Punisher: War Zone Movie
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Storyline
TAGLINES
Vengeance has a name.
After hunting down and killing hundreds of violent criminals, Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, faces his most deadly foe yet: Jigsaw.
| Ray Stevenson | Frank Castle, The Punisher |
| Dominic West | Billy Russoti, Jigsaw |
| Cas Anvar | Plastic Surgeon |
| Jon Barton | ICE team leader |
| Tony Calabretta | Detective Saffiotti |
| Larry Day | Agent Miller |
| Doug Hutchison | Looney Bin Jim |
| Wayne Knight | Linus Lieberman, Microchip |
| Keram Malicki-Sánchez | Ink |
| Dash Mihok | Det. Martin Soap |
| Romano Orzari | Nicky Cavella |
| Steven P. Park | Huge Asian Banger |
| Lexi Alexander |
6.80 out of 10 (3896 votes)
Visitor Reviews
The best Punisher Movie so far but...
posted on 28 Aug 2009I like this movie.Ray Stevenson is great as Punisher. His character looks pretty much like Frank Castle known from the pages of comic-book series(at last!). New Punisher is the brightest thing in this movie but there won't be 10 out of 10 because many things are annoying me...1.Loony Jim character. Jigsaw's brother is so stupid that watching him was real torture every time. I know- he's a real psycho, but unfortunately most irritating character, too...This movie would be much, much better without him. 2.Morality of Punisher.I'm sick of it.The cemetery scene was OK and understandable, but later...What is this? Real Punisher should be more gritty and cold-hearted.To the end. No little girls (calling him a good man(sic!)and grateful moms(who would forgive murderer so quickly? Even if he just "make a mistake"?).3.Some scenes: -Loony Jim attacking fat man. It was OK. But for what purpose camera shows us as Jim eats fat man's guts? It was pointless.-Maginty is killed with punisher style.OK. But when Frank jumps directly on his head from the roof...It was just stupid. -Final scene with saving people... I hate saving scenes in the movies...It's so repetitive...Director once more tries to justify Punisher by this scene. But he forgot he is NO HERO. He is maniac and ruthless killer as his victims. And no little girl should like him, especially when he killed her father before(as was said above...).Not brilliant movie: there's a few stupid or pointless moments(and Loony Jim character...) but the slaughter in the dining room is priceless;)If you like Punisher, you would like this movie, too.
Absolutely Terrible
posted on 28 Aug 2009I, being an avid fan of the first Punisher, was somewhat disappointed when I heard Thomas Jane was not going to be in this movie, since he did a kickass job of the first movie.I started to get more disappointed when I heard that he had dropped out because he didn't like the script or the fact that the budget was cut.Since I didn't get a chance to see this in theatres, I recently was able to see a version of it online. From what I saw, this movie is absolutely terrible. The acting is so bad, and so utterly scripted that how they weren't doing more than one take per scene, or at least getting the best takes of the scene is beyond me. Ray is a terrible Punisher. Absolutely terrible. He's far too broody and annoying to be as good as Tom Jane was.The other major complaint I have besides the acting is the effects. The Punisher is not a Saw movie, nor is Frank Castle John Rambo. The sheer amount of violence in this movie was so over the top, but yet not in the least bit satisfying that they should have spent more money buying better actors.I'm going to quickly compare this to Rambo IV. Rambo IV was so utterly violent, but yet it was satisfying. If you enjoy violence then it kept you satisfied for several months.The Punisher does not suffer from that. Not in the least.never mind that Jigsaw was such a terrible villain. Travolta's Howard Saint did such a better job of being a bad guy.Overall, terrible. Absolutely terrible. If you're a fan of the original Punisher, do not see this one. If you like good action movies, do not see this. There is no reason to watch this movie actually.
