Punisher: War Zone

Blu-Ray Review: Marvel Character Strikes Out Swinging With ‘Punisher: War Zone’

BrianTT — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 19:22:49 -0600

Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0

CHICAGO – It’s officially a strikeout for Marvel’s The Punisher, a character now featured in not one, not two, but three bad movies of his very own. Dolph Lundgren swung wildly and missed with his “The Punisher” and Thomas Jane nearly connected but went foul with his reboot of the franchise. Now, Ray Stevenson is the latest actor to fail to connect with this legendary character in “Punisher: War Zone,” now available on Blu-Ray.

There’s at least one thing that director Lexi Alexander and writers Nick Santora and Art Marcum & Matt Holloway get right with “War Zone” - they’re not kidding around. Gone is the attempt at a PG-13 like the Thomas Jane & John Travolta version and the hero is finally the dark, relentless killer that he should be.

Punisher: War Zone was released on Blu-Ray on March 17th, 2009.
Photo credit: Lionsgate Home Video

The problem with “War Zone” is that gore does not equal dark. Yes, there’s extreme violence in “War Zone,” but it’s never allowed to be effective because Alexander and his cast play the whole thing as broad as can be. Dominic West (“The Wire”) as the villain Jigsaw should be terrifying, but he comes off cartoonish, like a twisted, deformed version of Paulie Walnuts from “The Sopranos”.

Punisher: War Zone was released on Blu-Ray on March 17th, 2009.
Photo credit: Lionsgate Home Video

Ray Stevenson of “Rome” (it’s sad to watch two great actors from HBO in Stevenson and West reduced to paper-thin parts like these) plays ex-Special Forces officer Frank Castle, still seeking revenge for the murder of his wife and child. The Punisher is the target of both the mob he’s been decimating in vigilante crimes and the police forces trying to bring him down. After an undercover agent is killed in a Castle shoot-out and Jigsaw is born, The Punisher’s problems multiply.

Stevenson brings a chiseled, nearly-silent strength to the title role that I would actually just barely choose as the best of the three if I had to compare Ray, Thomas, and Dolph. And the action is appropriately R-rated. But the script for “War Zone” is horrendous and I could never shake the feeling that I was watching a relic, a film closer to the mindless action more prevalent in the ’80s.

Ultimately, “Punisher: War Zone” suffers from too many tone shifts, not enough interesting characters, and some of the worst dialogue in the history of Marvel movies. Hardcore action junkies may be satisfied but this is merely proof that this character doesn’t work on the big screen like he does on the page.

The 2-Disc Special Edition of “Punisher: War Zone” is an impressive release from Lionsgate, a company that always knows how to treat their action fans well. First and foremost, movies like “War Zone” depend on a great audio track. If the film works for you, it could only possibly work LOUD and the English 7.1 DTS HD Master Audio will rock your “Punisher”-loving world. The video isn’t particularly notable but also doesn’t register as flat.

Special features include a digital copy of the film, a commentary by Alexander and director of photography Steve Gainer, and the following featurettes - “Training to Become the Punisher,” “The Making of Punisher: War Zone,” “Creating the Look of Punisher: War Zone,” “Meet Jigsaw,” and “Weapons of the Punisher”. It’s a more-than-adequate collection for the film.

‘Punisher: War Zone’ is released by Lionsgate Home Video and stars Ray Stevenson, Dominic West, Julie Benz, Colin Salmon, Doug Hutchison, Dash Mihok, and Wayne Knight. It was written by Nick Santora and Art Marcum & Matt Holloway and directed by Lexi Alexander. It was released on March 17th, 2009. It is rated R.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Slideshow: 18-Image Gallery For ‘Punisher: War Zone’ With Ray Stevenson

BrianTT — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:21:43 -0700

CHICAGO – This 18-image slideshow contains official press images for “Punisher: War Zone,” which stars Ray Stevenson, Dominic West, Doug Hutchinson, and Julie Benz from director Lexi Alexander. The film opens on Dec. 5, 2008.

