Yesterday, post dinner, I decided to check out The Punisher, on Netflix, from 2004. This is pre-2008, prior to Iron Man, which set the stage rolling for the Marvel juggernaut…and it shows. It is a “B” flick and except for John Travolta, has no known names.
It’s interesting that they made the film. The Netflix series with Jon Bernthal that came as part of the overall Marvel - Netflix collaboration, which included Daredevil, Jessica Jones, etc was really nice. The Punisher was a spinoff from the second season of Daredevil.
The film is very uneven. The first part is taut and engaging. Once Frank Castle comes back to exact revenge, it veers between the comic and the violent. Travolta is miscast. If it were to be made in todays MCU, it would be a very different, much more stylish film, though it could still be gritty and dark.
Sometimes you watch something for its legacy. This film is like that…to watch only if you know something about The Punisher.