The Punisher (2004) is Like a 1980s Action Flick, and The Power of Origin Stories (spoilers)
Introduction
Thomas Jane's Punisher in The Punisher (2004) seemed to draw mixed reactions. I think this movie is underrated, although I have not read the comics or seen any other Punisher movies or the show. Allow me to tell you why I love this movie, but first, let's talk a little about who the Punisher is.
The Punisher, alter-ego Frank Castle, is an antihero created by Marvel. He was depicted as an assassin and adversary of Spider-Man, and made his first appearance in Marvel comics in 1974. He was a Vietnam veteran and skilled in hand-to-hand combat, guerilla warfare, and marksmanship. He is well known for the Punisher logo featuring a white skull. Unfortunately, it became a political symbol, and a new logo was commissioned to replace it in 2022. The Punisher is driven to single-handedly go to war against crime after the murders of his wife and children by the mob, and his methods are brutal and violent.
The Punisher (2004) is an origin story of the troubled character. Frank Castle is an FBI agent who was a war veteran, speaks several languages, and participated in counter-terrorism units, whose last mission undercover gets him involved with the powerful Saint family when one of Howard Saint's sons is killed in an arms deal. Howard Saints (John Travolta) wants to track Castle and kill him, but his wife, Livia, orders his entire family executed after they learn that Castle is attending a family reunion in Puerto Rico. Castle miraculously survives even though he is presumed dead and goes on to kill, or punish, the Saint family.
Like A 1980s Action Flick
Let's try and look at it as a standalone action movie instead of if it does or does not match the character in the original comics. Through this lens, the movie excels. The murder of Frank Castle's wife and son mirror the exact feelings and events in Mad Max (1979). Max gets tracked by the villains who eventually pursue his wife and son as Max tries to rush and save them. Frank Castle's wife and son escape in the gun fight in Puerto Rico but they are chased to a dock, and Castle is too late to save them, unfortunately, just like Max. Even the camera shots are strikingly similar. Then, they both gain the possession of a manly black muscle car and seek revenge. There are no words to describe the loss of their better halves and children that these characters mutually experience. It reminds me of other emotionally compromised characters like Martin Riggs in Lethal Weapon (1987) and John Wick (2014) who also lost their better halves and they constantly struggle to continue with their lives. Riggs' constant battle between suicide and his job as a police officer is painted so vividly in Lethal Weapon that I can feel everything that he goes through and understand it even if it never happened. This makes the story much more impactful because Riggs has to overcome great hardship and get along with a new partner to overcome his enemies, and the same thing goes for John Wick and other characters like this.
The Punisher is an amazing movie because it is like a great 1980s action movie made in 2004. Here is a list of things the movie has that support this claim:
- A diverse character who is emotionally compromised
- As mentioned above, Frank Castle is exceptionally skilled but he is also a family man who loves his wife and son more than anything in the world. He has to work hard to overcome the memories of his family after their deaths.
- Mimics great characters from the 1980s who experienced family loss or lost part of themselves. In a broader sense, it is also a reoccurring trait in good revenge and action films from the 1990s and 2000s.
- Max Rockatansky: both inherit a manly black muscle car that would scare predators, both experience the loss of their wife and child. Max is entirely devastated and shuts himself off to the rest of the world.
- Martin Riggs: both experience the loss of their wife, both are close to shooting themselves, but end up not doing so. Riggs is really at a low point. Everyone thinks he is crazy and suicidal and refuses to work with him, but the job is the only thing keeping himself alive.
- A skilled character who is a Vietnam War veteran
- Frank Castle was originally a Vietnam veteran (although in this newer movie he was portrayed as a veteran of the Iraqi War) like so many other great characters from the 1980s, like John Rambo in First Blood (1982) and the characters in Predator (1987), to name a few.
- Thomas Jane went through extensive training with the Navy SEALs to prepare for the role.
- Intense action but grounded in reality
- Unlike most modern Marvel movies, The Punisher (2004) is very much grounded in reality like 1980s movies without the use of superpowers and epic battles.
- The short car chase with his beautiful 1969 Pontiac GTO is very realistic and doesn't really break the laws of physics. The jump off the drawbridge didn't look tall but it made such a difference that you could feel the weight of the car as it made a hard landing on the other side.
- All the bizarre action sequences seem like something that could be found in great 1980s action movies: the huge Russian guy sent to beat Castle to death in his apartment, Harry Heck the musician assassin, confronting the muscular guy with a knife trying to get into Joan's apartment.
- If we ignore the weird mishaps like surviving a point blank shot in the chest while being flung into the ocean and the grenade explosion that doesn't rip a hole in the old wooden floor, the rest of the film grabs ahold of you and sucks you into a world of modern physics. Most actions movies aren't 100% realistic, anyway, and 1980s action movies don't come close, but they are not so far removed from human society.
