Throwback Thursday: Do the Punisher movies still hold up and did they ever?

The Punisher (2004)

Frank Castle (played by Thomas Jane) was happy. He had a loving family and was given the chance to start a new life without the threat of injury or death. Too bad his last undercover job ended up with a crime boss’ son being killed. To avenge his son’s murder, Howard Saint (John Travolta) ordered Castle and his entire family to be killed at Castle’s family reunion. They succeeded in slaughtering everyone, except Castle. That is how the Punisher was born.

We got to see a Punisher who carefully planned how to repay Howard Saint. Not only did he kill Saint, but he got his revenge in a legendary way. He tricked him into making it look like his best friend and wife were having an affair. Saint was furious and killed them both. Before Castle killed him, he showed Saint that they were innocent the entire time. Saint died knowing that Castle killed both his sons and that Saint killed the people closest to him.

It took 15 years for this second big-screen Punisher project to be created. Thomas Jane would be playing Frank Castle. He’d been around for a while but wasn’t in anything like this. Guess what? He was phenomenal. Thomas Jane started off as a Frank Castle who enjoyed life. When the action started, Jane switched from happy to worried, before turning into the Punisher with ease. Rebecca Romijn was also incredible, and the action was great, especially the fight between The Russian (Kevin Nash) and Punisher. It’s a shame Thomas Jane didn’t continue as the character.

Does it hold up: Yes. It had no business being as good as it was.