Friday, December 5, 2008

Movie review: Punisher: War Zone

By Alex Bentley

Vengeance may have a name, but the film's star apparently does not.

Call it the ultimate in counter-programming. At a time of year when most movies coming out are either of the prestige, notice-me-Oscar-committee or Christmas-y, family-friendly variety, the producers of Punisher: War Zone decided now would be the optimal time to deliver an ultra-bloody, over-the-top comic book movie that's a pseudo-sequel to a film hardly anyone saw in the first place.

Since the 2004 version starring Thomas Jane didn't go so well (total box office: $33 million, equal to the budget of the film), the producers apparently thought a reboot was in order. However, Jane's replacement, Ray Stevenson, is a British actor best known for a supporting role in the HBO series Rome – not exactly the star power that draws people in.

Punisher: War Zone establishes itself as a “for fans only” type of film right off the bat with the Punisher (aka Frank Castle) tearing his way through a mobster's home, indiscriminately killing anyone in his path. Fans will recognize that Castle is just on his seemingly never-ending quest to avenge the deaths of his wife and kids at the hands of mafia members. But since this little tidbit isn't explained until well into the film, viewers could be forgiven for thinking that this guy is just killing people for the hell of it. It kind of makes it hard to root for a guy when you can't tell the difference between him and his victims.

The Punisher in the midst of his first indiscriminate killing spree.

The main “plot” of the film is set off when Frank accidentally kills an undercover federal agent, who leaves behind a wife (Dexter's Julie Benz) and daughter. In the same raid, he also creates his new nemesis by sending Billy Russoti (Dominic West) into a spin cycle of broken glass at a recycling plant. When Russoti recovers thanks to some questionable plastic surgery, he dubs himself “Jigsaw” (dude, no bad guy worth his salt gives himself a nickname) and goes after Frank, who's still hunting Russoti, as well.

All of that is really just an excuse to put as much gory mayhem on screen as possible. Exploding heads are a regular occurrence in the film, the better to see blood flying everywhere. Frank defies the laws of physics at one point by literally caving in another man's face with just his fist (sorry, don't seem to remember the Punisher having superhuman powers). The violence reaches its zenith when Franks kills a parkour enthusiast baddie with a shoulder-launched missile (the bad guy's body, naturally, disintegrates).

If you think his face is bad, just wait till you hear him speak.

A blood-soaked landscape wouldn't be that bad if it was part of an entertaining story, but, alas, that is far from the case. Overacting is par for the course in the film, save, curiously, for the Punisher himself. West is vastly removed from the acclaim of his role in The Wire, as he hams up his role as Jigsaw for all it's worth. His Noo Yawk accent is almost painful to listen to and his grotesque appearance is nothing compared to the way he yells his way through every scene. He only slightly outdoes Doug Hutchison as his brother, Loony Bin Jim, who at least has a built-in excuse for acting like a wackadoodle.

Just as bad in a completely different way is Dash Mihok as Martin Soap, the policeman who's supposed to arrest the Punisher but instead aids his effort. Mihok plays the dumb cop role so inanely that the group from Police Academy would be offended. As for Stevenson, he's believable if by “believable” you mean “maintains an expressionless face while squeezing the trigger again and again.” His face certainly fits the role of an ex-Marine out for justice, but just because he looks the part doesn't mean he can pull it off. At least Benz is consistent in her role choice – men who have their own code of killing are a mainstay in her characters' lives.

Punisher: War Zone never tries to be anything more than a shoot 'em up, no-holds-barred type of action film, which one can respect in a certain way. But because it never attempts to put forth even a modicum of entertainment value in the script, acting, or action (unless chair legs through eyes is your idea of entertainment), it should go straight to the bottom of the DVD bargain bin.

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