I LIKE 2 OUT OF 3 PUNISHER MOVIES (part 2 of 2)

Here it is, the big finale to our first ever two-part, cliffhanger episode of I LIKE THINGS! Previously I gushed of the glory that was the 1989 Punisher movie. This time I'll be skipping over 2004's The Punisher (which wasn't terrible, just kind of bland) and getting right into the nitty gritty of 2008's Punisher: War Zone.



Punisher: War Zone is the third attempt at bringing Frank Castle to the big screen. If the flaw of the 2004 movie was that the Punisher wasn't brutal or single minded enough, then this movie makes up for it in spades. Although this third incarnation of The Punisher isn't as naked-in-the-sewers-bonkers as Dolph Lundgren's from 1989, he does have a certain Jason Voorhees-like panache for creative and disgusting dispatchings of deadbeat dudes.

Something about this movie really worked for me. It was able to straddle the saddle on top of a horse made of ballistic action and dark humor (and horse meat) without letting one side overtake the other. This movie knows what it is. It doesn't take itself too seriously. And it has the feel of a late night grade school video rental, if that makes any sense or strikes a chord with anybody out there. It's prime for an edited-for-TV version that will be just as fun but for all the wrong reasons.

Justice is Served!
OR
Would Anybody Care For Some Just Desserts?

Aesthetically, War Zone is really cool. Every scene has a particular and limited color scheme. The emphasis is on the visuals and the action plays out very well before our eyes. Bullets, knives, and even the occasional fist break through skin and bone with sprays of blood. This version of the Punisher is a real A-hole and he systematically takes out the trash. And the trash in this particular case happens to be a bunch of random bad guys who very easily burst or explode! What would movies like this be without warehouses full of faceless bullet magnets? It is 1980s one-man-army logic and I will always accept it with open arms. In the first scene he kills a middle aged woman sitting at a dinner table. Granted she was in the mafia and pulls a gun and he also kills about three thousand other people in next twenty seconds, but still. Way to go, movie!



The main villain is Jigsaw, a horribly scarred mob boss. He wasn't always this way though. In fact he was quite obsessively vain about his looks in the early scenes, prior to his deformation at the hands of the Punisher. Therefore his hideous visage is all the more tragic! Cruel irony! The character is cartoonishly gangstery and hammy. But in a good way. He has a crazy brother, Loony Bin Jim, and together they play bad action movie bad guys. When the time comes to "raise their armies" for the big finale with Mr. P, they practically have a two man parade as they strut and saunter from turf to turf to recruit gangs. It's pretty funny. The movie knows it and it doesn't care. It's ham with a side of bacon. And don't forget the cheese.

If over the top action with a bloody tongue tucked in its cheek is your thing, then you should probably check out Punisher: War Zone. If I can't convince you, then maybe this clip can:



And if that didn't convince you then I'm pretty sure you're not going to like it. So watch something else.

Before I go, I really wanted to point out how much I like one particular part in this movie. It happens during the shootout in the house. Jigsaw is on the stairs and bullets are flying everywhere. You see his mouth move. He clearly yells, "SHIT!" but there is no sound. Slightly delayed behind the lip movement you hear, "FUCK!" It's way too weird to be unintentional, right? They couldn't have been that sloppy by accident. Right? Obviously someone making this movie knew I was going to laugh and press rewind and laugh again. I hope.