Vigilante crime wave

We haven't seen a pure vigilante picture in a while, and now we've got two of them ("The Brave One," "Death Sentence") at the local movie house. I comment on the mini-trend in tomorrow's Washington Times. My story examines why two such features are coming out now, at a time when Iraq and global warming, not the thug around the corner, are the fears du jour.
"The Brave One" is the superior picture in nearly every way, but while it strives for a higher moral ground, it's essentially a slick, mainstream thriller. The recent "Death Sentence" offers standard action, spiked by Kevin Bacon's stoic work as the family man who snaps after violence hits his home.