One of the Worst movies ever
posted on 28 Aug 2009If i could have given this a negative rating i would have. Absolutely horrid. Bad script. Check. Stupid ridiculous action. Check. Bad acting. Check. This is right up there with Babylon AD. It was totally pointless and should not in any way have been made or released. I hope absolutely NO ONE from this movie ever makes another film. From the studio to the director to the actors to the writers. NO ONE!!! Anything short of being totally blackballed would be a travesty for us all. More violence doesn't always mean better. Might wanna include some good dialog. No wonder Thomas Jane turned this "career killer" down. I really don't have ANYTHING good to say about this movie. It's terrible and anyone who says otherwise is prolly working for the studio.
This Is What The Punisher Is All About
posted on 26 Aug 2009Having watched ALL the punisher movies this is by far the best. It has everything you want from a pure punisher movie. Bad guys galore guns scenes every 5 mins and action action action , This movie really delivers where the others failed to. Be warned though its NOT for those with a weak stomach. Some serious gore and gunshots show heads exploding and numerous realistic gun shot victims. Frank Castle in this is superb and limits his vocals and acting and sticks to what he does best. Kicking butt.... Rent this without a doubt a good action flick but be carefull no minors or faint hearted should watch.
A Punisher movie as it should be
posted on 24 Aug 2009While cleaning the city from corrupts, the Punisher commits a mistake which creates the Jigsaw and leaves a policeman dead. The character development and story is just great. Some people may complain that there is too much blood and violence but this is Punisher and this is the way it is. I think fan boys will like this movie but this is definitely not for people searching chick flick action. This is a movie without a single drop of romance. It is just action, killing and blood. I liked it much since it is not trying to give messages or trying to put silly jokes to cover up a stupid plot. It is a very serious movie, focused and giving to the audience what it promises. Yes, he is killing tens of men just himself but just remember, this The Punisher and this is a Punisher movie as it should be.
Punisher: War Zone delivers on the brutal violent action!
posted on 24 Aug 2009OK first off I just came back from the midnight show and was pleasantly surprised by the time the movie started there was a lot of people at my showing. We loved the movie, nice kills definitely worth price of admission. Considering the low budget ala Desperado I give kudos to Lexi & crew for doing what they did for not so much money. Ray Stevenson is like a tank in this movie mowing down bad guys like a piece of cake (yeah he doesn't say much because he's too busy kicking ass). I wish Micro was used a bit more, but if you don't like this character you'll be cool with that. This movie I do agree is flawed but the action and the extreme brutality of it makes you overlook it. The intro is really cool (you can tell it's a comic book movie so prepare to suspend reality) and the mansion scene at the beginning is beyond awesome. Ray is a killing machine. Now the Villains are over the top and even cheesy at times but it's a good cheesy. The movie does seem a bit rushed and edited...so I believe in the future we'll get an extended or unrated cut. Just from the general opinions people were expressing right after the movie almost everyone found this Punisher better than the 2004 one and definitely better than 1989 one. Julie Benz was actually not bad at all in this, Dominic & Doug enjoyed being evil and you can tell they had fun but I would have liked to see more of them causing chaos and havoc. Ink and Pittsy were good and pretty funny at times. All and all an awesome Punisher flick, doesn't pretend to be anything else or hold any punches. Not every comic book movie can be a Dark Knight or Iron Man. Just go in with no expectations and enjoy the Punisher punishing and blowing up the corrupt. The heavy metal and the soundtrack was used very little throughout the movie, mostly score which rocked and fit the movie very well. I have no idea how this movie will perform but I hope it does well at the box office because I would love to see where Ray takes this character in the next chapter.Love it or hate it judge for yourself!
