By Jason Haskins
Those who do evil to others-- the killers, the rapists, psychos, sadists--you will come to know me well. Frank Castle is dead. Call me...The Punisher.
Poor Punisher. Right out the gates back in 1989, at one of the heights of the Punisher's popularities in the comic books, they made a film adaptation starring Dolph Lundgren that didn't do so well (I might be one of the few people on Planet Earth who actually dug it). Fifteen years later after the colossal success of the comics again due to Garth Ennis' treatment of the character they decided to go ahead and give it another go--Marvel actually responsible for making another R-rated comic book offering? Yes, please.
While it did make back all of its money afterwards and actually debuted to strong numbers, it suffered from a largely negative word of mouth. Back then I didn't even go to see it because it didn't really look that good to me and if the reviews were any indicator many people didn't think it was very good. However, something weird happened: when I finally saw it, I actually really dug it. This was one of the first pieces of comic book moviemaking where they did a seamless job trying to make it fairly realistic and break down the walls between the comic property and the real world. The result is unfortunately a mixed bag.
Frank Castle (played by Thomas Jane; Deep Blue Sea, Hung) is no superhero, but he's an ex-Delta Force operative working for the FBI. Castle just so happens to bust a major crime lord's son via an undercover operation, which actually leads to the guy's death. Uh oh. This gets back to the said crime lord, played by John Travolta (The Boy in the Plastic Bubble), and his wife gives the kill shot for Castle's whole family to be massacred whilst at a family reunion. Uh oh.
Castle narrowly escapes the ordeal, but lives on with the scars of his entire (literally) family being murdered including his young son and wife. He rehabilitates himself, vows revenge against Travolta (who doesn't want revenge against that baldy?), and shacks up at a scrawny ole apartment building to set up a big plan in line with the Sun Tzu Art of War: "Destroy your enemy from within.". Wearing a t-shirt with a skull moniker his son gave him right before he died, he takes on the name of the Punisher to strike fear in the hearts of men and women who are wicked.
At the film's core is a really cool revenge plot that we know oh too well, but the stylistic flair that goes along with it especially for those who dig the comics is pretty gratifying. The Punisher knows the law and is a good man, but is the perfect anti-hero because he has no qualms killing bad guys unlike, say, Batman. There's much death in this movie--tons of actions ensues where dudes are not-so-ceremoniously executed and shot as well as a great few action sequences near the beginning where the family-murders take place that really give the flick the impact it needs to get you into the Punisher's corner. That's where the movie succeeds because it makes you root for Castle throughout the whole film because you relate to how bad he has it and the sense of loss in his life.
Along the way you meet some really interesting secondary characters from his apartment building like Rebecca Romijn (post-Stamos; pre-divorce; Rollerball) as Joan, who has the hots for Castle and tries to break through some of his demons and help him. Then you have the comedic reliefs of the movie like the chubby Bumpo (John Pinette; Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation) and Spacker Dave played by up-and-comer Ben Foster (Pandorum, The Mechanic) who plays a character that's very much removed from the one in the comics. Wrestler Kevin Nash randomly makes an appearance as the Russian who completely demolishes the place in this crazy cool action piece midway through the film, which is quite flooring and easily the best part in the whole movie.
The only real problem I have on the part of casting was for John Travolta. I'm not an anti-scientologist, one of those cats who thinks he’s travolting (revolting - get it?), or anything like that--he just wasn't suited for the part. Okay, maybe he was, but his performance is ridiculously bad as he sputters piece of dialogue after piece of dialogue that's just painful to hear. The cream of the crop is at the very end when the Punisher handles him, which was the most hilarious piece of screaming since Nicholas Cage at the end of The Wicker Man. I do like him as a symbol of badness, though, and how good the Punisher does burn him near the end--very satisfying as a viewer.
Thomas Jane was a fantastic Punisher. He brings a certain amount of charisma that may be uncharacteristic of the comic book versions, but he makes the role his own with how he handles himself. There are some moments of dark humor such as a torture scene involving nothing but a blow torch, slice of steak, and a popsicle, which kills me every time. I think he definitely looks the part dyed hair and all, but as far as his performance goes...there are certainly some moments that were a little overacted and moody, but I guess that goes with the character. He'd later crush it in The Mist, so you have that to look forward to.
Directorially, Jonathon Hensleigh was a little out of his element. There are a few glaring problems of pacing and tone with some awkward special effects sequences thrown in for good measure and a loose script that could've been handled a wee bit better. He also relies on a lot of clichés and tonal issues that hurt the movie more than help it. A lot of the action (aside from the opening bit) is uninspired, but works nonetheless. I think that halfway through filming he became a little overwhelmed because some parts of the movie just suffers from missed opportunities where they could've done much better things, but maybe the money just ran out eventually (this was only made for fifteen million, which pales in comparison to most other comic book property films).
There are a few versions of this flick floating around out there. My copy is the Extended Cut, which I bought on sale at Best Buy a number of years ago for ten buckerooskis (tm). This one runs for over two hours long due to the additional material, which doesn't really add a whole lot much more to the plot other than the nifty little animated opener that's sort of cool. For some reason this cut isn't available on Blu-Ray and it's actually quite worth it to find on DVD for a few reasons. There's an interesting little Making Of featurette that's of good value and the audio presentation (6.1 DTS-ES) is very remarkable. I also have to say that the Punisher Comic Book Gallery really helps you see what the film was trying to accomplish with the looks of Tim Bradstreet's illustrations that the filmmakers really expanded upon. Plus, aesthetically, it's super appealing: a big skull slip-cover with the disc being uncovered vertically? C'mon--that's metal.
The Punisher (2004) is watchable. I find it a fond little revenge movie with some cool comic book themes. Don't expect any wham or pow moments or crazy superhuman things because this is more rooted in reality, but it still has a really cool atmosphere to it that I dig. There are plenty of issues and I'm sure I'm probably being a bit more nice than I should be, but the movie is still quite entertaining with some great bits of action and a very macho story with a tender heart.
Upset? Is that the word? I used to get upset. When I got a flat tire, when a plane was delayed. I used to get upset when the Yankees won the series. So if that's what upset means, what am I feeling now? If you know the word, tell me because I don't.
© Jason Haskins, 2011
3.5 out of 5 stars
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