User reviews

I saw this a couple hours ago in Fullerton, CA. I was a reader of the comic, and am a fan of what we've seen from Marvel lately. This movie is just what I wanted, and what I expected.

Ray Stevenson is perfect as Frank Castle, and everyone else is at least good enough for an action movie. Dominic West is over the top as Jigsaw - which is what Jigsaw should be! A horribly disfigured mob boss with a vendetta is not a subtle thing to begin with.

As for the "respectable" critics' complaints: 1. Violence: Of course it's violent! What part of the title "Punisher: War Zone" implies peaceful conflict resolution? He's not the "Admonisher". The gore and violence is not at the level of a "Saw" film, but it is high. It is rated "R" for a reason.

2. Dialogue: I think the critics have been spoiled by "Dark Knight" and "Iron Man". Those were comic-book movies with extraordinarily good dialogue. "Punisher: War Zone" is no worse than a "Predator" or "Rambo: First Blood". Not great, but not awful. This is not supposed to be "Hamlet".

3. Script: The story moves along well, and when there's a break in the action (which isn't very often), the film doesn't drag- it's always going somewhere. Not perfect, but good. Much better than the critics have made it out to be.

All in all, a good time, and one that I'll buy and re-watch as soon as it comes out on DVD.

PUNISHER: WAR ZONE is a fun shoot-em-up – there's no more or less to it than that. A semi-sequel to the original 2004 film, this sees ROME's Ray Stevenson taking over the reins from Thomas Jane in a self-contained movie about his vendetta against a criminal gang. I'd heard a lot of talk about how poor this film was before I sat down and watched it, but I'm pleased to see it exceeded my expectations in every respect.

First off, the action scenes are excellent: fast-paced, well-shot (no shaky cam work here) and hard-hitting, with thugs getting their just desserts at every corner and all manner of extreme-weaponry mayhem. Secondly, the film isn't just about the action. There is a story, with characters (no matter how briefly sketched they are) and emotion too – Frank Castle is a creature brimming with repressed hurt and feeling and Stevenson is the perfect actor to bring him to life; few actors have eyes so sad.

Thirdly, the cast is pretty interesting. Dominic West, of course, gives it his all as the horrifically mutilated Jigsaw, bringing to life a truly comic creation. Doug Hutchison proves he's just as creepy as he was all those years ago in THE X-FILES when he played Tooms, the guy who could squeeze through letterboxes. Julie Benz (RAMBO) has a fairly thankless role as a mother who needs to be saved/rescued all the while, while familiar faces Colin Salmon and Wayne Knight flesh out more minor roles.

Of course, this isn't a perfect film. Some of the characters are intensely irritating (like the guy who appears to be the world's worst cop) and the running time is too short to really scope out the storyline, other than staging a few encounters. For what it's worth, the first film is still better, but that doesn't stop PUNISHER: WAR ZONE from being a satisfying action flick.

This is one of those films where you expect nothing from it and get pleasantly surprised. Ray Stevenson in my opinion has been the best version of Francis castellione to date - he captures his nihilism, physicality and looks.

Skipping past the origin story of why castle became the punisher and instead jumping into his eternal battle with crime and his internal struggle with himself. Action sequences are solid with some nice gore - straight from the pages of grant Morrisons comic run and it's good to see a villain like jigsaw on screen - played brilliantly by Dominic west.

All in all it's a leave your brain at the door decent actioner that you feel with the right budget and better writers could of been an 8 or 9/10.

Roger Egbert was spot on when he wrote - ""The Punisher: War Zone" is one of the best-made bad movies I've seen". Viewed independently, it is an ultimate men's movie and more fun to watch than all Steven Seagal movies put together. This movie does not hold back on anything like the wimpy Thomas Jane's Punisher, who was more of a schemer than a punisher. That movie had its own reason to be liked in that it was a brave move to bring an ultra-violent (Punisher has even used nuclear bomb to kill an otherwise unkillable villain), gory and very dark comic, which only had a cult following, to the mainstream cinema. While that movie did not feel like a comic book adaptation at all, the story being pretty ordinary and plot being too heavy, war zone is much closer to the source material. Corny situations had corny, and extremely violent solutions. Villains were perfectly cast and did feel like Punisher villains and got what they deserve from a Punisher. The accents were distracting in the beginning, but once you get used to them (which is pretty fast, since everyone uses a fake sounding and bad accent), you stop noticing it and focus on action, which is plenty. Ray Stevenson was a perfect cast and comes across the perfectly believable, imposing and intimidating killing machine as the Punisher. The much-maligned first scene actually set the tone for rest of the movie for me, when Punisher goes on a killing spree on the dining table, killing everyone on the table, men-women alike, in different, but extremely bloody way. That is Punisher for me. Perfect movie for fans of Punisher and violent action movie fans in general.

