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Directed by Written by Based upon the Starring Rated R Presented by 103 minutes |
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PUNISHER: WAR ZONE Review
One of the more popular characters in Marvel Comics, the story of Frank Castle is amongst the most brutal ever put to comic book form, a man so distraught by the violent death of his family by a mob attack that he goes out to, as he puts it, punish the corrupt. It has become the subject of three movies. The first, made in 1989 with Dolph Lundgren as Castle, was a low budget actionfest that fit in with the time and has not aged well. In 2004, a version updating Castle’s origin to being a Gulf War veteran and starring Thomas Jane as Castle was well filmed but came up short at the box office. Although its DVD sales warranted enough interest for a follow up, it was decided to again reboot the franchise and just make a straight up action/comic book shoot em up. It failed at the box office but should be worth a look on DVD. PUNISHER: WAR ZONE doesn’t offer up any origin stories on Castle (played by ROME’s Ray Stevenson), in fact, it’s summed up nicely in the opening credits, explaining Castle’s brutal assault on the mafia. He is introduced in brutal fashion as he invades a mob party and takes out all the guests (even the women) his own way. His target is gangster Billy Russoti (Dominic West) who he corners in a warehouse, horribly disfiguring him and killing many of his cronies. Unfortunately, one of them turns out to an undercover FBI agent infiltrating Russoti’s crime ring. Ridden with guilt, Castle feels that he has finally crossed the line and questions whether or not he can go on. Once he learns the Russoti is alive (and now known as Jigsaw) and targets the agent’s wife (Julie Benz) and daughter, Castle realizes that he must stop Jigsaw once and for all. Out of all the PUNISHER movies made, this one is the most faithful to the comics, owing more to the Marvel Max version of the story. For those unfamiliar, these are comics meant only for adults and feature stories that are clearly controversial, brutal, and not for the faint of heart. In fact, many scenes are taken directly from some of the comic’s stories themselves (particularly the party scene in the beginning). The film is promoted under the Marvel Knights logo and while the stories emulate the Garth Ennis stories in the Max series, the look of the film is purely from the Marvel Knights version of The Punisher comics. Director Lexi Alexander does a great job incorporating these visuals to the big screen, reminding us once and for all that we are seeing a comic book movie. On first look at Ray Stevenson, you would swear that they literally took Frank Castle from the pages of the comic book and made him human. Stevenson IS Frank Castle, his look is astounding. He also plays Castle brilliantly, a man who knows what he is doing, feels it is the right thing to do, but shows a heart when it comes to those few he allows into his life. One of those is Wayne Knight as Microchip, a technical whiz who supplies Castle with his weaponry. It’s a rare serious role for Knight, and surprisingly he looks younger here than in his SEINFELD days. As the villainous Jigsaw, Dominic West goes a little too over the top, which works in some areas, but falls flat in others. The makeup is a combination of Mason Verger in HANNIBAL and Frankenstein himself with the stitches on his face, and looks very well. Playing his brother Looney Bin Jim, Doug Hutchinson also goes overboard. Julie Benz is given nothing more than to play the damsel in distress, but she plays it well here. Dash Mihok plays popular character Martin Soap, whose clumsy charm takes away from the fact that he’s the only cop who knows more about Castle than anyone else. As stated before, Lexi Alexander does a tremendous job with keeping the film at a steady pace and especially with the film’s colorful visuals. She really understood this world and provides the most violent look at the character on screen to date. She should be one to watch in the action genre. The script is credited to three writers, Nick Santora, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway but some credit should be given to Garth Ennis, whose original comic stories are echoed here. The violence in this film is aplenty, and while some may be bothered by the CGI in some shots, the brutality that Alexander shows them overshadows it. In all, PUNISHER: WAR ZONE is the film that fans of the comic will enjoy, as it is the most faithful film adaptation of the vigilante yet. It is easily the most violent of all of the films and is just fun all around. Old school action fans will enjoy it as well. If you’re not a fan of The Punisher, then you may not enjoy it as much. Me, I’m a fan, so I was entertained. PUNISHER: WAR ZONE: 8 Out Of 10 Maggots
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