I just realized that the Punisher is coming out the same day as Kill Bill 2.
Was that a wise decision?
Someone correct me if I am wrong, but hasn't every marvel super hero movie since Blade came out at number one?
Why would they put the Punisher up against something like Kill Bill?
I mean it might have had a chance if it had been pg13- I don't understand why they had to make the Punisher movie R- with "breif nudity" to boot.
While I watched Kill Bill 1 at the movies I doubt strongly I will make myself sit through the second so I had planned to wacth the Punisher until I saw it was rated R.
I also noticed that Kill Bill is in more theaters than the Punisher so that makes it even MORE of a long shot-
still if they kill Travolta at the end of it it can't be all that bad.
They are going to split the audience for sure. Kill Bill has the most definite audience - you either loved or hated the first one so you'll either see it that weekend or not ever. The Punisher is going to pick up all the anti-Kill Bills but will only do really well if Kill Bill does really bad. Release it Two weeks later and I predict The Punisher would do better (unless it really sucks).
I predict a good third week for Hellboy since it will be the only actioner in the PG range and everything else seems to be dropping like a rock.
I'll go on a limb and, unbiased by reviews, say:
Box Office:
1 - Kill Bill 2
2 - The Punisher
3 - Hellboy
Mike Nebeker - Super Genuis Good Judgement comes from Experience and Experience comes from... Bad Judgement.
All the advance buzz for “Vol. 2” indicates that it’s a much more quiet and cerebral flick than “Vol. 1.” It’s generating great word-of-mouth among critics who are essentially calling it a really well-made character study of a struggling mother. As someone who was pleasantly surprised by “Vol. 1” after finding “Jackie Brown” to be a fairly big letdown, I can honestly say that I’m really looking forward to the follow-up.
“The Punisher,” in contrast, hasn’t generated any buzz yet that I’m aware of, but the commercials certainly made it look bloody awful! Travolta appears to be in his most annoying, overacting mode and the dude playing Frank Castle (whose name I can never remember) doesn’t exactly appear to be dripping with charisma. I suspect lots of people are going to pay to see “Vol. 2” and then, when it's over, do a little multiplex hopping to see if “Punisher” is as big a bomb as it appears to be. (Not that I would ever advocate something so blatantly illegal, naturally, but I’m sure that there are other people out there who fail to share my deeply-held sense of right and wrong.)
As for the question of who would win in an actual battle featuring Uma’s Bride vs. the Punisher, I find myself siding with the Bride. Not necessarily because she’s the better fighter, mind you, but because she’s so friggin’ hot!
The promos seem kind of cheesy, and like they attempt to make Punisher
a sympathetic character. Much like you might have thought of him at the
time of his introduction.
Meanwhile, the comics portray him as this human killing machine, with
very few human characteristics. And apparently he made a deal with the
devil back in VietNam, so he can kill all he wants.
So if the movie makes it big, does Avi send down the edict that
Punisher leave the MAX universe, and become more "kid" friendly?
Punisher would have to be reeeeeeaally good to get me interested. I only have a passing interest in the franchise. Especially when all the appearances I've seen of him in comics he appeared interchangeable with just about any other street-level vigilante with guns.
I don't see how in the world the R-rated movie "The Punisher" can be interpreted as "kid-friendly." Sure, there may be a little sympathy for the character because he goes off the deep end when his family is killed, but come on! You've got to get the audience to care about him!
I think you can thank Ennis for this one. His current run on the book has more blood and guts than the new DAWN OF THE DEAD movie. However, the early reviews on THE PUNISHER movie have been pretty positive. I have yet to see KILL BILL VOL.1 but I'm looking forward to seeing the DVD and will probably see VOL.2 in the cinema. Either way, it's all just to tied me over till SKY CAPTAIN hits. That movie looks soooo freakin cooool.
The Punisher seems pointless to me. For one, the character only really works as a villain who operates in stark contrast to the heroes of the Marvel Universe. As a solo character in a movie, he's just your standard action "hero" who takes revenge upon the people who killed his family. It's like making a Werewolf by Night movie. What's the point?
You guys are entirely too negative. Punisher doesn't look that bad and there are more people that I work with that want to see Punisher than Kill Bill. When it comes to Punisher's Garth Ennis hyper-violence and "R" rating being an issue it doesn't really matter since Kill Bill will probably be even more violent. Punisher will probably be a better date movie than Kill Bill by comparison.
This message has been edited by close2theedge on Apr 13, 2004 12:26 PM
Since both movies are going to SUCK, this is an argument about which movie will SUCK a little less.
Wow. Wee bit judgmental there, Jeff? I loved KILL BILL VOL. 1, so I have every expectation that VOL 2 won't "suck" as you are ever-so-sure it will. As far as PUNISHER goes, it looks like Ennis' first "Punisher" mini-series, so I don't think it's going to appeal to me all that much. May catch a show in a few weeks if I'm bored, but I'm not compelled to watch it opening weekend like I am KB VOL 2.
Matt, we have disagreed about KILL BILL in other threads. I generally like QT and LOVE Uma, but I thought KILL BILL was positively horrible. As I have said in other threads, I have NEVER liked the Punisher character and therefore have no desire to see this flick. All that said, when a person says that something "sucks" or "will suck" it's usually his/her personal opinion. That's what it is here. I just couldn't resist dopping this comment into this thread. I see it as "which is going to taste better: ham-flavored ice cream or a ketchup milkshake?"