And I thought that would be impossible.

So the fan boys are eating it up, it seems, because of the extreme amount of violence. Not once does the true ability of this character come out. I've been following Punisher comics since the mid 80's, even through all of the garbage story lines.

The preview for this movie should have been enough for me to ignore this film completely. No Freaking Green Beret Special Forces trainer is going to hang upside down from a chandelier and fire wildly around a room with so many vantage points. Now comes all the comments about "This is just a comic movie! Suspend your disbelief!* No.

I've been spoiled with the recent exquisite story telling of Garth Enis in the Punisher Max story lines. This movie made me physically angry to watch. The acting was horrid. Every character was a single dimensioned pantomime of a stereotype. Why was micro even in the movie? He hasn't been in the comics since the early 90s? Jigsaw? Why? And when was Ink ever Pittsy's Son? And why such a simpleton bumbling buffoon of a cop character? If all you want is blood, death, violence without purpose, a thinly threaded storyline pieced together merely to get from one lame gun battle to the next you'll love this movie.

If you're looking for any of the depth of character, or rich storyline of the contemporary Punisher Max books, don't waste your time with this movie, you will not find the tightly knit story telling Enis has been spoiling Punisher fans with the past few years.

I love this gory wild action extravaganza! Ray Stephenson, Dominic West, and Doug Hutchinson are all great! I like how theirs a bunch that don't like Punisher: War Zone and others that love it. The action sequences are a bit whacky and I admit their is some poor characters otherwise I absolutely love the bulk of the film plus any part with Doug Hutchinson is fantastic. I need to own everything Punisher related at some point I'm a fan of it all.

If you have ever read the famed comic books containing the hero Punisher, then you are in for a special movie treat. This dramatic story is called " Punisher: War Zone. " Writer Nick Santora allows his imagination to run rampant and in doing so, creates a solid story-line which will have audiences gasping by what they've seen. Ray Stevenson plays Frank Castle, a professional Ex-soldier who's wife and daughter were murdered by street thugs, drug dealers and gang members. In this story, Castle/Punisher goes after the Italian, Russian and Asian mobs in an effort to clean the streets. However, one of the most vicious gang leader suffers a horrific disfigurement and takes the name of his deformity, called 'Jigsaw.' (Dominic West) With his phychotic and deranged brother 'Loony Bin Jim' they set out to destroy Castle, his friends and anyone close to him. The entire movie is one exciting, slam, bang and explosive tour through the bowels of hell. It was surprising to see Wayne Knight as a courageous Micro in among all that black gang and destructive mayhem. If you are looking for an exciting, gut wrenching and certainly bullet ridden film with bodies flying everywhere, this is your movie. Black as pitch, written for the dog-eat-dog audience, this movie creates a spiral stairway into the very bowels of darkness. ****

This 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???

Just came back from watching the movie and I was definitely pleased. I was a bit worried that I would be let down after reading some of the early reviews, my suspicious about the reviewers not understanding the character were confirmed though.

Stevenson is a brilliant Frank Castle, the guy is a tank in this movie, shredding through his opposition just like a on screen manifestation of the character should. The critics complaining about the gore prove them unfit in being tasked with stepping anywhere near the film with a pencil and paper, doling out stars or thumbs.

While Im afraid the film will not get the critical recognition it deserves, with the majority of critics not understanding the character, I as a fan of Castle say I'm thoroughly pleased by the work the entire cast and crew have put forth.

While I agree that the movie was loyal to the source material and worth my dollars, there was one main area I think should have been retooled.

