I’ve been using a running number for the home cinema post title, and seeing the number of films I watch and the posts I make of them, the post title numbering would have got ridiculous. So, I’m gonna title the posts after the film names from now on.
That out of the way; here are my comments on…
Punisher: War Zone (2008) – on rental. The Punisher is one of Marvel comics most well-known ‘anti’-heroes since the character’s introduction in 1974. The character isn’t a superhero as he doesn’t have any unnatural powers. Frank Castle a.k.a. The Punisher hunts bad guys, but unlike say DC Comics’ Batman, the character dispenses terminal justice in very violent fashions. His motivation for offing bad guys stems from the brutal murder of his wife and children after they witness a mob execution.
There has been two other Punisher films before this one. In the 80s, there was one such with Dolph Lundgren – most famous for his role as Rocky’s Russian boxer opponent in Rocky IV – and just 5 years ago, another starring Thomas Jane as the title character.
I remember the 2004 film better than the 80s one, and it was a so-so picture. Thomas Jane is easy on the eyes and portrayed the anguish of Frank Castle well enough when he sees his family gunned down. But when he’s in bad ass Punisher mode, he doesn’t have an intimidating presence on screen. It didn’t help that the John Travolta was in the movie: and Travolta really hams it up as the bad guy.
5 years after Jane’s film comes War Zone which continues from where the film left off i.e. not a reboot. But the title role is now played by Ray Stevenson, known already for his role in the Rome TV series which I’ve blogged about here before and also in the sloppy King Arthur movie with Clive Owen from a few years back.
I saw the new film on rental DVD. And in the film, Stevenson is a far more effective Castle than Jane was on many counts. In the quieter scenes, you’ll see real emotion in his eyes. There’s a scene where he meets the widow and daughter of a law agent he accidentally kills in an violent encounter with the mob, and it’s very touching – I could feel a mite bit of tears welling up. Stevenson’s Castle doesn’t have a lot of lines in the film. Most of his acting is conveyed through his facial features and the expressions in his eyes.
In the action scenes, he’s downright scary as the enforcer who renders justice where normal law enforcement can’t. I wonder is this amazing blend of what would typically be a volatile mix the product of having a lady director, Lexi Alexander, at the helm.
Speaking about action, this movie is not for the squeamish – Alexander pulls no punches. There isn’t a lot of foul language, but there’s a lot of blood and gore. The body count racks up as fast as a Rambo movie, and all the bad guys get offed in the most graphic ways possible. You’ll see sharp objects slicing off heads, stabbed through necks, go through heads, and through torsos. And you’ll see not one but many heads exploding from gunfire.
But Frank Castle here isn’t a superman. There are elements in the show that grounds bits of it in realism. Castle takes time to reload his firearms, and that’s not something you’ll typically observe in action films: those films routinely include characters who’re on limitless supplies of ammunition. Castle also takes time to draw and holster weapons too. His few allies in vigilante justice and supporters in local law enforcement hurt and bleed too, and more than a few will fall by the film’s end.
A few remarks for the other supporting characters in War Zone. Dominic West’s villain isn’t especially interesting or memorable, and his Italian mafioso tough talk is all pretense and farcical. The film producers should have pulled any one character from Tony Soprano‘s crew for the role. I enjoyed Doug Hutchinson’s take as the evil villain’s brother on the other hand. Hutchinson is best remembered for his role as Tooms in X-Files, and is equally as creepy and deranged here.
Also, newcomer actress Stephanie Janusauskas deserves a special mention. She plays Grace, the perhaps 7 year old daughter of the deceased agent. She puts in a restrained performance of a young girl who doesn’t really understand the chaos around her. She doesn’t have a lot of lines in the movie, but when she does, it’s invariably moving. In one scene, she reaches out to hold Castle’s hand and simply says “Don’t go”. Infinitely likable, and a diametric opposite to the idiotic twit in The Day the Earth Stood Still.
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I haven’t been a big follower of The Punisher comic books, but this film has made me interested to start getting a few more. The script and story is straight forward in War Zone. The action is visceral and violent, but there is also an emotional core. The movie isn’t for everyone given its graphic intensity, but for those of us who’re not squeamish, this is a good film to catch.
I agree with almost everything you wrote in your review. It’s good to see this film get the positive attention it deserves. However, one statement of fact is certainly incorrect.
“…War Zone which continues from where the film left off i.e. not a reboot. ”
This film definitely IS a complete re-boot. The seminal event in Frank’s life, the murder of his family, follows the original comic and is completely different from the Hensleigh/Jane version, which was not at all true to the source. The Hensleigh/Jane version took place in Florida, where I don’t think The Punisher comic character ever set a boot, whereas the Alexander/Stevenson Punisher: War Zone is set in NYC, where it ought to be. In short, the 2004 Hensleigh/Jane version might not have existed for all Punisher: War Zone had to do with it. Which was absolutely nothing.
Thanks for the visitation and comment, Nomad.:)
One thing though: I remember a line in the 2008 film that makes a mention of events since “4 years ago”. While it may not be indeed a reboot afterall, it’s interesting that the suggested timeline seems consistent with the family murder portrayed in the 2004 film.
I didn’t pick up on that, CY. I can see how it’s confusing. Here’s Ray Stevenson in one of the masny interviews in which the sequel/reboot issue was mentioned:
Crave Online: When you approached your character, did you look at the Thomas Jane version?
Ray Stevenson: No, I was aware of it, and I was aware of the Dolph Lundgren one, which I haven’t seen. I watched the Thomas Jane one afterwards actually, because I made clear that we were starting grass roots and it wasn’t like a follow up. It wasn’t to build up from, they were in no way connected to whatsoever. It was like saying, “Okay, this is going to be a commitment to the Max series, to the Garth Ennis writing, to the Tim Bradstreet style of illustration. It’s going to be that, this is the character we’re doing, start there.” There wasn’t any need actually to go in there and see those films because from my point of view, if I was going to play a role on stage, I wouldn’t necessarily watch another actor go play that role that’s been directed by somebody else and acting with other cast members. So you take yourself to it, and give it your shot.
http://www.craveonline.com/entertainment/film/article/ray-stevenson-is-the-punisher-72309
Cheers!
Nomad
Thanks for the link.:) Stevenson I think echoed a similar sentiment about the sources of inspiration when interviewed for one of the featurettes on the DVD.
All that said, War Zone didn’t do very well in its theatrical run. Hopefully that won’t dampen the interest in a next movie especially since Stevenson has said he’d do a sequel.