Watch it with vengeance
posted on 20 Aug 200926 minutes into the movie and I said my first word out loud "NEWMAN" and a punisher who reminds me of Till Linderman (Lead singer of Rammstein), and yes even in his flashbacks.... it was an pleasant surprise.... The action scenes were larger than life and FULL of GORE, and thats exactly what one can expect from a punisher movie. I mean cmon this guy is called "THE ANGEL OF DEATH", it isn't supposed to be all sugary and flowery. In the 1st punisher (2004) it was a new beginning and so the vulnerable side and emotional change was welcome, but this was obvious that the punisher had to be kick ass and a merciless vigilante. I really enjoyed this movie. Don't expect a master piece like "The Dark Knight", but its pretty good. Better than the 1st Punisher (2004).... If you don't mind blood and gore (and even better if you like it), then its a very good entertainment, with a nice little story (nothing unseen or awesome but descent) And it was worth it to see a THIN NEWMAN....before I sign off wanted to say one thing Me (disgusted and irritated) : "Newman"
i 'axed' you a question......
posted on 20 Aug 2009Infamous vigilante, anti-hero Frank Castle is six years into his vengeance driven zeal as the Punisher when he brutally assaults a "beat the rap" party for notorious mob boss Gaitano Cesare. During the course of the massacre, he hideously disfigures overeager gangster Billy Russoti and murders a mafia lackey who turns out to be an undercover FBI agent.Agent Paul Budiansky, the ex-partner of the undercover Fed, joins the NYPD's "Punisher Task Force" to help bring Castle to justice, once and for all.A facially mutilated Russoti recovers from his run-in with the Punisher with revenge on his mind and recruits a massive army of psychotic killers, gang-bangers, and mobsters under his new alias "Jigsaw."Distraught that he has now become the very evil he swore to battle, Castle is content to hang up his guns and quit the justice business for good. However, plans quickly change once he learns that Jigsaw has kidnapped the surviving wife and child of the dead federal agent.Forced back into the war, the Punisher now has to face off against Jigsaw's formidable army in order to save the lives of an innocent family his actions put on firing line....after reading the reviews of this on this site, i was looking forward to a hark back to the eighties, a good old fashioned action movie which would be exciting and stupid.well it was stupid, but never exciting, Stevenson had to be one of the worse choices to play the titular character, he has absolutely nothing about him and wastes the character.another thing that bugged me was how much the transformation of Jigsaw reminded me of Nicholsons transformation into the Joker from Burtons Batman.West was good as Jigsaw, didn't overact too much and bought a bit of fun to the role.all in all, this is the disappointment i was expecting when i heard Jane was not going to be in this sequel.
watchable, but not the masterpiece...
posted on 18 Aug 2009------------ ------------------ ---------------------- ----------------------------- ------------------ ---------------------- -----------------------usually I'm a fan of all comic based movies, but story isn't just enough for showing a good movie. i accepted better acting for this kind of movie. but those who haven't red the comic, i recommend to see this. i hope marvel will release more pieces in the future from the comic stars, and i hop to see sometimes a story where the star is valiant, not hero (whe have those colorful comic valiant, witch deserve a movie)------------ ------------------ ----------------------- ----------------------------- ------------------ ----------------------- --------------------------
Close But NO Cigar
posted on 16 Aug 2009As a huge Punisher fan i looked forward to seeing this, Even though i had heard nothing but Bad comments and after renting and watching this today i know why it was a straight to DVD movie. The movie it self is OK but could have been done a lot better, Its suffered from lack of Character development, Story line and crap characters like LBJ. Ray Stevenson is a OK Punisher but no Jane and is almost pushed into the background with next to know lines and less scenes then the villains. Dominic West is a great villain way too good for this movie its almost sad that he is wasted, Which is more then can be said for LBJ which is probley the dumbest and most freaking stupid character in movie history. All in all is was a OK C-Movie, But will sadden any TRUE Punisher fan, Since what it could, should and would have been.....Well at least we still have the Tom Jane and Doph Ludgren movies.
Real hardcore action for the fans.
posted on 16 Aug 2009First of all i watched this movie with really high expectations and i believed that i was gonna get disappointed. Boy did i have wrong. This movie was amazing. I have been reading the punisher comics since i was a kid and started reading the punisher MAX comics a couple of months ago And this movie Really has the same feel as the MAX comics. The violence and action is top notch and really gory. Ray Stevenson does a very good job as the punisher. Ray IS the punisher. I must say that i did not like jigsaw that much. He seemed to be very overacted. But the action and Ray makes up for that. So this movie is a strong 8/10 and the second best hardcore action movie to be released these last 2 years after Rambo 4.(note that i don't consider TDK to be hardcore action)I really recommend it.Sorry for bad English.