- Intense realistic gun fights
- There are intense old-school gun fights and the last gun fight at the Saint's club seems very realistic. The Punisher is a master of many weapons. He uses a bow and arrow to stealthily creep into the club, then uses an AR style rifle after sending an anti-personnel mine into the penthouse. After taking hits, he finds cover and takes out his lighter pistol. He also uses a double-barrel sawn-off shotgun and various knives.
- The preparation scene where the Punisher loads his weapons recalls badass scenes like Commando (1985) before the final battle.
- The equipment is real equipment used by the American military like in so many 1980s movies, also grounding it in the constraints of reality. This makes his journey so much more impactful than overly fantasy equipment and physics like modern Wonder Woman action. There are computer animated kid's movies more grounded and impactful than that.
- Badass dialogue and one-liners
- The Punisher has badass dialogue that recalls great protagonists of the 1980s. One of my favorites is when the guy who saved Frank Castle after his family was killed told him to go with God when he was about to leave. Frank Castle replied with "God's gonna sit this one out." His family was just murdered. He is at the lowest point that man could possibly reach. There is no question but to unleash hell upon the evil Saints family.
- The police are not helping with anything. Later, Castle goes to visit the police chief and his officer friend and says,
Frank Castle: It's been five months since my family was killed. I don't see ONE man in jail.
Police Chief Morris: Obviously you're upset...
Frank Castle: Upset? Is that the word? I used to get upset when I had a flat tire. I used to get upset when a plane was delayed. I used to get *upset* when the Yankees won the series. So if that's what upset means, then how do I feel now? If you know the word, tell me because I don't.
, then he walks away and continues with his own agenda.
- Another great quote uses a Latin phrase supposedly used in the military, Frank Castle reciting it from his drill sergeant. This phrase was also used in John Wick 3: Parabellum, the John Wick series also taking me back to the 1980s a little, but that's another story. Perhaps the phrase recalls assassin training, which is not surprising that it is up there with real military training in the John Wick universe.
The Punisher: I leave this as a declaration of intent, so no one will be confused. One: "Si vis pacem, para bellum." Latin. Boot Camp Sergeant made us recite it like a prayer. "Si vis pacem, para bellum - If you want peace, prepare for war."
[cut to later, as Frank prepares his weapons for the final attack on Saint's gang]
The Punisher: Two: Frank Castle is dead. He died with his family. Three: in certain extreme situations, the law is inadequate. In order to shame its inadequacy, it is necessary to act outside the law. To pursue... natural justice. This is not vengeance. Revenge is not a valid motive, it's an emotional response. No, not vengeance. Punishment.
- The story is carefully drawn out with viable military tactics
- Old movies tend to be slower. Take a look at Mission: Impossible (1996). They have a very long and suspenseful CIA infiltration, no car chases, and Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) loses his one fight in the entire movie to an old guy (Jon Voight). This would never fly in the new movies.
- The Punisher is very methodical. He can't just go directly and kill Howard Saint. He uses his military expertise to gain intelligence, find weaknesses in the system, and calculate the best way to destroy his opponent's economy before the main attack on Howard's home front.
- The best strategy is to destroy the opponent's economy and severe their supply lines before invading their home country. The United States submarine fleet dominated the Pacific and destroyed Japanese shipping, as well as claimed the largest ship ever sunk by a submarine, the incomplete Japanese aircraft carrier Shinano that was built on a Yamato-class battleship hull. You can't win the war by invading the home country directly, or else you get genocidal disasters like what happened in Starship Troopers (1997). They didn't even think about bombing the hell out of the planet first before sending infantry until much later.
- The Punisher does not directly kill the main targets: Howard Saint, his wife, and his right-hand-man. He plants false evidence so that Howard Saint kills his most loyal characters. I think this is a testament to Frank Castle's skill and adds a lot of depth to his character. If the meager goons get in his way, he has a quick draw and can make easy work of them. But for the big guys, he makes them turn on each other before pursuing them like a wolfpack but only a wolfpack made of himself.
- This makes the Punisher a better Boogeyman than John Wick. One of the best scenes of the John Wick franchise is still the beginning of the nightclub scene in the first movie where he uses stealth to pick off the guards. Unfortunately, the later movies departed from this and John Wick often finds himself directly involved in the fighting from the start. There is too high of a chance of death in real life this way. The Punisher is always in the shadows watching everything unfold. He strikes when his enemy's resources are depleted and they are weak. Rarely does John Wick hide in the shadows anymore.
- The Punisher, like John Wick, infiltrates his enemy's stash worth millions and disposes of it.
- Kevin Nash was in both movies and both times played a Russian.
- Memorable cast of interesting characters
- The friend group in the apartment are so nice to Frank Castle. They say he's like family.
- Dave (Ben Foster) is loyal to Castle even without knowing him until recently. He suffers from the bad guys' torture without giving up Castle's location. He had no reason to defend Castle, but he did.
- Joan (Rebecca Romijn) helps save Castle's life. She tells him "good memories can save your life." Castle experiences a heart-wrenching memory or vision of his wife supposedly waving goodbye to him.
The Power of Origin Stories
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