You think you know, but you have no idea.
Oldboy is full of twists and turns that no one could ever expect, or at least not me. I had heard that it was a good revenge flick, so I had to check it out. After all, there is nothing as satisfying as a good old fashioned ass kicking, revenge is best served cold movie. However, this movie was not just satisfying. It was not old fashioned at all and the only revenge in this movie was served flaming hot with a heaping spoonful of traumatic mental anguish and ingenious fight scenes.
The setup in the beginning of the movie is enough to keep you seated and intrigued. Basically this guy, Oh Dae-Su, is kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years with no explanation. He spends over a decade in the same room, eating the same food, going through the same routines of getting drugged and gassed, until, one day he is set free. Again, with no explanation. He is given a cell phone and a nice suit. You would think that the unexplained imprisonment would be the worst part for Oh Dae-Su, but this movie has some crazy ass tricks up its properly starched and cuff linked sleeve. Anyway, after getting out, Oh Dae-Su learns that he has five days to get revenge on the man who imprisoned him, a man who keeps consistent contact with Oh Dae-Su. So, with the help of a young female accomplice, Oh Dae-Su sets out to find the man who stole fifteen years of his life.
I would have to say that this movie had the most cinematic fight sequence that I have ever seen, just perfectly done. With fifteen years of imaginary training that consisted of punching and kicking drywall and brick, Oh Dae-Su takes on a swarm of henchmen in the coolest fight scene that I can think of. This alone would make the movie worth seeing.
Another aspect that makes this movie seem so flawless is that it seemed believable. Don’t get me wrong though. Some of the ideas were so far fetched and utterly insane that I had a hard time wrapping my head around them. However, the movie managed to make Oh Dae-Su look so…human. He wasn’t a superhero, a badass, or a genius. If anything, he was pissed off and fueled by rage. He makes mistakes. He takes names and kicks major ass, but then has the tables turned on him. I guess what I’m trying to say is that the script had no formula. It was as if a mad scientist had thrown seemingly random elements into the same boiling pot, and through many skin scorching and limb losing explosions, he discovered the exact mixture for a comedic, gut wrenching, romantic, and calculated revenge bomb to be dropped on your head. Then at the end of the movie, you’re left wandering through the fallout blast wondering what happened to life as you knew it, movies as you knew them.
This movie may not be for everyone, but I highly recommend that you see it simply for its originality and execution of a story that most would not have the heart or balls to make. The acting is phenomenal, as is the action. Plus, the ending will send you through a flurry of mixed emotions and a late night of pondering that makes you question the meaning of what you have just seen. It is actually quite deep. Beautiful in a sort of sick and twisted manner, but also touching.
Props to South Korea for a slam dunk movie.
Seriously, crazy ass shit goes down in this.
