Frank Castle is staying a bad neighborhood but all he wants to do is go to the launderette and get his clothes cleaned. While he waits for his cycle to be finished, trouble brews outside as drug dealers bully a kid into selling for them or getting the consequences.
I have no idea how this short film got made but I was very surprised to find one of the actors who played Castle in one of the Hollywood films would be involved (Thomas Jane) and that even Ron Perlman shows up – two men better known for being in big blockbusters not smaller films which are essentially fan made. Despite that, this is what we have ourselves. The film appears to have been made out of the common complaint from those awaiting film versions of their favorite comic book characters – that it has been watered down or that it is not violet enough etc etc. This complaint always amuses me because I think the more important thing is that a film be good, not bloody and that having a higher rating doesn't mean that will be the case. This short film is unfortunately an example of that.
The build-up is to one action sequence and this I didn't mind as it was reasonably well done and was a bit of a novelty, however the second half of the film is a problem. It is a simple piece of choreography to make the action happen but it is very violent – and not in a way I personally found impacting so much as silly. The extent of gore and bone breaking is wince-inducing but it is so excessive that it didn't fit with the dark, realistic tone of the piece. It is still a nice idea and I liked that Jane was part of it, but the excess doesn't work as part of the film although I guess it will of course work for those that list "extreme violence" as the key requirement for a Punisher film and everything else a distant second.
A surprisingly starry fan film which will deliver the blood and splatter to the fans seeking that, but really that is all it does and it is disappointing to me that more was not made of the opportunity.
I have no idea how this short film got made but I was very surprised to find one of the actors who played Castle in one of the Hollywood films would be involved (Thomas Jane) and that even Ron Perlman shows up – two men better known for being in big blockbusters not smaller films which are essentially fan made. Despite that, this is what we have ourselves. The film appears to have been made out of the common complaint from those awaiting film versions of their favorite comic book characters – that it has been watered down or that it is not violet enough etc etc. This complaint always amuses me because I think the more important thing is that a film be good, not bloody and that having a higher rating doesn't mean that will be the case. This short film is unfortunately an example of that.
The build-up is to one action sequence and this I didn't mind as it was reasonably well done and was a bit of a novelty, however the second half of the film is a problem. It is a simple piece of choreography to make the action happen but it is very violent – and not in a way I personally found impacting so much as silly. The extent of gore and bone breaking is wince-inducing but it is so excessive that it didn't fit with the dark, realistic tone of the piece. It is still a nice idea and I liked that Jane was part of it, but the excess doesn't work as part of the film although I guess it will of course work for those that list "extreme violence" as the key requirement for a Punisher film and everything else a distant second.
A surprisingly starry fan film which will deliver the blood and splatter to the fans seeking that, but really that is all it does and it is disappointing to me that more was not made of the opportunity.