About as perfect as a ’70s B-movie thriller could be, Mr. Majestyk is nothing fancy but gets the job done. Charles Bronson is a tough, reasonably (but, in the Bronson manner, enormously understated) smart-ass melon farmer with a history and a deep anti-authoritative streak. He ends up tangling with mob hitman Frank Renda (the absurdly-inflated and -mustachioed Al Lettieri). He is cool. He says a little of this, but not too much. He takes a while to throw a punch, warns you it’s coming, and when it comes it’s over fast. The action is exciting, but the film is paced casually. It’s well-shot. Richard Fleischer directed. And Elmore Leonard wrote the script, so it’s smart and shorn of fat and silly exposition. I saw at least part of this on television some years ago, but worth the repeat showing. Good stuff.
Interestingly, imdb says Lettieri died in ’75, but then appeared in a few films/shows up ’til ’85. I will have to take a looksee at how undead Lettieri compares.