Should have been an XBOX 360 game, instead of a movie.
posted on 16 Aug 2009Another reboot of the violent comic book, known as The Punisher. First in 1990 The Punisher was introduced, in a straight to video release, followed an annoying bland performance by Dolph Lungren. You figured it was done for, until in 2004, the story gets a reboot, starring Thomas Jane as Frank Castle/The Punisher. And what was great about that was, is that there was no comic book fantasy to it, the story was played very gritty and real. Now it's 2008, and you're right, no Thomas Jane, and I bet because of that, the story gets another reboot, and now starring Ray Stevenson is now in the title role. And in my opinion, if Thomas Jane was starring in it, it probably would have a different story, and most likely a better one.The Punisher(Ray Stevenson) is still at large, it has been years since the murder of Frank Castles family. Once again going using his military training to take out the biggest of all criminals, but one night things don't go to well, while thinking he is taking down some big mob boss, Frank shoots a right hand man, only to find out he is an undercover FBI agent. The guilt of that begins to eat Frank alive, the pain he caused the mans family. Frank wants to quit being The Punisher after that. But a disfigured criminal named Jigsaw(Dominic West) wants revenge on The Punsiher at any costs, and does not care who he has to kill or what ladder he has to climb .Now Thomas Jane performance as The Punisher was played more straight forward, and too the point. But Ray Stevenson was more bland, and he seems to bring no interest to the film, the way Thomas Jane did. And the film at times did not know to be an action film or a satire of an action film. Because it was hard to get into the film, when most of it appears to be played for laughs. And Dominic West, a terrific actor, but can't seem to bring the film above water, the way Heath Ledger did for The Dark Knight. Because he also seems to be playing for laughs, instead of trying to be incredibly menacing. The action and violence is played like an XBOX 360 game, maybe it should have been a game. This Punisher is basically a poor mans Batman.
Punisher: The Junk Movie
posted on 14 Aug 2009This is one of the worst action movies I have seen. I enjoy action films as much as any other but i can't take JUNK.The only two good actors were Ray Stevenson (Punisher) and Colin Salmon (Black FBI guy; he was the commando leader in Resident Evil) after that it seems every body else was picked at the streets and it shows; and the dialog seems to have been written by an 8 years older.Jesus now I understand why Thomas Jane and the original director quit the movie.And the Jigsaw guy was a joke for a villain, he acted like a retard villain from a BAD TV show. And all that fake Italian/NY/mafia accent was pain to the ears. He was not scary at all, he was pathetic. Trust me the Joker from "Dark Knight" beat him fair and square.I had my doubts when I learned the director, Lexi Alexander, was a first timer on the big screen and my fears come true: she did a disgusting job and the climax of the movie was over in less than 5 minutes. Seriously if you watch the Trailer you see the whole movie in 1 minute.By the way some good critics here are suspiciously from new users. Do they work for the movie???
Blood, blood, random interlude with 8yr old, blood, oh hey is that a story? never mind, blood, end.
posted on 12 Aug 2009This movie by far is the worst I've seen all year. It beats out Happening... Babylon A.D.... The only people who will enjoy this film (or at least think they do until they wake up the next morning) are those drunkards coming to the films to watch something that they can fall asleep to - the mindless sound of terribly recorded gunshots and awful blood-splatter sound effects. I wouldn't even trouble as far as calling them effects. If you spit on a wall, it would have been more realistic to record and insert in the film. I hate being harsh on most movies, but I hate equally as much sitting through the worst dialogue I've heard... Maybe ever. Halfway through there was a resounding "So who wants to cut it off and go watch Twilight again for no reason?" from the group of moviegoers in the theater.If ever there was a story in this poor waste of my time called a movie, it was lost in the random passionate scenes between Castle and the little girl who's father he killed... And what's with her lack of caring about some guy getting his head blown off at point blank right in front of her?? But she can't watch her mommy point a gun at anyone... No no no... That's just plain sensible, right? In short, I would take the last take on Punisher with all it's sad stories and dark journey-taking through flashbacks of Castle's origins any day of the week. And yes I am just as much disappointed in the original critic-written reviews of this movie as you are. I only wonder how much money they pocketed to write that garbage... Hopefully just enough to make a better version with Microsoft Paint. Stickfigure Frank Castle FTW!!
