The Punisher – 1989
The Punisher was a film I saw when it came in 1989. I didn’t really like it back then. I think I had a grudge towards Swedish actor Dolph Lundgren at that time. And, he’s not a brilliant actor but has gotten better over the years. This part doesn’t demand too much of him you might argue. He speaks with a slow voice and he seems to struggle not to have a Swedish accent. I don’t really care, other actors made great movies without being the best actors and maintaining heavy accents too. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jackie Chan come to mind.
Before the MCU
The Punisher was made before it was cool to make Marvel movies and it’s not part of the MCU. It’s kind of gritty and the opening shots are really cheezy. But I’m not sure that is a bad thing. It kind of reflects the cartoonish feel of the movie. And my cartoonish I mean to a degree. It got the vibe but not so much that it becomes ridiculous. Just a little bit more (or less) and it wouldn’t have been as charming and the danger of becoming a turkey would be imminent. During the teaser, I’m afraid that this will be a horrible experience since it’s a bit too much cartoonish in a way. But at the same time, it does not shy away from the violence.
I think that the fact that it was made back before the MCU was a thing is a good thing. There are action scenes that revolve around the characters and not characters revolving around the action scenes as can be the case in the new Marvel films. I have never read the comic though so I wouldn’t know if it’s a good adaptation and stays true to the character or not. Dolph Lundgren seems kind of wooden in the title role but I think that’s the thing about The Punisher, he’s supposed to be like that. He’s driven by revenge and should be a two-dimensional guy for it to work I think.
I think it’s quite entertaining watching the gangsters fight each other and The Punisher stepping in to reduce their numbers. And what comes of the? The Japanese Yakuza steps in a demands a piece of the pie. A rather large piece at that. Of course, this leads to even more war between the different groups of maffia. The Yakuza wants most of the money and will stop at nothing to get it. There are actually a few really dark scenes where a slave trade with the gangsters’ kids is involved. Nothing on screen of course, but the mere thought of it is quite dark. It fits the story though.
Funny scenes
A couple of scenes are really funny and I laughed out loud when a car with gangsters is pushed into a parked van by the side of the road. That itself isn’t so funny, but once you see that the van has a text on its side. Exterminator, pest control. Or something like that it’s really funny. This must be an intentional move. The gangsters are of course the pest of society and the van represents them being exterminated. In another scene, Dolph Lundgren is referring to Batman. I almost fell out of the couch when I heard it. This is a Marvel character referring to a DC character. I didn’t think it was possible.
Even in the comic book realm Marvel and DC heroes share the same pages. But once I think of it I remember a comic album from my youth with Superman and Spiderman joining forces. It must have been a very rare occasion. Maybe it was just here in Sweden? But it raised my eyebrows and I thought it was hilarious!
Most of the fighting scenes aren’t that well choreographed. But they work on some level anyway. And since the Japanese Yakuza is involved we see a couple of Asian disciplines too. Like Kendo fighter and almost ninja-ish fighting. I like that. The culture is quite different so they’ll gladly fight to the death quite literally even if they have no chance of winning the battle.
The bottom line is that I liked The Punisher, much more than I remembered it. Just don’t expect the modern-day Marvel stuff. This is something else
