Punisher: War Zone

Starring: Ray Stevenson, Dominic West, Doug Hutchison, Julie Banz, Colin Salmon

Synopsis:

Frank Castle avenges the mob killing of his wife and children by systematically killing as many criminals as possible in the reinvented guise of the media dubbed "Punisher". During a mission to kill the head of the Cosa Nostra Mafia, he inadvertently creates a new Nemesis, with a passion for killing; Jigsaw.



Review:

Let me get this out of the way, first; I enjoyed this film. Yeah, it's a "dumb" action movie but it works when...it shouldn't work. To fully appreciate how well this film works is to realise that this is the anti-Iron Man movie. It's not out to help rejuvenate anyone's career ,or showcase ILM's latest CGI techniques, it's simply a new "Marvel Knights" take on a comic book character. Rather than go for the ultra-serious realism and existentialism that the Dark Knight went for, it holds true to it's comic book roots. Maybe I shouldn't admit it but i liked the Dolph Lundgren version from 1989 because it was so over the top with violence. The acting was horrible but it didn't matter when Ninja were throwing shuriken into other bad guys and the Punisher took command of a school bus whilst being ravaged by automatic gun fire. Similarly, War Zone has the same kind of vibe to it. The sets and lighting remind me of Joel Schumacher's take on Batman. For this reason, I was put off War zone by the trailer and stills. In the movie it works and the colouring of scenes isn't quite so bad as I remember in the trailer. The violence is so over the top it's difficult to be offended. The look also reminded me of the video game.

This is not a sequel to the Thomas Jane movie. The comic book origin has been re-instated, the first time on the big screen. Should this matter? Well, maybe only to comic book geeks like myself, but what it does do is cement the relationship between the character and New York, like the Spider-Man story. Imagine, say, Daredevil not battling within NYC or Hell's Kitchen (Clinton now). Having the Castle family mowed down during a picnic in Central Park makes the cause of Castle's psychosis more intimate than the Mad Max inspired theatrics of the Thomas Jane version. This origin is shown in Flashback at a couple of places in the film. I won't compare the two recent Punisher films other than by suggesting that there's room for a number of Punisher films with different actors purely because of the nature of comic books; different creative teams have shown the Punisher in different ways. You could say that Thomas Jane portrayed the younger looking impression with Ray Stevenson playing the rougher looking Castle from the original Black and White comic strips.

Ray Stevenson plays Frank Castle with just the right mix of cold calculating executioner and broken family man. He is convincing as he kills mobsters in a variety of grisly ways but it is the quiet moments where Stevenson's commitment to the character shine through. Through his interaction with Julie Benz's character and on screen daughter, we get a glimpse of the caring family man that was, before tragedy struck.

MikeOutWest and I discussed The Punisher as a lead character. We both agree that we don't see the character able to properly carry a number of stories. I would like to see The Punisher as the "bad guy" in a future Spider-Man or Daredevil movie, because his version of justice is so far removed from theirs. What helps in War Zone is the ensemble cast. For the first time, we are treated to a version of Microchip or MicroMan, Frank Castle's portly weapon's specialist. This character is from my favourite era of the comic book, from about 20 years ago when the long running titles of The Punisher and Punisher War Journal began. Rather than being a total outcast feared and hated, this Frank Castle is supported by the NYPD. There is a cursory department dealing with Punisher activities, headed by a Detective Soap. In the last reboot of the comic book series, Detective Soap was blackmailed by Castle and it does look like this has happened off camera in the movie, from hints given. Otherwise, in the movie, NYPD officers are seen to turn a blind eye to The Punisher's activities.

A "hero", anti or otherwise is only as good as his villain. In a turnaround from The Dark Knight where the villain was clearly more interesting than the hero, Jigsaw doesn't quite make the grade. Don't get me wrong, Dominic West plays a superb Billy Russoti/Jigsaw. it's not West's fault that Jigsaw has always been seen as a lackey. The same goes for Sabretooth n the X-Men film. he doesn't make a good overall villain, he is better working for a more clever individual. Had Jigsaw been working for the Kingpin, it might have made for a more epic struggle.

I've always like Doug Hutchison, from his work as Tooms in The X-Files, through his appearances in Space Above and Beyond and the movie Con Air. Here he plays Loony Bin Jim with typical relish. His OTT performance fits the film, perfectly. Still, both LBJ and Jigsaw seem as if they should be working with a boss.

Verdict:

If you like hardcore action movies, or are just a Punisher fan, this is well worth checking out. Whilst it's not as cerebral as The Dark Knight nor as fun and accessible as Iron Man, it delivers what you'd expect from a vigilante who's purpose is to be judge, jury and excutioner. Because of this, the movie gets a high rating.

7 out of 10 (Wayfarer)

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