“Punisher: War Zone” features the return of vigilante-hero Frank Castle, who aims his vengeance on mob moss Billy Russoti. The mobster is left horribly disfigured by Castle and turns into a deadly nemesis named ‘Jigsaw’. The Punisher’s enemy recruits an army to take down the hero and only one man can win the war. The film opens on Friday, December 5th, 2008.

You can click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through this slideshow or jump directly to individual photos with the captioned links below.

punisher2_1: Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Lionsgate
punisher2_2: Ray Stevenson stars as Frank Castle — a/k/a The Punisher — in Punisher: War Zone, directed by Lexi Alexander. Photo credit: Lionsgate
punisher2_3: Billy “The Beaut” Russoti (Dominic West, second from right) and his crew in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_4: Det. Martin Soap (Dash Mihok), Paul Budiansky (Colin Salmon) and The Punisher Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_5: Angela (Julie Benz) and Grace (Stephanie Janusauskas) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Takashi Seida
punisher2_6: Wayne Knight as Micro in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_7: The Punisher Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Takashi Seida
punisher2_8: Jigsaw (Dominic West, right) outside the Bradstreet Hotel in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_9: Loony Bin Jim (Doug Hutchison) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Takashi Seida
punisher2_10: Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Takashi Seida
punisher2_11: Jigsaw (Dominic West) and his brother Loony Bin Jim (Doug Hutchison) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_12: Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) is The Punisher in Punisher: War Zone, directed by Lexi Alexander. Photo credit: Takashi Seida
punisher2_13: Billy Russoti/Jigsaw (Dominic West, seated, left) in a scene from Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_14: The Punisher Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson, standing, right) and Paul Budiansky (Colin Salmon, left) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_15: Loony Bin Jim (Doug Hutchison) and Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_16: Dominic West as Jigsaw in Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_17: Director Lexi Alexander and star Ray Stevenson on set during production of Punisher: War Zone. Photo credit: Jonathan Wenk
punisher2_poster: Theatrical Key Art.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Superhero Film ‘Hancock’ With No Superhero Ancestry Proves Bold But Deadly Decision

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 02:35:37 -0600

CHICAGO – With superhero films as hot in 2008 as psychedelics were in the 1960s, the new blockbuster superhero film “Hancock” fits in with the label but without any of the ancestry.

Rating: 2.0/5.0

While 2008 superhero films such as “Iron Man,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “The Dark Knight,” “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” and “Punisher: War Zone” (along with “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” coming in 2009) are all based on previous stories with a previously ravenous fan base, “Hancock” with an alcoholic and listless Will Smith and Charlize Theron – who hides a surprise bombshell – literally comes from nowhereland.

Read Adam Fendelman’s full review of “Hancock” in our reviews section.

View our full, high-resolution “Hancock” image gallery.

In fact, “Hancock” is the only 2008 superhero film not derived from a previously established comic book.

The original script for “Hancock,” which was inked by Vincent Ngo in 1996 and called “Tonight, He Comes,” was shuffled through the Hollywood director’s circuit until director Peter Berg (“The Kingdom,” “Friday Night Lights,” “The Rundown”) finally ate it up in Oct. 2006. Filming began in July 2007.

Its truly original origin could have either been its golden savior or its deadly assassin. The decision ultimately proved treacherous as everything it tried to do to be different just made it the same.

Its originality actually might not seem so novel, too, once you consider the 1983 film “The Return of Captain Invincible”. In that film, Alan Arkin plays Captain Invincible and Christopher Lee plays his nemesis (Mr. Midnight). Captain Invincible is asked to return from retirement to the superhero battlefields, but this time around, he’s a raging alcoholic. Sound familiar? Uh huh.

“Hancock,” which features Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman and director Michael Mann in a small acting role, opened everywhere on July 2, 2008.

Continuing reading for Adam Fendelman’s full “Hancock” review.

Charlize Theron (left) and Will Smith in “Hancock”.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Will Smith (center) “Hancock”.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Continuing reading for Adam Fendelman’s full “Hancock” review.