As far as i can tell, there hasn’t been a thread about this movie yet. It won the jury prize at Cannes this year, but i don’t think any american movie distributers have picked it up yet. I’m not sure any ever will, considering the might be a little too grim and twisted for the american mainstream audience. But Universal has bought the rights for a remake and will probably produce a lackluster watered-down version.
In case you haven’t even heard of the movie, it’s about about a man whose held captive in a room with only a bathroom and tv for 15 years for reasons not known to him. He spends most of the movie trying to figure who imprisoned him and why.
The acting is all around superb, especially from the protagonist, the music outstanding, and cinematography is very stylish.
Unfortunately, the only way someone in America or Europe would be able to see the movie right now is ordering the dvd from overseas or illegally downloading it off the net.
Yeah, great movie. I don’t know why American distributors would be afraid to pick this up, especially with the Cannes hype and the remake coming out. I’m sure it’ll be released eventually.
The director chosen for the remake is the guy who did “Better Luck Tommorow”. I haven’t seen BLT, so I can’t say for sure, but it seems like a weird choice. “Old Boy” is not a standard crime drama, and I kind of figured they’d pick someone more … well … creative.
Yes, this thread is nearly a year old, but I wanted to see what the Dopers thought of this rather shocking film.
I once read a review for another Korean film that stated that so many Korean movies are sadistic. What confused me about this statement was that the review I was reading was for a romantic drama. Although I kind of understand this statement now (quite a few of their films have sad, or at least, bittersweet endings), no other Korean film I have seen has been such a strong case for that statement as Oldboy.
A few months ago, I bought this on DVD after discovering the amazing Korean film industry and reading all the hype about this movie. I was impressed from the get-go, as it was stylishly shot and directed, and the mystery element quickly reeled me in. I was not expecting the ending; not because no one would’ve guessed it, but because if the possibility had crossed my mind, I would’ve just said, No… he wouldn’t. Then, bam. My jaw drops.
I haven’t watched the movie since, because it makes me feel sick. Even as a filmmaker, I don’t think I can subject any of that to any of my characters.
Supposedly, a remake is in the works, but I really have to wonder how true to the original this version will be.
I saw Old Boy several months ago. I had much the same reaction at the end, when I started to realize what had happened, and was similarly shocked. I thought it was a well-done movie, and I’d actually probably like to see it again.
I really hope they’ll have the balls to do a faithful remake, if they have to do it at all. I liked Better Luck Tomorrow, so hopefully the director will be up to the challenge. I haven’t seen very many other Korean movies, but if this one’s *not * exceptional for its sadism and overall f’ed-upness in its field, then wow. Just wow.
So at the very end, did he know who Mido was? Had the hypnosis worked to blank out his memory or not? She says, “I love you.” and he just smiles. Then you see them looking out over the mountains. How’d they get there anyway? Mido asks if he was with somebody, so apparently she arrived later in a different car? A little help?
Of Korean movies (which I’ve seen a fair amount), these three are my favorite. Most Korean movies/dramas tend to be fairly angsty so it is unsurprising to me that three movies which explore revenge would not end up happy. Although the movies were disturbing, I did not find them nearly as disturbing as some Japanese movies I’ve seen like Ichi the Killer. UCI has a great Korean Film course and these three movies are explored in detail there. My roommate took the course and then downloaded the movies to review and I watched them with her while she was studying for her tests. She’s not here at the moment but I remember she said that the director wrote the movies to explore the futility of revenge.
randwill
I think so. The interpretation I like best is that is that Woo-jin allowed him to know that she was his daughter so that he would go through the same pain that Woo-jin went through in loving his sister. I also just assumed that Woo-jin’s men brought them both out there.
This was truly the worst movie I have ever seen. It was gratuitous, absurd, and sickening, and I have a pretty high threshhold for this stuff. Just beyond the pale. I know I’m going to be dismissed on this by fans of the movie, but it is NOT for the faint of heart.
I’d looked forward to this, based on reviews and general buzz. I was not only sorely disappointed, I found it pointless. Perhaps I’m not hip to the message it was trying to convey, but there was scarcely anything redeeming about it (for me).
The lead characters were neither sympathetic or engaging, and really, I stuck with it only because of my personal rule to never give up on a film.
Have you seen his contribution to Three Extremes? It’s interesting, though a little more purely sadistic, IMHO, compared to the vengeance trilogy. Diminished my appreciation of the director a little, to be honest, but I think I may be overreacting to one aspect of the short that pushes one of my “squicked out” buttons.
Lady Vengeance got a limited arthouse release a few months ago. Very good, but fairly different compared to Oldboy. Well worth seeing.
Mr. Vengeance is available on international-region DVD, but if you have a region-free player that isn’t a problem. I saw the movie several years ago during its initial festival appearance, and can recommend it those who are strong of stomach and spirit. Oldboy is extreme, but Mr. Vengeance is simply vicious, and doesn’t have the teaspoon of stylistic sugar to help you swallow the brutality. Amazing movie, though, starring Song Kang-Ho, who is an incredibly versatile and reliable actor.
And yeah, South Korean movies are well worth seeking out. My favorite movie of last year was 3-Iron, directed by Kim Ki-Duk (of Bad Guy and Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring). It’s an enormously unconventional romance, and I found it to be almost flawless. A gem.
And my favorite movie from three years ago was Oasis, about a young woman with a physical disability and the young slow-minded man with whom she has a chance meeting. That movie was entirely flawless. Not a false moment, shot, cut, performance, character, or anything. Bit of a downer ending but it’s so perfect that it’s almost more exhilarating than depressing.
They’re not all good; H was crap, for example. But for being such a small country whose film industry was absolutely nowhere not very long ago, their current output is remarkably mature.