Jigsaw and Jim's accent is over the top, and in the end took away from the character, especially in the case of Jim.

At a glance

Pros: Unapologetically Punisher Level Brutality Stevenson is a compelling Frank Castle Movie pacing is great

Cons: Cliché accents Could have used some more dialogue from Frank

Overall: 8/10

Bottom Line: If you are a punisher fan, you're in for a blast

Those seeking out the sequel to the 2004 Punisher film will probably already know what they are getting into, partly because a quite limited release at cinemas in the UK means it is not easy to stumble into (ironic considering how many Brits are in it). This helps the film because really this is not something that tries to have something for everyone so much as it is a film that knows the target audience and is determined to give them what they want. As a result, the story here is a simple affair of a criminal scarred by the Punisher, going out for revenge while the police are after both of them – it is not the most complex bit of writing you'll ever see but then, it doesn't need to be. Those looking for the Punisher's dark tone to be utilised to try and make this character into a possible "Batman" in regards having a dark psyche at the core of it will be disappointed because the film does no such thing. I was one of these people though and I was at least hoping that more would be made of the rage and loss inside Castle – but again, a few flashbacks aside, he generally just broods around the place full of vengeful justice.

What carries the film then is a series of brutal action sequences and effects shots, all full of callous violence, macho posturing and gun play that rewrites all rules of the real world. At this point it does depend what you are looking for because there are a core of viewers will love the film for this as it delivers exploded head after collapsing face after dismembering and other really graphic acts. For me personally the overdose on excess is all too much and it does leave the film with this very unpleasant air that makes it harder to enjoy. If the violence was a little less graphic or frequently graphic then it would have been easier to actually "enjoy" the big action sequences for what they were, rather than the gore putting me off – although again for some this will be the cherry on the cake. To the casual viewer this excess does give the film an exploitative, careless edge, where all the characters are little more than things waiting to explode and it limits how much we care – not just about the goons but also the main characters.

This further detracts from the dark character of Castle as he becomes just a machine and not a man or even a shadow of a man – and no, staring off moodily into the distance every now and again is not the same thing. At the same time it also limits the more flamboyant and silly side of the film – the side that the hammy Jigsaw needed to play up. You can see it in the excess but also in the Patton reference and other silly things; all of these imply that it should be a little bit camp with the darkness (hence making it a bit more fun and accessible) but it doesn't do this and those that play to this side of it are left just looking silly in a bad way rather than a good way.

Specifically West suffers from this as his comic book villain is lost in the sea of gore. As a Wire fan I do feel a bit for West but his Italian impersonation at the start is awful and, once behind the make-up he can do little but be "a bad man" without much unique about him to make him notable for anything other than what he has done before. Stevenson is not "good" either but he matches the ambition of the film and makes for a big dark presence – which is all the material needs and this he does well. I quite liked Salmon in it because he is one of the few that feels natural – which is a bit of a condemnation on everyone else when you think about Salmon's range generally. Hutchinson matches West by overplaying but again the sense of comic book madness is taken away by the gore.

Punisher War Zone is a basic genre film then. For target audience it will satisfy as it delivers simple characters with simple motivations, a straight-forward plot with lots of action and lots of gore – boxes ticked. However for many casual viewers it will be all too dark and unpleasant as the gore dominates and it makes everything seem a bit less "entertaining" and a lot more like work. The dark tone to the character and the hammy silliness of the villains are lost and the entire film appears to be about exploding heads – great if that is your thing but not so great if not. A noisy Saturday night special with your male friends – but that's all it is.

Okay, first off, let me put it straight... It's better than the first two films. There. I've said it. Why? Because this movie is the comic fan's wet dream come true. There's bullets, buckets of blood and guts, bodies flying, and explosions to boot, and did I mention blood and guts? Anyway, the movie is NOT meant for critics. Who in their right mind would walk into a Punisher movie and expect something like Citizen Kane? Of course, you put into account that The Dark Knight and Iron Man were released the same year, so people were expecting some intelligence from this film. No. This is a movie about a one-man strike force, and this will appeal to guys who like Rambo. The hint's in the title, critics: WAR ZONE.

