Charles Bronson undoubtedly remains one of the most iconic tough guys of the big screen. His muscular physique, chiseled face, and minimal facial expressions (beware when he squints his eyes!) made him more of a physical than a verbal actor; a man of few words who let his fists or firearms do the talking. Born in 1921 as Charles Dennis Buchinski in a destitute Lithuanian immigrant family in Pennsylvania, he began his career in coal mines and only started taking acting lessons in California after his military service during World War II. In 1960s Hollywood, he became a character actor with significant supporting roles in action films like The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, and The Dirty Dozen. He truly became a successful actor when he crossed the Atlantic in 1968 to shine in Europe in Sergio Leone's spaghetti western Once Upon A Time in the West, the French heist thriller Adieu l'ami, at the recommendation of and alongside Alain Delon, and ultimately as the lead in Sergio Solima's Violent City. Bronson became so popular that the French nicknamed him "le sacre monstre," and the Italians affectionately called him "Il brutto" (the ugly one).

He returned home to conquer the American market, which he eventually did with his iconic role as a vigilante in Death Wish, a film directed by Michael Winner. By the mid-1970s, Bronson was a megastar and one of the world's top box office attractions (including success in Asia and the Middle East). Bronson made a total of 6 action films with Michael Winner, including Death Wish 2 and, over a decade after the original film, the completely insane third installment. The 64-year-old Bronson, whose career was on the decline at that point, reluctantly agreed and did his thing with his usual flair, but the real stars of the film are the unbelievable amount of senseless violence, the mind-boggling body count, and the massive plot holes that the filmmakers managed to cram into this action vehicle.