Marvel Comics first introduced Frank Castle, the vigilante known as The Punisher, in 1974 as a supporting character in a Spiderman issue, but he gained real popularity not until 1986 when he was given his own 5 issue mini-series, which then continued as a monthly series. The comic book character Frank Castle was a captain in the United States Marine Corps, served 5 years in Vietnam and ran special training missions for the Marines in New York State after the war.
One day on leave Castle took his wife and two small children to Central Park in New York City for a picnic, where his wife and children are murdered because they witnessed a mob killing. Castle himself survived but was traumatized by the death of his loved ones. He deserted from the Marines and started a war against those criminals who were untouchable by the police and the criminal justice system. The name "Punisher" was given by the news media.
What I like most about the film in general (and probably the comics, haven't read them) is the subject matter (a tragic character and the killing of bad guys) and the fact that the Punisher is not some unrealistic, supernatural super hero like Spiderman, Superman, etc. He's a man of flesh and blood like everybody else and thus vulnerable.
Furthermore, he has style: he doesn't just shoot everybody. It's cool to watch how he punishes (Castle: "revenge is not a valid motive") the gangster boss by making him kill his wife and his best friend by setting up a clever intrigue.
I perfectly like the result the film crew delivered - everything fits! This is even more admirable when we consider that director Jonathan Hensleigh had only a limited budget for his film. He did everything the "old school" way. There are no computer generated effects throughout the whole movie! One of Hensleigh's favorite directors is Sergio Leone, and that did "The Punisher" good.
Oh yes, and I shouldn't forget to mention the wonderful score by Carlo Siliotto. It perfectly manages to describe the sad and tragic character of a man who has lost his whole family. Go get the CD here.
As opposed to the comic character, the film's Frank Castle has first been a Delta Force Op and later an FBI special agent. On his final assignment the operation spins out of control and a young man is killed. That man's father, a rich "businessman", orders the annihilation of Castle's whole family. This includes Frank's son Will (Marcus Johns). He dies in the 28th minute of the film together with his Mom.
The DVD features some cool extras, as there are:
- Keepin' It Real: The Punisher Stunts - An In-depth Look At The Stunt Work
- An Army of One: The Punisher Origins - Background on the Evolution of The Punisher Comic Book
- War Journal: On The Set of The Punisher - A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Making of the Film
- Music Video - "Step up" Performed by Video Game (OK, this one sucks!
)- Sneak Peek Trailer of The Punisher Video Game
- Drawing Blood: Bradstreet style - An interview with the Cover Artist of The Punisher
- Audio Commentary with Director Jonathan Hensleigh
- Deleted Scenes
A note to German customers with a suitable sound system: you should consider buying the RC1-DVD since it has a 6.1 sound, whereas the German DVD has only 5.1.
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