Punisher: War Zone Official Website Goes Live

Posted by dominie in Films, News on October 8th, 2008

As Halloween nears, we can’t help but to start thinking Christmas is just around the corner.  And the movie that comes to mind as being the least Christmasy-like celebration is Punisher: War Zone, which we previously mentioned will be hitting theaters December 5, to start off the Christmas month.

Punisher: War Zone, directed by Lexi Alexander and starring Ray Stevenson as Frank Castle, has been quite the controversy as of late.

Interject: 20 second summation. Director John Dahl rejects project on premise of “bad script,” script revisions underway, Lexi Alexander to helm a promised gorefest, original writer Kurt Sutter removed from credits, theater release delayed for three months, Alexander reportedly removed as film’s director, Lionsgate to edit film for PG-13 rating.

Luckily, and not to my surprise, the red-band trailer for Punisher: War Zone barely just hit the internet before the MPAA branded it as “R” rated for “pervasive strong brutal violence, language and some drug use.” If Lionsgate is worried about sales rates, maybe they can take comfort in the fact that kids are smart and an R rating won’t stop the under 17 age set from seeing the film. Claims that Alexander was removed from the director’s chair have also been put to rest.  Though her official blog remains clear of antihero news, the Punisher: War Zone official website still reads “directed by Lexi Alexander.”

Wikipedia provides the following synopsis.

Waging his one-man war on the world of organized crime, ruthless vigilante anti-hero Frank Castle sets his sights on overeager mob boss Billy Russoti. After Russoti is left horribly disfigured by Castle, he sets out for vengeance under his new alias: 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 his evil deeds go unpunished.

The producers claim Punisher: War Zone is not a sequel, but a reboot of 2004’s The Punisher in hopes to revive the franchise. The film has credited Nick Santora and Art Marcum as writers of the new script and Dominic West stars as the villain, Jigsaw.

-Written by Kimberly Kim