More insight on the plot.
http://www.justpressplay.net/movies/the-punisher-2/news/punisher-sequel-plot-details.html
The Punisher 2 (TBD)
by Arya Ponto
Punisher Sequel Plot Details
IGN scooped up some plot details on the sequel to The Punisher, and it looks like it won't be a complete reboot like we initially thought. Production-wise, it is, but the story won't bother to retell the origin again. In fact, this new movie seems to be taking place several years into The Punisher's trigger-happy career. And from what it sounds like, it's going to be riding behind Garth Ennis' coat tails again.
I'm a big fan of the Punisher comic, and it's one of the ones that I anticipate eagerly every month. Not particularly because of the character (he's kind of boring if you think about it...), but because of the writer. Famed scribe Garth Ennis has written Frank Castle through two versions: under the teen-rated Marvel Knights imprintwhich was darkly humorous, taking its cue from Tarantino moviesand under the current Marvel MAX imprinttargeted at mature readers, and features some of the most f-cked up things you'll ever read. Most of the Tom Jane movie was based on Ennis' first Marvel Knights story, Welcome Back, Frank.
Now here are some bullet points on what you can expect from the Lexi Alexander directed sequel. Possible spoilers, be warned:
Main villain is Jigsaw aka Billy Russo, a classic Punisher villain from way back. Producer Avi Arad has claimed that Jigsaw will be the villain from the very start. When the first movie came out, it was decided that they'll make Jigsaw John Saint, the son of the first movie's villain Howard Saint (John Travolta). If you remember, at the end of that movie, Castle rigged John to a car, dragging him into an exploding parking lot. Well, he wasn't supposed to die. The explosion supposedly sends him through a window, disfiguring his face, hence Jigsaw. This same plot is used in the Punisher video game (which was written by, who else? Garth Ennis!)
Jigsaw in the new movie takes his origin from the comics, which is of mafia hitman Billy Russo being thrown through a window by Castle. Disfigured, the hitman wants his revenge.
Jigsaw works for his uncle, Don Cesare, a wheelchair-bound mafioso. This isn't so in the comics, but Don Cesare is a reference to Punisher MAX #1, where Castle drops in on Cesare's 100th year old birthday bash and shoots the drooling old man in the head, before wiping out all the men attending the party.
In the film, Cesare will have a bigger role (and not as senile). Tension builds between him and his now-supervillain nephew when Jigsaw plans on selling a biological shipment to a Muslim terrorist cell.
The "biological" shipment (notice the quotes) is handled by Romanian crimelord Cristu Bulat. Another character from Ennis' Punisher run. Cristu appears in a very disturbing story called The Slavers, where he sells in women from Romania. Castle gets involved in his human trafficking business after a dead baby turns up. Could it be that his role is the same in the movie? Or are they making him a typical arms dealer?
Detective Martin Soap is in the movie. Soap is another Ennis creation, a bumbling loser detective who was made into a one-man Punisher Task Force (the NYPD doesn't really want Castle captured, since he's doing their job for them). Out of frustration, Soap ends up being an ally of Frank, feeding him the police's mob intel throughout Ennis' Marvel Knights run.
His role in the movie is exactly the same. The NYPD in the movie also aren't eager to catch Castle, until the FBI sends in an Agent whose partner was killed by Castle when working undercover in the mafia. Needless to say he's hellbent on taking the Punisher down. There's also a bit of a crossover when Jigsaw targets the partner's widow and child for an execution.
The movie seems to be taking the gritty hyper-violent route, and moves beyond the typical revenge flick. Castle is described to be slightly disturbed over killing an innocent, and his continued killing spree is his brand of death wish. He also has a friend in the sequel named Dante, who's also remorseful over his past as a drug dealer, and sets up a family arcade in Harlem to show that he's changed... which is the altered reflection of Castle's bloodier form of atonement.
I'm hoping that beyond just name-dropping references to the comic, the film also learns a thing or two from Ennis about depicting the Punisher's war on crime. In the comics, Ennis tells mafia tales that would make Martin Scorsese heave. The film doesn't need to be that graphic or twisted, but it would be great if it can maintain the gritty noir atmosphere. From what I can tell, this new movie won't be bringing back the humor of the first one, with the exception of possibly the Soap character.
The film is now casting its villains and supporting roles, and hopes to start shooting soon.
Source:Justpressplay.net
He's not only up for Jigsaw's brother but he's likely got it now. I can't believe I forgot though after the Con each night I visited every bar in the Gaslamp District.