Punisher: War Zone Movie Review from The Massie Twins
posted on 12 Aug 2009If "Saw" were an action movie, it would be Punisher: War Zone. The latest incarnation of the heavily-armed vigilante goes so overboard with unbelievable violence and vulgarities that the incredibly bad dialogue almost comes as a relief at times. Almost all of the elaborate set-ups and character introductions serve only as a fulcrum to unleash more brutal slaughter, and the slightest hints of realism are overshadowed by ludicrous villains and even more laughable abuse of bloodletting. At least no one can say more punishing transpired in previous efforts at bringing the Marvel gunslinger to life. After losing his wife and two kids at the hands of the mob, Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) becomes The Punisher and mercilessly metes out vigilante justice to the criminal underworld. Killing his way to the top of all the major crime families, Castle accidentally shoots an undercover FBI Agent during an attempt to eradicate Billy Russoti (Dominic West). Vowing to leave his life of violence, Frank must first finish what he started and kill Russoti before the mutilated madman, now donning the moniker "Jigsaw," can murder the wife and child of the slain agent. Vile and literally ugly (from the filthy streets, sewers and alleys to the hideously scarred villains) Punisher: War Zone is not a lively movie, though perhaps its tone more appropriately recalls the source material. Unquestionable punishing constantly takes place, but it's questionable whether the characters on screen are receiving as much as the audience. Despicably bloody violence begets even more wretched bloodshed, and seems to be inserted in every scene just for the sake of extremes. When it's done right, violence can be entertaining, humorous, or just plain cool. But in War Zone it serves no purpose other than to disgust and to gloat at how excessive it can be. With little wit and almost completely devoid of slow-motion, the action sequences are never flourished with the shocking brutality – they exist to make use of the "R" rating to the fullest extent. If the quality of villains was measured positively by their terribly trite dialogue, Punisher: War Zone would have the greatest cinematic bad guys of all time. Not a single utterance is original or clever, and a major percent of it is flat out unnecessary. This year's Hell Ride is possibly the only other movie in history that failed this badly at crafting dialogue to tie together action sequences and a practically nonexistent story. The atrocious script plagues the heroes as well, frequently creating ridiculous "emotional" scenes between Frank and the daughter of the FBI agent he accidentally killed. If there's anything positive to be said about this new cinematic take on The Punisher, it's that Marvel and Lionsgate didn't shy away from the harsh violence that made the most recent versions of the comic books strictly adults only.- The Massie Twins
Excellent action I haven't seen for a while!
posted on 10 Aug 2009Okay, before seeing this movie, I was very skeptical. Mainly, because I really liked the performance of Thomas Jane in "The Punisher". But man, "Punisher: War Zone" is some kind of a ride! First, Ray Stevenson did a marvelous job as the devastated anti hero. He looks very angry, longing for revenge. And he's got the stature of a man that is able to kick some "you-know-what".Speaking of "you-know-what": this movie definitely isn't the first choice for harmony seeking fellows. I mean, gun fights aren't fun for the victims. There's no "oh, I have been shot and I think it hurts". In this movie, guns do take life, they dismember people and/or take their lives and there's nothing good about shooting. I do think that's one great achievement of this movie. It does not trivialize the vigilantism of Frank Castle. He has to live with what he's done and what he's done is final.Second, the character of Jigsaw, played by Dominic West, was performed excellently. I was remembered of the classic bad guys of a good Batman movie. His brother, on the other hand, was a little bit nerving. Quite too shallow for an interesting bad guy.Third, the artists for the OST were a great choice. From Slipknot over Static-X to Hatebreed you'll find the perfect music for an almost perfect action movie.The only think one could complain about is the fact that the hero is almost invincible. I mean, he could walk through a rain of bullets and still kill them all without getting hurt, at all.But honestly, if you're looking for something realistic, you should watch a documentary or enjoy real life. This movie, however, is a great piece of entertainment for everyone, who's looking for a kick-ass action movie.
