Death Kiss

After reading some of the reviews I'm not sure what people expected from this movie! It's a fun retro-throwback action film with lots of gore, synth music, and sexy ladies. I'm not sure what else you could want from a movie in this genre but in my opinion this movie delivers on what it advertises.

I stumbled upon "Death Kiss" and decided to watch it solely for the reason of the movie's cover/poster. I did watch all the old Charles Bronson "Death Wish" movies and enjoyed those - unlike the remake with Bruce Willis.

I like how this movie keeps you in the dark, because you have no idea if this is supposed to be Paul Kerns or not, the character portrayed by Charles Bronson. But the similarities are there in abundance, not only by physical similarity between Charles Bronson and Robert Bronzi.

While the storyline is simplistic in "Death Kiss", it is very true to the storylines in the "Death Wish" movies, as they were also mostly unstructured like this movie, whereas not a whole lot is happening narratively throughout the course of the movie, but it all seems mostly like fragments of action put together for a greater picture.

I was adequately entertained by "Death Kiss" and it was a nice surprise actually. If you enjoyed the old Charles Bronson "Death Wish" movies, then you should definitely take the time to watch "Death Kiss" as well.

The movie has an interesting cast. First and foremost, there is Robert Bronzi who not only has an uncanny resemblance to Charles Bronson, but also has a lot of his mannerisms and gestures nailed down in place. It was much like actually watching Charles Bronson on the screen. Daniel Baldwin was actually also doing a good job in the movie, despite having a minor role only. And it was actually fun to see Richard Tyson on the screen again in a villanous role.

All in all, "Death Kiss" is entertaining for what it is. Just don't expect a major drama here with plot hooks, surprises and twists, because that is not in here. This is action, this is homage, this is a trip down memory lane for the most of us.

This movie has a few good points and a few flaws as well. It has a fairly decent story line and even better camera work. Scenes with a hand held camera were far better than big budget shaky cam movies. Dialogue had its ups and downs. The acting for the most part was only B rated and needed a lot of work except for Dan Forthright played by Daniel Baldwin. He did a good job delivering his lines, especially the radio dialogue. Robert Bronzi (Robert Kovacs) who plays the stranger looks a little like Bronson and I hope his acting improves with time and experience. The cleavage and bare breast scenes were done modestly and added a little spice to the movie. I like a little gore in a movie, but the exploding blood splatter in this movie were comically obvious. Fans of the Charles Bronson Death Wish movies might get a kick from this one. For a low budget Inde film it's not too bad, 5 of 10.

Death Kiss stars the Charles Bronson lookalike, Robert Kovacs, a.k.a. Bronzi, and you can see why he's been given the nickname. He not only has the look, but the mannerisms of Bronson, which make the film work. I found myself smiling while watching Kovacs roam the mean streets, with the 80's style score accompanying him. He's out looking for trouble, and he certainly finds plenty of it...thugs, drug dealers and pedophiles, and he doesn't mind taking out the trash. Lots of blood to go round and plenty of action that will please a fan of the 80's stlye Bronson films like Death Wish and The Evil that Men do. There are some minor distractions in the film that I'm not even going to list, because based on budget and how much the director contributed to this film, as far as directing and providing the score, I think those involved did a solid job of bringing back something to life that will certainly please. Bronzi, Baldwin, Tyson and the small part by Stormi Maya were standouts to me. Dive in to this film expecting lots of blood, mayhem and of course...fun.

Perez's story is a straightforward tribute to classic vigilante b-movies, most notably a tribute to the "Death Wish" franchise, and original gun carrying bad a** Charles Bronson. Take one part vigilante , add equal parts criminal , uber bad guys and disgusting assaults and atrocious acts against women. ..viola! It is classic and timeless. And just as the films before it, "Death Kiss" serves up an action driven bloodbath.

The film is not without flaws, budget restraints and writing down weaken when pushed further than the cast and production can handle. Luckily dialog is, for the most part, short - to the point, and simple through most of the film. The choice of Daniel Baldwin'so character to handle the real hefty dialog as a bridge between audience and plot details is a smart move, and Baldwin shines. That and the fact that Kovacs is nearly devoid of dialog, letting his actions speak brutally sharp for him creates a nice, and entertaining movie experience.

There are also a few flaws in the effects, again, obvious budget concerns put Perez at a limit of what can be achieved. He does a pretty decent job. Aside from the cheap "buzz kill" moments of CGI blood splatter and barral flashes, "Death Kiss" has some cool practical carnage stuff. Done pretty close to realistic the gore and bloodshed work. The overall effect of the movie is a tight, low-budget indie flick fitting somewhere between crime exploitation and grindhouse action film. Definitely worth checking out if you're a crime thriller, vigilante Bronson fan