Ray Stevenson replaces Thomas Jane as the titular character. Here instead of Jane's sort of old-school action hero persona, we get a loyal interpretation of Frank Castle. It's wrong to compare the two Punishers, as they are completely different movies. The 2004 movie was more of a traditional revenge film, and this new one is a faithful, and bloodied, adaptation of the comics. (I am ignoring Dolph Lundgren's version as I haven't seen it yet) Technically speaking, the direction is fast-paced and energetic. The action sequences are nicely done without the usual chop-socky quick editing. The New York cinematography gives the film its distinct dark look that the comics had, and, of course, there is much blood to savor here. The violence, is, spectacularly brutal and sadistic, and that's all we want to see.

However the film has its weaknesses. Most of these come from wooden acting, to over-acting, weak dialogue, and hammy moments involving a child. Dominic West, who plays the horribly disfigured main villain Billy "The Beaut"/"Jigsaw" Russoti out for revenge, and Doug Hutchison who plays his brother James "Looney Bin Jim" Russoti (love that name), hams it up every time they are on screen. Dash Mihok plays a dim-witted detective that looks out of place in a film this dark. Julie Benz is wooden as the wife of the undercover FBI agent which Castle accidentally kills during his outing.

Watch the film with the intent of seeing a full-blown, graphically violent, no-holds-barred action movie, with a beloved character not just kicking ass, but shooting the living crap out of them. This is destined to be a cult classic, and sadistic entertainment at its finest.

Entertainment value: 10/10

Overall: 6.5/10

So this is what the action genre has come to? Before you dismiss me as another person raving on about how violent the movie was (I didn't think it was that violent at all) or another person complaining about the lack of a sensible story (it's a brainless action movie, I don't care) or another person making a fool of themselves by calling it racist (this just makes me laugh), maybe you should actually hear me out. I'm not here to trash Punisher: War Zone for anything other than the arias it needs trashing. I went in expecting a brainless action movie, and that is the sole thing I judged it on. That was also the sole thing I gave it this score for.

Honestly, I don't blame the fans as much as the movie makers for the bottomless pit of dramas-with-a-few-things-blowing-up disguised as action movies. I can understand how this got a high rating for being purely fun to some viewers. I'm not going to lie that there was some fun to be had if you were half-drunk and with a group of buddies. If that were me, I'd most likely give it a decent score myself. But I'm not being biased here. Punisher: War Zone is bad. Here is why.

The film starts out, flat out, with some of the worst acting out there. There is not a single person in the entire cast (minus Julie Benz, maybe) that could even remotely come close to good acting. Some of the actors were so utterly ridicules—the two bad guys—they reminded me of something right out of a first-year film student's final project. If that. Dominic West as Jigsaw (which is a name I never want to hear outside of the Saw movies) is 100% obviously ripping-off—well, more like retardedly imitating—Joker in The Dark Knight. If his acting wasn't enough to give away that he is a Heath Ledger-wannabe, the camera angles and lighting are both also ripped-off from the scenes with Joker in The Dark Knight. Not to mention his make-up is almost a direct copy of Two Face in The Dark Knight.

So the acting is bad. It's a brainless action movie, who cares, right? Wrong. It's not a brainless action movie as advertised. You can argue with me all day, but am I really the only one who was bored out of his mind? The film opens up with action, then an hour later there is another action scene, then there is one last action scene and the movie ends. Three action scenes separated by over half the run-time of pointless talking scenes and pointless, cheesy drama scenes. There was a lot of the movie I thought I was sitting through Twilight all over again. This has to be one of the least entertaining movies of the year, by far. There is simply very little action. Why can't action movies today be like the old Indiana Jones movies, or the old Predator movies, where the action was almost consistent from opening to close? They never had pointless, cliché talking and drama sequences. They had ACTION.

Despite what anyone is telling you, take my word. Punisher: War Zone has very little action. It's so ridiculously slow I was ready to walk out more than once. I literally counted them, and there is literally only three main action scenes. Maybe a forth small one. They all last five to ten minutes each, then the movie is back to drama. And cheese.

