10 to Midnight (1983)

Charles Bronson is probably best remembered for playing characters that operated outside of the law. In 10 to Midnight he plays a seasoned police lieutenant named Kessler whose duty requires him to stay within it. His partner is a younger man (Andrew Stevens) who strives to meet Kessler's standards; he's okay with the situation, until he's required to meet his own. The duo hunt an ego-driven serial killer (Gene Davis) who murders with a knife while naked.
Even though it's a police drama, it relies on Bronson's anti-hero persona much of the time. The violence walks a fine line between exploitative and daring, but may not seem like either if unfairly judged by today's standards.

2½ poker hands out of 5

Cape Fear (1962)

Sam Bowden is a rich attorney with a big house, young daughter and beautiful wife. They’re the kind of family that on weekends probably enjoy cream cakes on their generous sized lawn, without a care in the world. Into their peaceful existence comes Max Cady, an ex-con with a reason to make Sam’s life a living hell and the means to do so.
What makes the film more than just another average 1960s thriller is the threatening nature of Mitchum as a creepy, violent stalker, and the tense, knife-edge Bernard Herrmann music that accompanies him. Even when being friendly, Mitchum’s supremely menacing.

4 steady footsteps out of 5

Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987)

Bronson was pension age when he made DW 4 but he could still shoot a perp from a few hundred yards, so it's not too much of a hindrance. He's after the drug-pushers this time, but instead of gunning down expendable and easily replaceable L.A street thugs, he goes after the mob bosses that orchestrate the shipments. The film lacks any kind of cohesion or sense of drama and it'll be obvious even to the most casual of viewers that the love interest is there for one reason alone, and no matter how hard I try I can't muster up any enthusiasm to continue this post. End.

1 hors d'oeuvre out of 5

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)

The original simian saga ended with a sequel to the Theatrical Cut of the previous film. It's a story of Caesar told in flashback. Twelve years after the end of the human/ape war the two races live side by side but aren't equal. The apes rule. The humans work the fields and clean the apes' houses. There's peace, yes, but it's an uneasy one held in place by fear and one-sided politics.
I suppose it's possible that the entire ape population could've learned to speak by this stage, but it does seem highly improbable.
The script tries hard to inject moments of real feeling by comparing and contrasting the family unit with the civil one, but even when tragedy strikes it doesn't hit as hard as it should have. And while the Kane and Abel element does its job well enough, the whole film feels unnecessary.

1½ paths rebuilt out of 5

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

Part four continues the circular narrative, showing the reasons for the bloody revolution that established the ape society as it existed in Parts I and II.
It's interesting that even years later some apes wore the colours of the suits given to them by man. With the emphasis on slavery being what it is, I like to think the filmmakers were aware of what that implies and didn't use it simply as a cheap and easy way to differentiate the ape types.
Conquest probably won't win any new fans on its own merits, but it ought to keep existing ones content. So unless you're already fully invested in the symbolism of the world, then you may want to give it a miss.

3 true colours out of 5

EDIT: the blu-ray has two versions of the film, a Theatrical Cut and a slightly longer Unrated Cut. The two versions differ in how the final act plays out. The Unrated cut is the one that's arguably the more memorable of the two.