The Punisher

The Punisher ist nicht der Film, der im Trailer und auf den Fotos gezeigt wird. Es ist kein düsterer, visuell attraktiver Comic-Actionfilm von einer großen Rache. In dem Film geht es zwar um Rache, aber die Art und Weise, wie sie von dem Drehbuchautor und Regisseur Jonathan Hensleigh präsentiert wird, fängt bei den abgedroschenen Seagal-Filmen an. Dann kommen viele billige Sprüche und eine ungewollte Selbstparodie. Der einzige Aspekt, den man akzeptieren kann, ist die unerwartete und unterhaltsame Beseitigung der Schufte. (30.04.2004)

When the best thing about a whole movie is the main character's shirt, something is wrong. To be fair, though, there are two scenes that make this nonsense is survivable: the initial disposal of Castle's family has a certain amount of impact, and the fight with the Russian muscle-head to the accompaniment of an operatic aria, which is not without its comic exaggeration. The rest, full of ridiculous, pathetic poses, does not do credit to the creators, nor to the fluffy and dynamic comic book premise itself. Although I think Travolta shouldn't climb in front of the camera anymore, here he was mysteriously tolerable, while the mediocre Thomas Jane might not need a Shakespearean training for such a role, but I resisted the onslaught of my diaphragm every time I saw his badass face. But during the scene when the elevator goes up and there's Thomas turning on it, with a taut body under his tattered tank top and a harsh look on his face, I burst out laughing, I really couldn't help it :) (14.07.2007)

“We aren’t just happy, we’re crazy! " Well, I understand why The Punisher became a cult movie in certain circles. An ingeniously bad movie. You need a real big does of talent to film something... like this. After just a couple of minutes of watching, you will tell yourself that it couldn’t be any stupider. But the opposite applies, unfortunately. Every word is outrageously bad. The Punisher is a movie that you won’t forget for a long time and one that will always brighten your day. So what if the effect is completely different than intended by the creators? (01.11.2007)

I'm surprised I was skeptical about this film at first and put it off, because The Punisher is exactly the kind of film I adore. The perfect revenge of an ultra pissed off cop losing his entire family, with Thomas Jane playing a great hero that you root for and keep your fingers crossed for, the guy has incredible charisma. Standing against him is the psychopathic John Travolta, a ruthless gangster with more ruthless cronies (that two meter tall, 150 kilogram Russian was a terrible asshole). Amazing entertainment, perfect action, solid brutality, one-liners, I watched until 3am and my eyes flashed with happiness. I miss movies like this!!! 80% (06.12.2015)

The main reason why The Punisher failed is the script. It fails not only with poorly written dialogues but also with a weak plot. The relatively solid cast – Thomas Jane, John Travolta, Will Patton, Samantha Mathis, and Rebecca Romijn – is wasted. If the film had been in the hands of someone like Tony Scott or John Woo, it could have been a top-notch gritty action ride. As it stands, however, it is just an ordinary action movie, of which we can see hundreds if not thousands these days. (08.12.2004)

Sit back in your chair and enjoy this film, which brings back the golden days of action movies—specifically, the '90s! I’ve grown fond of The Punisher, and as I write this review, we're slowly but surely approaching the series with this hero, so I had to watch the film as well. The director’s name was unknown to me, but in the end, the final product didn’t turn out to be the trash I expected. A clear highlight is the casting of the lead role—Thomas Jane fits perfectly. I still don’t understand why he doesn’t get more opportunities as an actor. Many other actors would kill for that kind of charisma, as some come across as more humorous than serious. But I digress. This is, of course, a slightly different Marvel film. Here, you get proper fight scenes with no shortage of blood. Travolta as the villain still has something to offer, and while the story is B-grade, it's hugely entertaining, which I appreciate. A few moments will stick in the viewers' minds (whether it's the scene with the burly Russian or the impressively executed raid on the villains’ main hideout). I can’t give it a perfect score because the plot isn’t anything special, but I enjoyed this nostalgic trip back to the successful years of this film genre. I give it 81%. (28.09.2017)