The Punisher Vs. The Punisher

c - 13

1989 Vs 2004

So Friday just gone I watched both of these back to back. Hadn't seen either of them before, found them both to be enjoyable in their own ways.

However i'm trying to decide which I preferred.

Both of them are done in two completely different styles, with two different characterisations of Frank Castle/The Punisher.

Now i'm obviously not sure what the comic background of the punisher is exactly in relation to the films so I can't factor in that.

So basically i'm just curious as to which version of the film you preferred.

I'm just not able to choose between both. I enjoyed both of them immensely for what they were (non-thinking action), and found that even watching them both one after the other (older one first) that they werent in the least bit boring.

Dont be at yourself

I havent watched the 1989 one in years, so I'll have to give it another watch.

The Thomas Jane one was alright. It was a shame it was moved from New York, but it was quite faithful to the source material in parts. John Travolta was a poor villain too.

Marvel Studios are going to release a new one, another complete reboot of the franchise. They've recently released a teaser poster for it.

Johnny Bitte

Well from what i ve seen of the comic books both the films were way off.

Should be more like Man on fire. But the films themselves have there own good points.

Galvasean

The_Goose135 wrote: »

Well from what i ve seen of the comic books both the films were way off.

The 2004 (Tom Jane) one was based off actual Punisher comics, most notably 'Welcome Back Frank' by Garth Ennis. Certain scenes including the ice pop torture scene, the facial piercings torture scene (yeah, Ennis is a bit of a sadist) and the fight with the Russian

although in the comic Frank kills him by suffocating him with the fat man

were all lifted directly from that volume. Travolta's character was invented for the film

An aged Frank eventually hunts down the killer of his family in 'The Cell' once off comic story

.
I felt it was a good take on the character, taking the synical sense of humour and over the top action that the Punisher has always been about. Example:

Travolta: "You killed my son!!!"
<A scream can be heared followed by an explosion>
Frank: "Both of 'em.."

Classic.

As for the 1989 (Dolph Lundgren) film... eh I taught it was absolute rubbish. Although it was unintentionally funny in parts, like how Frank just throws away perfectly good weapons, without even firing them or how you can see stage markers on the floor during action scenes. That and I don't really think I needed to see Dolph's sweaty man arse in the opening scene...
As far am I'm aware it's not based off any comic either. Heck he doesn't even have a skull on his shirt.

Punisher: Warzone is due for release later this year. It's another reboot, but not an origin story. Alas, no Tom Jane this time. Its supposed to be in NYC and focus more so on Frank's downward spiral into the dark realms of the mind.. although one of the writers had his name taken off of it citing that they took out most of the character development, leaving behind a pointless action film.
As a fan I'll go see it. I'll let ya'all know if its any good.

Haven't seen the first one. But the second one with travolta made me want to poke my eyes out with a stick covered in poo.....then I realised I would still be able to hear it, so I punched my mate for making me go watch it.:mad:

Pigman II

Haven't seen the 89 version but the 04 version was passable.

89 has Lundgren in and is therefore automatically kak.

04 > 89.

Pride Fighter

Pigman II wrote: »

89 has Lundgren in and is therefore automatically kak.

Blasphemy, I cast thee out

constitutionus

i actually liked the first one.

for the life of me i cant tell you why as its sod all to do with the punisher in the comics but its fun none the less. louis gosset jr was in it too and lent it at least some credibility in the acting stakes and i actually liked he bad guy in it. .

as for the second i didnt take to it at first as it was all over the place but the more ive seen it the more its grown on me. really clever the way frank takes out the bad guys and thomas jayne was brilliant. real pity they didnt get him for the sequel.

the blowtorch torture scene is class though. thand god for ennis's warped sense of humour.

Doctor DooM

I only saw the '04 one.

As a comic book fan it left me cold, it was one of those films where they lifted so directly from the source that it lost its appeal. And the bits they changed worked even less for me tbh.

As an action film it was ok though.

Will prob see the 89 one sometime soon

Galvasean

SDooM wrote: »

As a comic book fan it left me cold, it was one of those films where they lifted so directly from the source that it lost its appeal. And the bits they changed worked even less for me tbh.

You just can't please comic book fans... Needs more spandex!/No, spandex is silly!

Pat Mustard

I enjoyed the 2004 Punisher. Quite watchable, I thought.

Only vaguely remember the 1989 version, which I saw when I was about 12. I went looking for it in Xtra Vision but couldn't find it to watch it and see whether I still like it now.

Ideas on where to get it?

Galvasean

The Mustard wrote: »

Ideas on where to get it?

The Region one DVD often pops up in Walmart bargain bins for $4.there was a video release here alright but it is incredibly rare these days.

Amazon.com have loads of R1s going for virtually nothing:
http://www.amazon.com/Punisher-Dolph-Lundgren/dp/078401132X

.co.uk have the multi region disk, but its very pricey:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Punisher-All-Region-Dolph-Lundgren/dp/B0012FBUY2/ref=sr_1_1/202-7527563-9496619?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1211975578&sr=1-1

Anyone looking ot buy the 89 Punisher is advised to try and get the Uncut German 2 Disc version. It comes in a steel tin and for some strange reason everything is in English even though it's a German release.

I like the 89 version, but I am a massive Lundgren fan. Of all the 80s stars I grew up with Lundgren and Van Damme are the only two whom have evolved and actually shown that they could act. The original version felt more like a simple vigilante film which the producers decided needed to appeal to a wider fanbase so someone said lets call him Frank Castle.

The 04 version is a very entertaining film. I got the R1 DVD well before it was in cinemas over here and watched it 3 time in 2 nights and a total of 5 times in the first week. The first 30 minutes could have been filmed in the 80s which only makes it that much more appealing. The Uncut R1 DVD is supposed to be a far more fan friendly release, with added violence and more Frank Castle much like the Uncut Daredevil DVD.

Galvasean

Damn, i must find the R1 version now. Why do you always do this to me Darko?

Galvasean

Galvasean wrote: »

Damn, i must find the R1 version now. Why do you always do this to me Darko?

I know man, it's a hard life. Damned film studios and their ability to dig up the latest cut of a beloved classic. I'm waiting till the "Dolly Grip's Cut", featuring unseen footage.

I liked both movies. Im a big fan of the Punisher. The last punisher though just lacked somthing . I wished it was a bit more Kick Ass . The game came out and it was better.
They need to take it out of the city for a bit, get into a jungle and see what he is made of. Then back to the city. But i think the budget for the film is tiny .

Galvasean

Jungle? Sounds like you want this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Punisher:_Born

Pat Mustard

Galvasean and Darko, thank you. I'll go and track it down.

JangoFett

I really liked the 2003 Punisher...travolta was pretty weak but he's a bad actor when trying to act serious, he's great in comedies...i.e his early career and Hairspray

The Dolph Lungdren one was hilarious, but for a 1989 film, it was kick ass!!

No skull shirt though!! BOOOO!