Movie Review: Death Sentence
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What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this revenge drama/thriller isn't
for kids in any way. Following the transformation of an
orderly, mild-mannered insurance executive into a brutal
killer, the film is basically a series of violent acts, each
one payback for the one that preceded it. Bloody violence
includes shooting, stabbing, fighting, and car chases and
crashes. In one scene, a young man enters a motel room with a
prostitute hired by his brother (but nothing explicit is
shown). There are references to drug trade and use, as well as
some smoking and drinking and lots of language, particularly
"f--k."
Families can talk about the film's messages about both family and revenge. How does vengeance become a way of showing loyalty in this movie? Does the movie support or argue against that idea? How? Do you think any of the violence is justified? Why or why not? Is violence ever the right response to a wrong done against someone? Why do we see so much of that in the movies?
Common Sense Media Review
Early in DEATH SENTENCE there's an extended -- and, frankly,
astounding and entertaining -- chase. Desperate to wreak
vengeance on a killer, a gang of large-weapons-wielding thugs
hightails it through pedestrians, traffic, and garbage-strewn
alleys, and up and down the multiple tiers of a parking garage.
Their loudly sputtering, obscenity-inflected wrath is set
against the inarticulate vulnerability of their prey, Nick Hume
(
Kevin
Bacon). His business suit increasingly frayed and bloodied,
his options decreasing by the instant, Nick runs for long
minutes as the camera tracks him -- in profile, from behind,
and from below -- making a series of desperate and oddly
fortuitous choices. Nick is no action hero. He's barely a
survivor.
It's a strange, even exhilarating sequence, partly because it makes no sense, mirroring Nick's rapid descent into chaos. It's no coincidence that he starts out as an insurance executive who firmly believes that there is order in the universe. When his son, a high school senior, is randomly killed in a gang initiation rite and the district attorney sees no chance for a conviction, Nick tries to create what he calls a "balance." But killing shooter Joey (Matt O'Leary) only makes Joey's brother angry. Soon the film, scripted by Death Wish writer Brian Garfield, turns into a series of vengeful actions, each bloodier than the one before.
Inevitably, the violence affects Nick's family, including his wife, Helen ( Kelly Preston), and his younger, traumatized son (Jordan Garrett). As Nick develops outrageous skills -- he's suddenly an expert shooter, driver, and fighter, even though he also suffers excruciating consequences (falling, tripping, bleeding) -- he receives precious little help from the local cops. Though Detective Wallis ( Aisha Tyler) means well (and shows up at every crime scene, as if she's the only cop in town), she can't provide the sort of effective response to home invasions and daylight assaults that Nick does.
James Wan's movie is smart enough about its generic limits: The violence is ragingly B, and the cops always steps behind. While the film resembles Taxi Driver -- even quoting precise images during the final shootout -- this "new" vigilante movie offers a different anti-hero. Here it's not the loner or the outsider who seeks redress by insane means, it's the family man, the guy who loses hope in the very system he's always trusted. When Nick meets another father, a gun salesman named Bones ( John Goodman), he's briefly appalled by the man's complete rejection of a monstrous son. But by this time Nick's own morality is so skewed and incoherent that he only nods at his new friend, eyes hard and jaw jutting, the low angle making you wonder which dad is the baddest.
Fans might want to see Wan's other movies, including Saw and Dead Silence . More nuanced representations of vengeance include The Basketball Diaries , In the Bedroom , and A History of Violence .
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
