The Punisher (1989) - An Ode to the Underrated

In 1989, the movie industry embarked on a new phase of comic book adaptations not seen since the late 70's. The king of all cinematic costumed crime fighters that year and several years to come was Tim Burton’s Batman. Not since Richard Donner’s Superman starring Christopher Reeves had a comic book film sent so many geeks into a state of nerd nirvana (nerd-vana, if you would), and while it was by no means a perfect Batman film, it was the best thing the modern fanboy had seen film-wise in regards to the Dark Knight. I myself loved it but am also partial to the 1960’s version of Batman with all of its campiness topped with layer upon layer of cheese.


1989 quietly saw another another comic book come to life, but this one went straight to video; much like all of the Marvel movies made during the 1980’s and early 90’s, and there were some horrible films. Captain America (1990) was an utter disaster that spent two years on the shelf before being released directly to VHS, and Roger Corman’s Fantastic Four never even saw the light of day after it finished filming; but there was one shining light hidden beneath all of that cinematic squalor – The Punisher, starring Dolph Lundgren.

To me, this is still the standard when it comes to Punisher films. It took a simple crime story (written by Boaz Yakin) that was set in New York (unlike the 2004 reboot) and planted all the necessary elements to involve The Punisher. Frank Castle was forced to team up with the mafia in order to save the lives of mafia-leaders’ children from a ruthless yakuza boss. Meanwhile, Frank’s ex-police partner Jake Berkowitz (Louis Gossett, Jr.) still hunting him down, trying to help him, because if he doesn't catch him first, other police officers won't treat Frank with as much amenity as Jake is barely willing to allow Frank because of Frank's homicidal joyride.

This movie treated Frank Castle the way some comic book creators and fans see The Punisher – as a serial killer; a mass murderer. He lived in the sewers, rode around on an awesome motorcycle with intimidating, post-apocalyptic-type biker boots, and brandished an arsenal that would make the American Military jealous, and he killed every guilty gangster in sight. The movie was heavy on the action, had just the right amount of drama. It also turned out one of my personal favorite movie endings, but most appreciative – and this is what I feel is wrong with most of the superhero films of today – it was not an origin film. People wanted The Punisher, we got The Punisher right off the get go. No waiting for that tragic even that twists his conscience and mental stability. All of that is taken care of in a quick, detailed flashback sequence and then it’s back to The Punisher’s story.

Like Donner's Superman, Burton's Batman, and even Raimi's Spiderman – yet another character getting yet another reboot, we understand who and what The Punisher is and what he wants. This movie hit the ground running and didn’t stop, and I was thankful for that.

After I got to discuss this movie with other people that had seen it, the biggest complaint was that there was no skull on his shirt, and people allowed that single detail to deter them from all the good things offered by the film. After Batman Returns, neither Schumacher’s or Nolan’s costumes had the yellow oval which acts only as a target rather than a symbol. Standing in the shadows, that yellow oval would give Batman away instantly, much like Punisher’s large white skull. Batman is the symbol. Frank Castle is punishment.

This is still, in my opinion, the best Punisher movie out there; it had all the elements of a Punisher story and employed a great conflict that forced Frank Castle to team up with the thing he hated the most, which made for a great and greatly overlooked action movie.