Paul Kersey is back at working vigilante justice when his fiancée, Olivia, has her business threatened by mobsters.


Paul Kersey is back at working vigilante justice when his fiancée, Olivia, has her business threatened by mobsters.




Under a new identity, Paul Kersey returns to New York City, seven long years after the events of Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987), to attend the glamorous fashion show of his fiancée, Olivia Regent. However, Olivia's criminal former husband, Tommy O'Shea, has other plans in store for her, and after a deadly confrontation, Paul finds himself back to square one. Now, once more, with the police unable, or unwilling, to get to the bottom of this bloody case, it is up to Kersey, the grizzled messenger of death, and his snub-nosed, .357 Magnum Smith and Wesson Model 66 revolver, to right a wrong, and see to it that justice is served. Is there an escape from Kersey, and the face of death?
Nick Riganas





SYNOPSIS

Back In New York City, Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) is in the federal Witness Protection Program using the name Paul Stuart, teaching architecture at a local college. Kersey is invited to a fashion show given by his girlfriend, Olivia Regent (Lesley-Anne Down), who was formerly married to mobster Tommy O'Shea (Michael Parks), and with whom he had a daughter Chelsea (Erica Lancaster). Backstage during the fashion show, O'Shea threatens Regent, insisting that he wants to see his daughter even though the courts removed his visitation rights.

O'Shea and his goons are using the garment factory to launder dirty money, and demand that Albert, the factory manager, increase the amount of cash they launder. Kersey sees the bruises on Regent's wrist and learns O'Shea is downstairs. O'Shea meanwhile threatens Albert and insists he has to pass more cash.

Albert resists, saying that it will create trouble, and O'Shea wounds Albert with a fabric knife. Reggie intervenes and is wounded as well. Reggie decides he has enough of O'Shea's abuse and takes Albert to the hospital. Tommy threatens Regent , and Kersey enters the factory floor. Kersey confronts O'Shea, but his goombah Tommy threatens Kersey and points a gun in his face. The daughter Chelsea appears and O'Shea leaves. Chelsea shows her mother the blood on the fabric knife.

NYPD officers Tony Hoyle (Saul Rubinek) and Hector Vasquez (Miguel Sandoval) visit Kersey at his home. Kersey tells them about Tommy O'Shea and Hoyle reveals that they've been trying to nab Tommy for years. He asks if Regent is willing to testify. Kersey will talk it over with her. That night at a restaurant, Kersey proposes to Regent, and she accepts. Regent excuses herself to go to the ladies' room after spotting Tommy. An associate of Tommy's, named Freddie Flakes (Robert Joy) enters the bathroom in drag and ties her up tightly, and tapes her mouth shut. While mocking her and lecturing her about her possible testimony, he bashes her head in a mirror, permanently disfiguring her face. Flakes leaves, passing Kersey as goes to check on Regent. Kersey goes to the hospital, where he is told by a nurse that Regent will need to have reconstructive surgery. He then talks with Lt. Mickey King (Kenneth Welsh), who admits that they've been working on the O'Shea case for 16 years. Kersey is angered by this, but King wants Kersey not to pick up his old vigilante habits and let the police handle it for once.

As this is going on, Tommy breaks into the factory and demands from Reggie information on who he talked to. He threatens him by burning his hand and face, before killing him. Lt. King and female officer Janice Omori (Lisa Inoue) set Albert up as an informant, but Sal sees through his act and runs Flakes down with the car, smashing through the window of a restaurant. Flakes then runs over Omori with the car, killing her. Kersey sees Omori die, but Flakes drives away before Kersey can do anything.

The next day, Kersey takes Regent back to his apartment and informs Hoyle by phone that Regent will not testify. He then goes over to Hoyle's house at night and says that she will: Kersey couldn't tell Hoyle over the phone because someone else was listening in. Hoyle informs Vasquez, and they send a cop over. The cop comes over and Kersey answers it. Kersey stops and hesitates at letting him in, recognizing the cop as being Flakes. Kersey informs Olivia to use the fire escape to make her quick getaway, as Flakes and two other men break in and start shooting the place. Flakes follows Regent up to the fire escape, and shoots her in the back. Kersey escapes by jumping off the ledge, and falling into a pile of trash bags. Franke, Chicki (Kevin Lund) and Sal (Chuck Shamata) move in for the kill, but sounds of police sirens interrupt their plans.

The following week, Kersey and Chelsea both mourn Regent 's death and watch TV to see that Tommy has been cleared of his involvement in his ex-wife's death. NYPD officer Tony arrives to offer his apologies to Paul, but Kersey orders him and the team sent to protect Kersey off his property. A short time later, Vazquez arrives with Tommy and handing him a court order: since Kersey wasn't legally married, Tommy has claim over his daughter. Kersey fights but gets knocked unconscious. Kersey now becomes a vigilante, and gets his gun ready.

Kersey follows Chicki to an Italian restaurant where he orders cannoli. While Chicki is in the restroom, Kersey laces it with cyanide. Chicki finishes one cannoli, but dies shortly after starting the second one, and as he is choking, Kersey pushes his face into the plate. Vasquez reveals to O'Shea that Chicki was killed by Paul. (Revealing two things at the same time: that Vasquez is dirty and O'Shea thought Kersey was his alias Stuart all along).

Paul's next target is Flakes who is in the bedroom with his big breasted girlfriend, whom he manages to take out in his fortress-like home and blows him up with a rigged electronic soccer ball. Kersey then calls Hoyle and arranges to meet with him privately. As Hoyle hangs up, he hears another conversation (which signals to him Kersey was right regarding an earlier conversation). Kersey waits at Regent 's house, holding one of Chelsea's dolls until Vasquez comes and points a pistol at Kersey. Without hesitation, Kersey shoots Vasquez. Hoyle arrives and sees Vasquez dead, and finally understands how far deep this goes and Kersey's vendetta mission. Hoyle is in cahoots with Tommy, but finally lets Kersey handle it his way. "I was never here" he tells Kersey as he leaves.

As a funeral procession for Flakes takes place at a local church attended by local mobsters, a young boy enters and gives O'Shea a receipt. Back at his headquarters, O'Shea's associates open the crate and it is revealed to contain the dead cop (Vasquez). Tommy talks to Sal back at his house, and the two resolve to take a final stand again Kersey by using Chelsea as bait. Sal grabs Chelsea and Kersey follows Sal, just as Tommy predicted.

Back at his house, Tommy hires three more men, Frankie (Scott Spidell), Mickey (Tim MacMenamin), and Angel (Sandro Limotta) to take care of Paul. Kersey arrives at the factory and using his survival instincts, tricks the three into shooting up a dummy in a forklift with the presumption that it's him. Kersey appears and kills Frankie and Mickey and wounds Angel in the leg. Angel is led by Kersey to the plastic machine. Kersey turns it on to wrap him in plastic. Angel reveals Chelsea's location, and is hooked up on the movable rack by Paul. He then radios O'Shea using Frankie's channel, announcing that he is coming for him. Chelsea hears this and easily escapes Tommy's grasp. O'Shea orders Sal to find and kill Kersey. He comes across Angel and mistaking him for Kersey, shoots him. Sal turns off the machine and continues to search. Kersey appears and knocks Sal into a grinder in the next room. The police soon arrive as Chelsea escapes the factory building. Inside, Kersey manages to find Tommy and beats him. Lt. King arrives and is quickly wounded by Tommy. Kersey manages to defeat Tommy by knocking him in a pool of acid, and leaves him to die.

The final scene shows Kersey making sure King is okay before he leaves, calling out "Hey Lieutenant, if you need any help, give me a call" before reuniting with Chelsea.