Not a big Schumacher fan either (goes to show how filmmaking is a collaborative effort that sometimes sidesteps the weakest link), but I liked the movie at the time. It does seem relevant today (if not prescient). It seems that about half the time after someone (usually a white man) goes on a murderous rampage, friends and neighbors express their surprise that he could have done so. We all need to be aware that in the right circumstances (to paraphrase Noah Cross) any of us is capable of anything.

Another strength of the storyline is that while viewers "enjoy" De Fens' acts of revenge, they also want him to be caught, unlike vengeance porn films (e.g. the Death Wish series) that bring out the worst instincts in the audience--for a buck.