Charles Bronson Kills Hipsters – Rated PG (Mildly NSFW)

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Imagine an era of movie action heroes who actually look as though they could kick your butt. There was such a time, not so long ago, when masculine men strode the Earth and walked directly into trouble firing very big guns at very bad guys without being all conflicted about it afterwards.

A Purple Heart recipient for his service in WWII as an aerial gunner, Charles Bronson was the unlikeliest of movie stars. Born in 1921, his early success as a supporting player in legendary films such as “The Magnificent Seven” and “The Great Escape” didn’t occur until he was into his 40s and genuine super-stardom finally hit when he was in his 50s, starting with Michael Winner’s “Death Wish” in 1974.

Most critics dismissed Bronson’s acting as wooden and most of his films “reactionary” and “ultra-violent,” but he remained a bankable star in low-budget genre films until he was well past the age of 70. And when he did star in the kind of films critics approve of, such as Sean Penn’s “The Indian Runner” in 1991, they would suddenly find him praise-worthy.

Charles Bronson was a star over four decades because he was absolutely believable in the roles he chose, had as much screen presence and charisma as Clint Eastwood and John Wayne, led a quiet personal life that never shattered his image, gave his fans what they were looking for, and while he wasn’t always a fan of his own films he never let a sense that he was above the material bleed into his performance.

If you’re looking for a Charles Bronson Netflix starter kit, let me suggest:

Once Upon a Time In the West, Chato’s Land, The Mechanic, The Stone Killer, Death Wish 1 & 2, Breakout, Death Hunt, The Evil That Men Do, and Murphy’s Law.

The best of that bunch is 1982’s “Death Wish 2.” At 60 years-old, Bronson was at the very peak of his menacing masculinity, Jimmy Page’s scoring is beyond inspired, and you’re never going to see a more satisfyingly straight-forward revenge film like this again. As an added bonus, director Michael Winner’s iconic shots of a determined and deadly Bronson dressed head-to-toe all in black against the time capsule of early eighties L.A., are some of my favorites in all of film.

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God won’ t make another Charles Bronson, which is why He gave us DVD.