Punisher: War Zone (2008)

Frank Castle known as Punisher ruthlessly demolishes organized crime, but it starts an even bigger war.

Director:

Lexi Alexander

Writers:

Nick Santora, Art Marcum

Stars:

Ray Stevenson, Dominic West, Julie Benz

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ray Stevenson	...	Frank Castle
Dominic West	...	Billy / Jigsaw
Doug Hutchison	...	Loony Bin Jim
Colin Salmon	...	Paul Budiansky
Wayne Knight	...	Micro
Dash Mihok	...	Martin Soap
Julie Benz	...	Angela
Stephanie Janusauskas	...	Grace
Mark Camacho	...	Pittsy
Romano Orzari	...	Nicky
Keram Malicki-Sánchez	...	Ink
Larry Day	...	Agent Miller
Ron Lea	...	Captain Ross
Tony Calabretta	...	Saffiotti
T.J. Storm	...	Maginty

Storyline

Frank Castle, the ex-military man whose family was killed by criminals, who became a vigilante known as the Punisher, goes after a whole mob family and gets everyone except enforcer Billy Russoti. He tracks Russoti down and chases him into a vat that is used for crushing bottles. Frank turns on the crusher hoping it would take care of him but it doesn't. He survives but sustains very severe injuries that even with plastic surgery his face looks like a jigsaw puzzle. So he decides to adopt the name Jigsaw. Frank who killed one of Russoti's people who unknown to him is an undercover Fed, decides to pack it in. But when he learns Russoti didn't die and is looking for the money he entrusted to the Fed and will go looking for it at his home which means his family is in danger. So Frank tries to save them. But Russoti wants revenge on Frank so he breaks out his brother who is so crazed that he is committed to an asylum, to deal with him. And also another Fed who's a friend of the man Frank ...

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Plot Keywords:

exploding body | frank castle character | the punisher character | f rated | aerial camera shot | 

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Taglines:

Vengeance has a name.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive strong brutal violence, language and some drug use

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot over a period of 40 days.

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Goofs

(at around 26 mins) Micro provides Frank Castle with several guns he claims to have purchased at a gun show without a background check. This is an incredibly misleading statement, as the only firearms sales that occur without background checks are either private sales between private citizens or illegal sales between criminals. Federally licensed firearm dealers participating in gun shows are still required by law to initiate a background check on anyone attempting to purchase a firearm at a gun show. Private sales of firearms may be conducted at gun shows, but these sales are still private sales between private citizens. That they take place in the setting of a gun show is both coincidental and irrelevant. While Frank is probably indifferent about Micro's methods, but he would probably prefer not to know the details if only to maintain the ability to plausibly deny knowing how Micro acquired them in the first place.

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Quotes

[Carlos is dying after being axed by Loony Bin Jim]
Carlos: See you in hell.
Frank Castle: If I see you anywhere near Hell, I'll kick your ass out.
[Frank covers Carlos's eyes and shoots him to end his suffering]

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Alternate Versions

German retail video version was cut by approx. 1 minute to secure a "Not under 18" rating. The uncut version was released with a SPIO/JK approval but can be sold only with restrictions.

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Connections

References Yojimbo (1961)

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Soundtracks

The Past Is Proof
Written by Senses Fail, Lyrics by Buddy Nielsen
Performed by Senses Fail
Courtesy of Vagrant Records

User Reviews

Exactly what you'd want in a Punisher movie

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.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site [United States]

Country:

USA Canada Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 December 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Punisher: Welcome Back, Frank

Filming Locations:

Station de métro Lionel-Groulx, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,271,451, 7 December 2008

Gross USA:

$8,050,977

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,161,493

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lionsgate, Marvel Knights, Marvel Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1