here it comes. The Unsung of Death Wish 3, Volume I: relevant to few, enjoyable to even less, and pretty much just a time-killer to keep the demons at bay.
Somewhat Good Samaritans: If you know the movie, you know the couple. Out for a stroll to their local death house/grocery store, they are seemingly without purpose, until, that is, poor Maria is distracted from her labors and thrown into the backseat of the car that will escort her from mute marital bliss to unwanted penetration, deafening roars, a broken arm, and ultimately, a heinous death in the worldÂs least credible hospital. They pop into frame, then out, but their stuttering, shivering mass betrays a noble goal: rescue, albeit one without reinforcements, aid, or weaponry. They say nothing, but move with purpose, even if they canÂt help but shake with leaf-like surrender. Were they hoping to stop the assault? How would they do it? Or, like the man says, were they simply perverts wanting to see what the kids are up to these days? They call no one. Yells or cries of concern? Forget it. But they did act, goddamn it. A woman in distress, and they took a chance. They could have been kidnapped themselves, or shot and left for dead, but they risked life, limb, and an early supper for a mere stranger. Or did they know Maria? Was there a hint of recognition before her Catholic tits spilled from her torn blouse? Maybe they helped her husband when they moved into the building. It will always remain a great mystery. But their shuffling betrayed a conscience. Not this time, they argued, even as they pissed their pants and moved on. IÂd like to think they hadnÂt the heart to continue shopping, but such is life in the big city, be it Kitty Genovese or our poor, doomed Maria.
Sistah Schadenfreude: Of all the movieÂs background players, few made their mark like the heartless, sociopathic African American sweetheart who smiled as she sipped from the cup of savagery. A man dies  the Giggler, akin to the neighborhoodÂs very own Carl Lewis  and sheÂs not only waving from the window with a glee usually reserved for hitting that weekÂs numbers, but later, at dawn, when the body has been discovered, sheÂs all up in that copÂs bidness like sheÂs spoiling for a fight. Okay, okay, youÂre taking joy in a manÂs death. Not so unexpected on a street where two of every three fail to come home at night, but what was his actual crime? Did he rape your sister? Split your daughterÂs thighs like the atom? Take a 2×4 to your cousin? From what we can gather, the Giggler stole her pocketbook. East Coast for purse, but itÂs just as likely it was only a wallet. And from how sheÂs dressed  from a natty robe to slippers that last knew greatness a decade prior  one has to believe said pocketbook housed more lint than coinage. A dollar at best, and even then it was already spoken for. But our good sister glories in the end of life like sheÂs finally cooked a casserole worth a damn. But who would dare suggest her laughter wasnÂt delightfully infectious? We too share in her spirit, and long after the Giggler has been dispatched to a pauperÂs grave, this lady will be reliving the details for anyone who cares to listen. The Giggler, still dead. Our fine lady, still toothy and terrific. Hear her roar, and bask in the greatness that is murder one.
Jailed, but Not Forgotten: Why heÂs behind bars, no one knows. His stretch, an even greater mystery. A week? A month? Twenty to life? It doesnÂt take a soothsayer to know heÂs likely been set down in a corner like a potted plant and left to figure it out on his own. An actual indictment, like an education beyond the third grade, a mere pipe dream. And who the hell is Miranda? But amidst anarchy, heÂs crafted a set of rules. Stay out of his space, for one, and donÂt question his skills as a plumber. Sure, he tore out a toilet, but had you really planned on using the thing? After all, who could ever hope to poop when your surroundings are more stuffed than a Marx Brothers stateroom? Still, interrogations and knowing looks lead to attacks. Only heÂs not as brave as his hulking frame would suggest. A coward at heart, heÂs best when your back is turned. But as much as he canÂt (and wonÂt) play fair, heÂs also molasses-slow and lumbering to boot. So while heÂs raising his arms for the fight, you can pause, reflect, and spin, launching the poor ox into the cellÂs bars like an errant missile. Bloodied, but unbowed, he will live another day. But heÂs wiser by half. Once bitten, twice shy. Fool him twice, sure as shit shame on him. As he rubs his aching pumpkin, heÂs plotting his next move. Get the hell outta here, any which way you can. That one guyÂs leaving, and he murdered a little old lady. He also has an attorney. Private counsel, to be sure, since he seems to give a fuck. YouÂd make a phone call, but the other end might never pick up. Static at best, in lieu of a caring soul.
Slap-Happy Grandma: Like Howard Beale, she wasnÂt going to take it anymore. All told, two dozen purses stolen. Her prized Chevy Impala? Burnt to a cinder. SheÂd lament the firebombing, but she had a murdered husband to bury. Adding to that, and any other headache of your choosing, sheÂd been raped (twice), chased, threatened, punched, kicked, and damn near hit by an out of control bus. That is, before they canceled that line altogether. But now isnÂt a time for tears. Or playing the victim. They done stole it all, and still they came. The bums, the beggars, the overly aggressive punks who may or may not be the lead singer from Living Colour. After all, a fixed income canÂt feed the world. So enough is enough. A badass came to call, and she said no. No hesitation, reflection, or second-guessing. Fuck no, I hadnÂt got any change, and stop asking. Just in case the message wasnÂt sinking in, a double-barreled slap for extra insurance. Protection money, you say? AinÂt no one protecting my pussy last week. You got a number when some fuck steals my television? GrandmaÂs on to them all. ItÂs a racket, and play time is over. Fine, maybe it took that Kersey fella to send some balls our way. But now that we have Âem, weÂre gonna use Âem. Our little Rosa Parks, she refused to sit down. Sure, she might have gotten shot between the eyes just three days ago, by the winds of change blow cold in this here ghetto. Get busy living, or get busy being beaten with a brick.
Broom Hilda: No one would have blamed her for blasting the fuck with a shotgun. Armed to the teeth seems to have been the default position, but she wasnÂt going to give in to fear. Besides, werenÂt those punk-loving cops confiscating all the firearms in the area? Or maybe they were just harassing the Jews. No, our good lady loved her home, thank you very much, and, per her upbringing, insisted on keeping it immaculate. It was little slice of heaven in a neighborhood where renterÂs insurance long ago stopped being affordable. Something about the nightly burglaries and all. And guns would only add to the clutter. Just something else to be stolen and sold to the highest bidder. Ever the logician, she stocked her place with the undesirable and unwanted, from books to cleaning supplies, with a box of birth control as the proverbial cherry. So it stands to reason that when the latest riot broke out  the one approximating the siege at Stalingrad  sheÂd use whatever was handy to thwart the inevitable rage (and disappointment) of the poor sap who decided to attack the blockÂs lone neat freak. On that fateful day, despite the smoke and fumes and roars of death, she kept sweeping. Back and forth, back and forth, whipped up by the frenzy of dust-free promise. And then, around the fourth hour of wrathful brooming, he arrived. Unarmed, but wide-eyed and erect. HeÂd take what he wanted, leave her die, pausing only for a ham sandwich. But she had her instrument of clean. Hoisting it aloft like a righteous blade, she sent the man back. And down. And to his maker. And with that, sheÂd clean up the broken glass and return to her chores. And her very own ham sandwich.
See Also: Death Wish 3 – 25 Years of Memories by Matt Cale, and the 80’s Action review of Death Wish 3.