Punisher: War Zone

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

Punisher: War Zone is a 2008 film baseed in The Punisher comic book and character. It's a reboot after the questionable 2004 adaptation, and somehow managed to flop even worse.

Ruthless vigilante-hero Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson), waging his one-man war on the world of organized crime, sets his sights on overeager mob boss Billy Russoti (Dominic West. After Russoti is left horribly disfigured by Castle (who accidentally kills an undercover FBI agent during his attempted hit), he sets out to get revenge on Castle under the alias of Jigsaw. With the "Punisher Task Force" hot on his trail and the FBI unable to take Jigsaw in, Frank must stand up to the formidable army that Jigsaw has recruited before more of the mobster's evil deeds go unpunished.

Tropes used in Punisher: War Zone include:
  • Big Applesauce: Punisher: War Zone moves Frank back to New York (after his transplant to Florida in the 2004 attempt), as Marvel probably caught on to the whole every hero in New York thing and decided to start expanding a bit, like they did with Iron Man.
  • Darker and Edgier: This movie compared to the 2004 one, adding Bloodier and Gorier to boot.
  • Diagnosis From Dr. Badass: Loony Bin Jim, during his fight with Frank Castle in the toilet, began to say what was wrong with Punisher during each blow:

Loony Bin Jim: Blood in the urine, an early indicator of kidney failure.
Loony Bin Jim: You should be seeing double right about now.
Loony Bin Jim: That would be a torn meniscus.

  • Faux Affably Evil: Billy "Jigsaw" Russoti, though he does really seem to care for his brother.
  • I'm a Humanitarian: The first thing Loony Bin Jim does when he's busted out of the mental hospital is eat an orderly's kidneys.
  • Large Ham: Dominic West was surely having a ball as Billy Russoti/Jigsaw.
  • Sean Connery Is About to Shoot You: In this poster, Frank Castle is in a war zone and about to shoot you.
  • Shout-Out: Although the comic book Jigsaw has appeared long before the Saw franchise, near the end of War Zone, Jigsaw says "Let's play a game" and then forces Frank to choose between the lives of Micro or the little girl.
    • Billy's post transformation is possibly a shout-out to The Joker's transformation scene in Batman.
  • That Man Is Dead:

Jigsaw: Billy is dead. From now on, you call me... Jigsaw.