WTF Marvel???
posted on 10 Aug 2009Marvel, what are you doing??? THREE times you have screwed up royally with the perfect character for an awesome movie. THREE times!!! At this point, I'm at a loss as to how you did it. You are really hurting me with this. I feel like you just devalued the 8 boxes of treasured and carefully preserved Punisher books in my closet.P1: (F) I will pretend this didn't exist, because it was THAT bad. P2: (B) At least you made a good attempt. This actually felt like it had a story, and the acting wasn't horrible. Even without Travolta. P3: (B-/C+) Gore=Perfect, Violence=Perfect, Gunplay=Perfect, The Visuals=Great, but feels like you 'shortened' what could have been Perfect. Hero Actors=Good, Villain Actors=WTF?. Music=Good, Editing=Too 'jumpy', even within the same scenes. Story=Okay, but P2 was far better. Specific complaints: -PERFECT Micro, but... you killed him? WTF are you doing? Is this your way of saying "we already know this movie is an utter failure, and we won't try a 4th one"? -Hanging from the chandelier and spinning/shooting? That was stupid 7 YEARS AGO when I saw it in 3000 Miles to Graceland. And good job having this stupidity at the beginning of the movie, so I can watch the rest of the movie with the word "stupid" fresh in mind.-1st action scene: The only one that SHOULD have been fast, and somehow you made it slow? The Punisher kills all those guys at the table (slowly) and none of them (except the woman) make a believable effort to stop him UNTIL the light goes back on??? -Punisher kills dude jumping between the roofs. I LAUGHED. That kind of laughter does not belong in a movie with this much blood. And then you used that horrible angle/shot so we could see the projectile path as it kills the guy? Too obvious. Just have the guy spontaneously explode, the other two guys look confused, then cut to the Punisher holding a big smoking grenade launcher/whatever. Personally, I would still laugh, but not because it was such a bad scene. -The "jumpy" henchman dudes... I'm sorry, I thought this movie was about the Punisher, or MAYBE Jigsaw. -I'm sorry, but how do empty paint cans make grenades cooler/work-better? -I'm glad you put that "Russian" sign on that one building or I would have had no idea that those Russian accented guys inside, who are referred to verbally as Russians, drinking vodka, were supposed to be Russian. Oh, and Jigsaw didn't feel like recruiting them, but then let's them in to the "Punisher party" anyway? That makes TONS of sense. -Gun-thru-the-door-grenade-launch: It blows up in the exact center of the room? So, grenades only have a 10' range? You should have just showed the same gun-thru-door shot, then cut to a street-level shot of the outside of the building, looking up, with a flash/explosion of 1-3 windows/rooms with a couple bodies coming out the windows.Summary: All you had to do was take the gore/violence/gunplay/visuals/(few)actors from P3 and slap them into the Actors/Editing/Story/and Physical Violence of P2 and you have a blockbuster. You hear that? I'm telling you where you can get money! I'm talking "Iron Man" level of profit here...
