OLDBOY is a grim and unpleasant film for sure, but compared to Park Chan-wook's Korean masterpiece, this remake is weak sauce indeed. Spike Lee's version of the tale is a grim and nihilistic outing that takes away most of the original's power and style, leaving it an oddly hollow, uninvolving, and nasty viewing experience.
A brutish Josh Brolin takes the lead role and fails to bring the complexity that Choi Min-sik added to the part. Brolin's character is a mere thug who never gains the viewer's sympathy for a moment despite the dark journey his character undertakes. In support, Samuel L. Jackson is quite poor basically playing himself, and Sharlto Copley has possibly the fakest-sounding British accent heard in a movie; what were they thinking? A surprisingly sincere Elizabeth Olsen is the only one who gives what I consider to be an impressive performance.
The plot follows that of the original quite closely but smooths away rough edges and the nastier implications of the original narrative. It's not as controversial, let's say that. Certain scenes, like the infamous corridor fight, aren't a patch on those of the original film, and I found the ending to be a particular disappointment. Just another needless remake, then.
A brutish Josh Brolin takes the lead role and fails to bring the complexity that Choi Min-sik added to the part. Brolin's character is a mere thug who never gains the viewer's sympathy for a moment despite the dark journey his character undertakes. In support, Samuel L. Jackson is quite poor basically playing himself, and Sharlto Copley has possibly the fakest-sounding British accent heard in a movie; what were they thinking? A surprisingly sincere Elizabeth Olsen is the only one who gives what I consider to be an impressive performance.
The plot follows that of the original quite closely but smooths away rough edges and the nastier implications of the original narrative. It's not as controversial, let's say that. Certain scenes, like the infamous corridor fight, aren't a patch on those of the original film, and I found the ending to be a particular disappointment. Just another needless remake, then.