Mutant Reviewers from Hell do
"If they had told me it was going to be fifteen years, would it have been easier to endure?"

2003 R / Action Mystery Directed by: Chan-wook Park Starring: Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yu, Hye-jeong Kang

Tagline

15 years of imprisonment, five days of vengeance

Summary Capsule

After being held captive for a decade and a half, a man has less than a week to find out why.

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Justin's Rating: So I get dental with this?
Justin's Review: Picture this. A seemingly innocent — if annoying — man is abducted from his normal life and family, thrown into a creepy-looking hotel room with no means of escape. There he sits, bewildered as to his crime, for 15 years. On the television, he finds out that his wife is murdered and he's been framed for it. He goes crazy. He fosters hatred for whoever did this to him. He watches endless television, trains his body by punching a wall, and grows ever older. He writes countless lists of the people he's wronged. He stares at an unnerving painting that stands guard over the room.

"The premise alone is interesting enough, but when I finally experienced this film I was blown through the outer wall of my apartment, making a Justin-shaped hole that will be very hard to explain to the landlord."

Then, one day, he's let go… with no explanation, no clues as to his captors, only told that he must find out the reason behind his imprisonment in five days' time, or else. Thus begins the journey of Dae-su Oh, who descends into a film noir world of vengeance and revelation, yanking us along whether we like it or not. Also, yanking not just a few teeth along the way. "Ouch" is the word you're looking for.

I don't know about you, but just by hearing the premise of Oldboy, I was definitely hooked. The premise alone is interesting enough, but when I finally experienced this film I was blown through the outer wall of my apartment, making a Justin-shaped hole that will be very hard to explain to the landlord. I had assumed that this would end up being a straight-forward revenge martial arts festival of sorts - hi-ya, hi-ya, chop, chop, dead, life is good again - but that's not even close to what Oldboy turned out to be. Think The Count of Monte Cristo mushed together with Cube and stirred with the essence of key film noir, and you might get closer to the truth.

Dae-su Oh gets a terrific voice-over narration throughout the flick, reminding me not just a bit of the video game Max Payne. The growly voice and Dae-su's weathered face match up well together as he goes on his quest. Painfully yet doggedly, he pursues the truth behind his 15-year punishment, determined to get some answers, and then get some serious face-bashing on.

Here, I have to end whatever plot I might reveal. I simply cannot spoil this movie for you, but just point you in its general direction. It's definitely not a film for some people — there's graphic violence and extremely disturbing themes that take place to make anyone feel slightly sick by the time the end credits roll. That's what we in the critic profession call a "minus". On the other hand, my saluting hand, it's a brilliant mystery slathered all over a visually stirring flick. I was sitting on the edge of my couch by the end, being slammed by twist after twist, until it ended and I just had to admire it… even if I didn't like what it had to say. What makes it more aggravating is that the director makes the story so that there's no way we could know about half of the mystery until it's explained to us, but he carefully places enough clues for the observant and deductive viewer to at least get part of it before the grand finale.

Oldboy is high up there with Sin City and Kill Bill as the best of new film noir the 2000's have to offer. Although not quite as much as Sin City, Oldboy has a distinctive "graphic novel" feel to its shots and stark camerawork, which helps greatly to give this whole movie an otherworldly feel to it.

My mutant powers fail me as I search for a way to wrap up this review. I want to recommend it, but I also want to warn people away. Probably, both of those might prompt everyone to see it. Can't say I didn't encourage ya! And caution ya!

"I am ze carpenter, you are ze nail!" "No, I really don't want to reenact Dirty Dancing with you!" Um... kinky? Disturbing? Your pick.

Didja Notice? [some sources: IMDb]

• Four live octopi were eaten for the scene with Dae-su in the sushi bar, a scene which provoked some controversy abroad. Eating live octopus in Korea is commonplace although it is usually sliced first. When the film won the Grand Prix at Cannes, the director thanked the octopi along with the cast and crew.
• The famous one-take corridor scene was shot in three days. CGI was not used to cleverly edit the sequence as one take, it was actually done in one take. The only CGI used during the scene is where Oh Dae Su gets stabbed in the back with a knife.
• Mr Han speaks only one line throughout the course of the film.
• The phrase "Like the gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like the bird from the hand of the fowler, free yourself," which was a clue to Woo-jin's residence, is actually from Proverbs 6:5 NOT Proverbs 6:4. The director once said that it was just a hoax, not a mistake.
• During the scene in the cyber cafe, the extras in the background are playing the popular first person shooter Counter-Strike. This is apparent when watching screens and when listening to background noise. You can faintly hear the famous AWP weapon being fired from time to time.

Is It Worth Staying Through End Credits?

No.

Intermission! [some sources: IMDb]

Based on Japanese Manga "Oldboy" by Minegishi Nobuaki and Tsuchiya Garon. This is the second one of director Chan-wook Park's Revenge Trilogy.

Min-sik Choi trained for six weeks and lost twenty pounds to get in shape for the role of Dae-su, and did most of his own stuntwork.

The last scenes of the movie (with snow and footsteps) were filmed in New Zealand. After the ending credit completely rolls over, audiences can hear sound of the wind. It was actual sound of the wind recorded in NZ location. The director revealed in an interview that he was impressed by the scenary of NZ so much he saved the sound there for the audience.

Groovy Quotes

Dae-su Oh: Even though I'm no more than a monster - don't I, too, have the right to live?

Dae-su Oh: If they had told me it was going to be fifteen years, would it have been easier to endure?

Dae-su Oh: Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.

Dae-su Oh: [Dae-su is about to use a clawhammer to yank out someone's teeth] Each one I yank out will make you age for one year. Ready to talk?

Woo-jin Lee: Dae-su Oh talks too much.

Woo-jin Lee: Your gravest mistake wasn't failing to find the answer. You can't find the right answer if you ask the wrong questions.

Mi-do: [looking around the inside of Dae-su's "cell"] You stayed in a place like this for fifteen years?
Dae-su Oh: Yeah, but after the first seven it felt just like home.

Mi-do: Dae Su. In front of me is some kind of box. He's telling me to open it. It's the same violet box...
Dae-su Oh: No! No Mi-do don't. Don't open it no matter what. Or something terrible will happen.

If you liked this movie, try these:

• Cube
• Sin City
• Se7en