The action isn't even anything you haven't seen a thousand times, either. Put simply, it's very typical. Generic, uninspired shootouts. Also, do not listen to whoever told you this movie was mega-violent. It wasn't. Yeah, there was a few bloody scenes, and maybe two graphic scenes, and that's about it. Nothing you haven't seen before whatsoever. The violent level is average for this kind of movie. Period. It's all generic and predictable. Heads cut off, throats slit, heads bashed in. Typical violence in typical amounts. A lot of it isn't even shown on screen. Talk about pathetic.

If you want a brainless, cheesy action movie that actually has action, go watch Kill Bill or The Machine Girl. If you want a serious action movie that actually has action, go watch the original Predator or even the new Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. I'm not sure which one Punisher: War Zone was trying to be, but it failed at both. It also failed at being a successful comic adaption. Instead of actually taking time to attempt to reenact comic style, the director just puts random color backgrounds in certain scenes. Not to mention Punisher isn't even half this ridicules in the comics.

No matter what way I look at it, I can't think of a single thing this movie did right.

0/10

The Punisher Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) watches on the news that the aged patriarch of the Cesare mafia family was considered not guilty in his trial after the death of the prosecution's main witness. Frank goes to Cesare's mansion, where the criminal is celebrating his freedom with his family, and he executes the whole family of mobsters. While fighting with the gangster Billy Russoti (Dominic West), he falls into a shattering glasses machine and Frank turns the machine on; Billy is smashed by the pieces of glasses. However Franks discovers that he accidentally killed the undercover FBI agent Nicky Donatelli (Romano Orzari) that was working infiltrated in the Cesare family, ahead of an investigation of a great scheme of the mobsters with a Russian gang. Meanwhile Billy surprisingly survives completely deformed and asks to be called Jigsaw; he releases his insane brother Loony Bin (Doug Hutchison) from the asylum where he is locked and promises revenge against Frank and Nicky's wife Angela Donatelli (Julie Benz) and daughter Grace (Stephanie Janusauskas). Frank is chased by Nicky's former partner, Special Agent Paul Budiansky (Colin Salmon), while he tries to protect Angela and Grace from Jigsaw's revenge.

"Punisher: War Zone" is a great action movie, developed in an adequate pace and with a solid story and good acting, special effects and soundtrack. I had lower expectations with this movie, but it was a wonderful surprise for me. In the first "The Punisher" that I saw on the screen, Frank Castle was performed by Dolph Lundgren; in the second, by Thomas Jane; and now, by Ray Stevenson. In common, all the three movies are full of action and violence, as the viewer should expect, and the lead actors have great performances. However, Dominic West is the best villain of the three movies, with his Jigsaw that slightly recalls The Joker from "Batman" (1989). Doug Hutchison, the unforgettable Eugene Victor Tooms from "X-Files", is also great with his sick and evil Loony Bin. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Justiceiro 2 – Zona de Guerra" ("The Vigilante 2 – War Zone")

I really enjoyed The Punisher (2004) though I don't think Thomas Jane made a good Punisher he is a competent enough actor to have pulled it off.

When I heard about this one 4yrs later I had no interest, I was frustrated that it had essentially been rebooted and that Jane was no longer playing Frank Castle.

Here we are 9yrs later I've finally given it a chance and I'm saddened I didn't earlier. Punisher: War Zone is not the brainless action flick cash grab that I expected, in fact it rivals the 2004 version.

For a start Ray Stevenson is perfectly cast as The Punisher, he looks perfect and blows Jane & even Lungren out of the water. He thoroughly takes the role and makes it his amidst a host of great actors and characters.

Extremely violent and quite loyal to the original material this is something I could have gotten behind if it had become a franchise.

I'm not an action junkie, in fact I'd say it is by far one of my least favourite genres but when its done right like it is here it makes for some great entertainment.

Ignore the critics and put the 2004 version aside for a moment, War Zone is a damn decent film.