It really is a moving comic book
posted on 10 Aug 2009Is this one of the best comic book movies? Probably yes.P:WZ is an effective comic movie with Ray Stevenson (TV's Rome) as the "super" hero. I say that because the Punisher isn't the kind of hero you would look up to (kinda like Batman or Foolkiller). The Punisher is a dark vigilante who, rather than drop off the criminal at the police station, kills the criminal in cold blood. My favourite comic book hero.About the film. The film is inspired by many different stages in The Punisher's "life". Most of it is inspired by the kinda year 2000-onwards comics, mostly Garth Ennis's work. I think it's violence is a mixture of the Marvel Knights run and the MAX comic. The Marvel Knights violence is over-the-top and fun while the MAX violence is brutal and disturbing. Mix them together and BOOM! That's the violence you get in this movie. It's sick but fun. But the film's main villain Billy Russoti aka Jigsaw is from the old school comics.Back to Ray. Ray is a very good actor. And he clearly loves the Frank Castle/Punisher character. His hard studying and intense training was well worth it. His "costume" is a military style outfit. A very realistic costume for a hero with no superpowers despite the fact that the film takes place in quite an unrealistic world. I still liked it though. Rays acting is something special in this film. His family got massacred in Central Park and you feel sorry for him. His actions in the film sort of mean something (apart from the odd random kill here and there). That's because Ray is so into the Frank Castle character you forget that the Punisher is fictional.Now Dominic West (TV's The Wire) as Billy Russoti/Jigsaw. I really thought Dominic was perfect as Jigsaw. Dominic can act... very well. His acting abilities and his accent is brilliant. Because it's a comic book movie I tend to ignore the fact that the Brooklyn-style accents are over-the-top. It really didn't bother me. Dominic West knew he was playing a comic book character... why not make it larger than life? It didn't annoy me at all. Now West's character is all about money (GREED- I think one of the main themes in this film). Billy is a sort of high rank gangster with goons and guards. His transformation into Jigsaw is disturbing. I really love his first appearance as the disfigured villain. It's dark and darkly funny. I thought it was one of the best scenes in the film. Now watch Jigsaw stab a man through his neck during a meeting. You will love it. Very disturbing.Onto the supporting characters. The amazing Doug Hutchison (Green Mile) plays Billy's psychotic brother James Russoti aka Loony Bin Jim. Doug's role is simple but show stealing. Everyone loves a crazy cannibal don't they? Loony Bin Jim is a cannibalistic serial killer who lives in an insane asylum until Jigsaw breaks him out. LBJ's first appearance is very entertaining. He is not here to make a point or make speeches about why the bad guys know this and that. He's here to kill. And that's why I enjoyed Doug in this film. He is very entertaining as a psycho who kills for fun. Be on the lookout for him with an axe. A great scene. Now for Dash Mihok (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) as Detective Martin Soap. Dash clearly has fun bringing in the comic relief in this film, just like Martin Soap did in the comics. His scenes are humorous and fun. His screen time was perfect. If it were any longer the movie would of turned out to be a comedy. If it were too little we wouldn't know why Frank Castle does what he does (unless you read the comics). Englishman (I know, another!) Colin Salmon plays Agent Paul Budiansky, a character from the MAX comics. I enjoyed Colin on screen. He is mostly with Dash Mihok and shows you the differences between them. The obvious one being Soap lighthearted and humorous, Budiansky being serious and skilled.Right, now for everything else. The movie paces fine. It's running time (1 hour 40 mins) could have been longer. The opening scene is really well done. We don't really know why Castle is hunting and killing these guys. All we know is they are criminals. The action scenes are very well done. There are a few flaws (such as the SPLAT noise every time someone gets shot) and some pointless kills but well shot and edited. The director Lexi Alexander (Green Street) knows how to film fights. She is a former kick boxer so, you know. The fights are downright brutal. The fight between Castle and LBJ you will love. You're jaw will drop. Very brutal and exciting.The lighting is something you will notice a lot in this film. Sure the movie is set in New York. But I like to call it a "fictional" New York. The city is like it is in the MAX comic book. I would of loved the realistic tone but I thoroughly enjoyed the comic book feel.The acting was very fine. I agree with some people that there are some corny lines but other than a few corny lines the dialogue was fine. It's not got dialogue like The Dark Knight or Iron Man but it was fine.This is one of my favourite comic book movies of all time. Ray Stevenson's Punisher lies with Christian Bale's Batman as one of the best "super"heros ever seen in a comic movie. And Dominic West's Jigsaw is such a good villain. Sadistic, disturbing, humorous (at times) and entertaining. Jigsaw will be a very memorable villain when time goes on. Just like Heath Ledger's Joker and Aaron Eckhart's Two-Face.A brilliant movie. It might of failed at the cinemas but when the DVD comes it will make a lot! 10/10
