The Punisher (2004)

The Punisher is a 2004 American action film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The film's main issue is how violent it is: The film is over the top when it comes to how violent it is and would rather try to focus on being as violent as possible instead of having any substance.
 * 2) Another major issue with the film is the overly dour tone: While the movie does have some light-hearted moments (Albeit poorly executed ones), it is mostly extremely dour and grim.
 * 3) Poor acting, with John Travolta's performance as the villain Howard Saint being very bland and coming off as him appearing rather bored and like he's ashamed of being in the movie, and the final death scene of the movie is a shining example of his bad acting in the movie. Thomas Jane is good as Frank Castle and he looks and sounds the part, but even he can't save the film from the poor acting.
 * 4) Frank Castle is an extremely underdeveloped character since the film barely gives him any real development because it focuses more on the violence than actually giving the audience a reason to like these characters.
 * 5) The oddball neighbors are annoying comic foils that are out of place and a good example of why the light-hearted elements simply don't work in the movie.
 * 6) Weak and misguided plot that feels like your typical revenge film with the Punisher slapped on. The plot also drags along halfway through the film.
 * 7) Poor and overly basic action scenes, and the poor production values and editing don't help it either.
 * 8) It was released a few months before the more popular and acclaimed Spider-Man 2.
 * 9) Some overused stock sound effects.

Good Qualities

 * 1) It is an improvement over the 1989 film, albeit slightly.
 * 2) Thomas Jane is picture-perfect as Frank Castle, as he looks and sounds the part. The Skull logo is even on his shirt this time.
 * 3) The Russian is played by former WWE, WCW, and TNA wrestler Kevin Nash.
 * 4) The soundtrack, especially "Broken" by Seether and Amy Lee is so good.
 * 5) There is some Comic Material, the movie is a combination of the Welcome Back Frank Storyline and the 2001 Punisher Series.
 * 6) The extended cut reinstates about 20 minutes of footage that seals up some plotholes.
 * 7) The film is a neat throwback to R-rated 1970s action films and the setting in Tampa, Florida makes it stand out from Spider-Man, Daredevil and X-Men.