The Good:

Remarkably violent (As it should be)

Awesome soundtrack

Very competent cast

Ray Stevenson makes a great Punisher

The Bad:

Accents are hit and miss

Recasting/Reebooting so soon after the last movie was a stupid move

Hero is a Christian, villain is an atheist. Overwhelming irony

Jigsaw monologue scene was dumb

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

I would love to see this Punisher added to the Marvel Universe

R-Rated superhero movies were a thing before Deadpool

Julie Benz is ageless

Violent crime chiller about a relentless revenger . This is a gripping story of one man's revenge. An ex-military named Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) whose family is wiped by a mobster, executes a revenge, originating a high body count with several enemies . Frank sets out to avenge his family, and he becomes a judge, jury and executioner known as "The Punisher". As Castle carries out a bloody vengeance to punish mobsters and his associates in a one man war, as Castle is not willing to give up until those responsible are dead and until he has his revenge . Frank is moved to brutal violence and metes out his own justice when his wife and sons are murdered . He kills a lot of baddies , as tells a TV newsreader and still going on . After hunting down and killing hundreds of violent criminals, Frank Castle, aka The Punisher (Ray Stevenson , though Thomas Jane was originally attached for the lead role, but he turned it down, stating that he thought the script was going in the wrong direction) faces his most deadly foe yet : Jigsaw (Dominic West originally passed on the villain role , Paddy Considine was in talks to play the role, when he came back and accepted to play the part) . Castle sets out to killing gangsters, such as an one army man. Frank's ex-partner named Soap (Dash Mihok) helps him and a Fed named Budiansky(Colin Salmon , whose character was taken from the graphic novel Widowmaker) tries to catch him. Drawing upon all he has learned in twenty years, Castle sets in motion a plan to punish the murderers. Russoti or Jigsaw also wants revenge on Frank so he breaks out his brother (Doug Hutchinson) who is so crazed that he is committed to an asylum, to deal with him.

This exciting picture packs action packed, thrills, shootouts, chills and lots of violence, explosion , gore and guts . The huge body count racked up by Ray Stevenson/The Punisher is 81 confirmed kills, excluding the two cases where he shoots someone "on the same side." The tale bears a remarkable resemblance with Charles Bronson films of the series 'Death wish', for the matter, the vengeance,as the starring becomes a hit man and acting as a judge, jury and executioner and no better the mobsters he's pursuing . Adapted for a Marvel Comics Group character and written Nick Santora and drawn by Gerry Conway ; being one of the few movies based on a Marvel Comic that doesn't appear as consultant Stan Lee , as seeing as he had absolutely no involvement with the creation of the original Punisher character ; however , here is the usual Avi Arad . Exhibited direct to video in some countries, though in Europe showed in theatres years later being realized . The Punisher movie is distributed by Lionsgate Films, who also distributes the ¨Saw¨ movies , both movies series feature a homicidal villain nicknamed "Jigsaw" and both feature Julie Benz. ¨Sons of Anarchy¨ creator Kurt Sutter wrote an R-rated draft that according to him "taking the Punisher character out of the comic books" and putting him into a real world drama set in the streets of New York. At the very last minute, the studio decided to revert back to Nick Santora's comic-book style script with the intention of creating a sequel from that ; disgusted with the actions by the studio, Sutter was offered a story credit, but refused, and demanded that his name omitted from the final credits. The motion picture was professionally directed by a good director woman , Lexi Alexander (Hooligans).

Other adaptations about this famous comic book are the following : ¨The Punisher¨(1989) by Mark Glodblatt with Dolph Lundgren, Nancy Everhard , Jeroan Krabbe and Louis Gosset Jr , it was a flop and obtained lukewarm reception by the public , though nowadays is well considered . And superior version(2004) directed by Jonathan Hensleigh , starred by Thomas Jane, Rebeca Romijin Stamos and John Travolta achieved much success in the box office, in spite of the extreme violence and crude scenes . Its sequel was this ¨Punisher : War zone ¨ , it's a must see for Ray Stevenson fans .

Let me say that I am not a snooty film buff and that I love mindless action movies. That being said, I cannot believe how awful this movie was. I kept looking for some reason-any- to like this movie and I found not one thing. I'll break it down-

Script: Laughable; Seems to have been written by a third grader

Acting: Some of the worst I have ever seen. Further insult is added given that there are some great actors in this film. Dom West, Ray Stevenson and Doug Hutchinson are normally excellent, but in this one, all 3 of them bring screen acting to a new low. Dash Mihok should quit acting forever out of pure guilt for his performance. All of the characters that have accents (and there are many) perform so badly that I found myself laughing at how preposterous the accents sounded. A black guy with an Irish accent? WTF? Oh and Julie Benz was just terrible.