The first movie I ever walked out of (possible spoilers)
posted on 06 Aug 2009Before you discount my review of this movie because I didn't stay until the end of the movie, let me defend my fandom. I have been a Punisher fan for years, I am a rabid fan of the Punisher MAX comic, I loved the 04' film and The Punisher character is for me one the best characters in a comic ever.I went into this movie with low expectations because I was such a fan of the Thomas Jane Punisher film in 04'. It also had horrible reviews, but I told myself that a true fan would give this film a chance. In the opening scene of the movie Frank Castle sneaks into a mafia stronghold, and does what he does best, kills people. However, he does two things that Frank castle would never do: he snaps some mafia woman's arm and decks her, true fans know the Punisher doesn't hurt woman or children, it's one of his few rules. Then he grabs a chandelier, hangs upside down and then starts shooting. The Punisher is not a flashy overly choreographed showboat. He's a well trained, straight forward, ex-military killing machine. Knock my sheer nerdery but how do you enjoy one of your all-time favorite characters acting glaringly uncharacteristic manner. He accidentally kills an undercover FBI operative for god's sake(unless they explain he didn't do it after the 71 minute mark of the movie when I left). The Punisher I know doesn't accidentally kill people I swear i thought that I read that the director of this film did extensive research into the character, and stated her love for the war journal comic. But I refuse to believe that anyone who would put this movie out, is anything close to a fan, let alone well versed on the characters nuances. The casting was horrible, the acting was hackneyed, and the excessive splatter gore and grandiose fancy deaths were total BS. Ray Stevenson was horrible as Frank Castle, talk about a phoned-in effort. Choosing Ray Stevenson to play this role would be the equivalent to casting Corky from life goes on to play Jason Bourne in the next Bourne Movie.I will go as far as to say that i feel like this movie is the marvel equivalent, to the DC Batman and Robin debacle. You want to see horribly campy special effects and one-dimensional acting se this film. The Jigsaw face special effects reminded me of Jim Carrey's "the mask", and his brother "Looney Bin Jim", wow what a horribly over the top job of psychopathic portrayal.This movie takes various elements of the Punisher story: his family's murder, microchip(worst casting choice), Frank Castle's soft spot for children and his penchant for extreme violence. And then perverts them to the exact opposite of what I've come to expect from the Punisher Mythos.The bad part of the plot for me was pretty much start to finish. It was predictable and B-movie-esquire. Punisher maims a criminal, he survives, and then goes on a rampage of revenge, Punisher kills him in a bullet drenched showdown, credits role. I'm not saying I could write it better Per Se, but I would've stuck to the Punisher MAX style of writing. Had Garth Ennis written this movie and used any of the Punisher MAX story arc's this movie would've been better than most of Marvel's recent films.
Not what I would call a good film.
posted on 30 Aug 2009I wouldn't even go as far as calling this a film. It's a blatant movie. Generic Hollywood trash. Now, I've been going through The Punisher comics for a few years now and I consider myself a fan. The characters tend to have depth and give you a good run for your money. In this movie however, everything is severely dumbed down. Frank (The Punisher) pulls all kinds of stupid stunts just to make the movie more entertaining or whatever. Doesn't fit his profile at all. Kind of ruins the whole thing, no? As for Jigsaw... oh boy. They didn't even do a good job with his makeup. He's supposed to be horribly disfigured but all the did was... well, you judge for yourself. When it comes to the story and all of that, I guess it works. Nothing too original but I wasn't expecting much to begin with. I've tried seeing this movie for what it is (no comparison to comics) and I still don't like it. It's messy, poorly edited and just not very good at all. Don't waste your time on this eyesore.