Direction: If I invested in this film and the director screened this for me I would punch him in the face. Sloppy, awkward, amateurish and clichéd-the directing is like the script- seemingly performed by a 3rd grader. I can't believe this movie got decent distribution. This is straight to video material all the way.

Effects/Action: I thought that at the very least I would enjoy seeing Ray pop caps in people's asses but every action scene in the film has been done before. Most are lifted shot for shot from other movies. The action felt tired, predictable and un-imaginative. Every cliché you could possibly think of is on display here.

In all, I just remember feeling embarrassed for the medium of film, Comic Book Movies, the actors, and the Punisher himself. Everyone involved in this film should be punished!!!!

Sorry I couldn't resist

The Punisher has been portrayed twice on film so far. First in the 80's flick with Dolph Lundgren and more recently in the 2004 flick with Thomas Jane. While both were OK in parts the movies as a whole just weren't that good. Being a huge fan of the comic series I have always felt that they had never pushed the violence far enough for a Punisher film. He was always to restrained. So how did the third attempt at a Punisher film work? Lets see...

Punisher: War Zone starts a few years after the death of Frank Castle's family. Since than he has been killing mobsters at a steady rate and the police see him more as a help than a hindrance..although they won't admit it. When the Punisher fails to kill an up and coming mobster named Billy Russoti, Billy decides to start a war against the Punisher and he won't quit until the Punisher is dead.

While the story may seem fairly basic it serves its purpose perfectly. This is the ultimate Punisher movie. There are more bullets and blood in this movie the most action movies and the action never lets up.

Acting is well done by everyone. While I like Thomas Jane as an actor I think Ray Stevenson is a better Punisher. Dominic West is good as Jigsaw, but I felt he might have hammed it up a bit in a few scenes.

Lexi Alexander has made the quintessential Punisher film that dares to show you the gritty world of the Punisher without shying away from all the gore. I can only hope that a sequel will be on the way soon.

Fans of the Punisher comics and extreme action lovers will eat this up, but know that this is not a movie for kids or people who can't take a ton of gore.

*** out of ****

I suspect this film was victim to the old (pre-Deadpool) rule of PG13 superhero movies being the only ones to bring a profit, even if it diluted the source material so much that the character's spirit was lost.

Punisher was, and is, a violent character - I remember my dad being extremely disapproving of my teenage self reading it due to its violence, and he isn't generally a prude.

The previous Punisher movies are both watered down for a more mainstream audience, but if Punisher fans want a movie that captures the grittiness, personal torment and sheer unadulterated vengeance meated out by Frank Castle then this is it!

The movie probably also suffered from poor marketing - I for one had never heard of it, I bought it as part of a double DVD box set with it's more well known predecessor and I was sceptical of what I perceived to be a straight-to-video b-movie barrel of pants. How wrong I was. It's less "Hollywood", more realistic, more violent, darker, grittier and morally murky - everything the character deserves.

The villains do suffer from the pre-MCU superhero movie tendency towards camp over-acted hamminess and the acting credentials of those portraying them suggests to me that this was a director driven decision rather than the actors personal choice and, given the overall grittiness of the film it does seem a little incongruous but when you consider this was the norm for this genre before Iron Man came along then it can be forgiven, as can the unnecessarily inept cop that seems to have been inserted as an attempt at a comedic character to lighten the mood and it is to Dash Mihok's credit that the character still remains likeable despite the Lt. Frank Drebin/Clouseau-esque material he was given to work with.

Fans of The Punisher comics should definitely see this movie, fans of the other Punisher movies should watch it to get a truer sense of the source material and Marvel should bring Frank Castle into a Deadpool movie to bring the character into the MCU movie arena rather than relegated to the Netflix series - the potential for a successful portrayal of the darkness and violence of Punisher in a post-Deadpool superhero universe is just waiting to be tapped. In the meantime - watch this.