Oldeuboi (2003)

After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must find his captor in five days.

Director:

Chan-wook Park

Writers:

Garon Tsuchiya (story), Nobuaki Minegishi (comic)

Stars:

Min-sik Choi, Ji-Tae Yoo, Hye-jeong Kang

Top Rated Movies #69 | 40 wins & 18 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Min-sik Choi	...	Dae-su Oh
Ji-Tae Yoo	...	Woo-jin Lee
Hye-jeong Kang	...	Mi-do
Dae-han Ji	...	No Joo-hwan
Dal-su Oh	...	Park Cheol-woong
Byeong-ok Kim	...	Mr. Han
Seung-shin Lee	...	Yoo Hyung-ja (as Seung-Shin Lee)
Jin-Seo Yoon	...	Lee Soo-ah
Dae-yeon Lee	...	Beggar
Kwang-rok Oh	...	Suicidal Man
Tae-kyung Oh	...	Young Dae-su
Yeon-Seok Yoo	...	Young Woo-Jin (as Ahn Yeon-Seok)
Il-han Oo	...	Young Joo-hwan
Su-hyeon Kim	...	Chief Secretary
Seung-jin Lee

Storyline

Abducted on a rainy night in 1988, the obnoxious drunk, Oh Dae-Su, much to his surprise, wakes up locked in a windowless and dilapidated hotel room, for an unknown reason. There, his invisible and pitiless captors will feed him, clothe him, and sedate him to avert a desperate suicide--and as his only companion and a window to the world is the TV in his stark cell--the only thing that helps Oh Dae-Su keep going is his daily journal. Then, unexpectedly, after fifteen long years in captivity, the perplexed prisoner is deliberately released, encouraged to track down his tormentor to finally get his retribution. However, who would hate Oh Dae-Su so much he would deny him of a quick and clean death?

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Plot Keywords:

imprisonment | psychological torture | revenge | brother sister relationship | captive | 

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Taglines:

15 years forced in a cell, only 5 days given to seek revenge.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

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Goofs

All throughout the hallway fight scene, it is obvious that the goons don't actually kick Dae-Su. Many times they kick him and his body doesn't react, while other times their kicks are even too far from his body that it appears they are kicking air, despite the fact he is motionless on the floor.

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Quotes

Mr. Park: We put a hypnosis-inducing drug in your water
Dae-su Oh: Sodium barbiturate?
Mr. Park: Ha! TV Man knows it all!

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Alternate Versions

Chan-wook Park stated on his solo DVD commentary that there is an edited version for television broadcast. It omits some of the more extreme violence and the love scene between Oh Dae Su and Mi-do.

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Connections

Featured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #1.21 (2011)

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Soundtracks

Winter
from "The Four Seasons"
Written by Antonio Vivaldi

User Reviews

Pass by the "Boo" comments.

After going through the comments, i must say i'm impressed how many people out there don't have a slightest clue of beauty or intelligent screenplays. there are so many comments from people that totally disliked the movie. which is plain and simple not possible, if you got an open mind and a open heart (and are not drunk). I would compare it to chocolate. You may find it too sweet and prefer bitter chocolate. or you like white chocolate more. Or you got diabetes and can only sometimes eat one. But people that totally dislike chocolate scare me to death. Same goes for Oldboy, you gotta admit some of the genius art-form it contains. Its everything in there. Its heartwarming , disgusting, intelligent, beautiful and lead with outstanding performance of any actor . You HAVE to like something, cause it wont get much better. Its chocolate. If you disliked the movie so much and on a constant basis, why even bother to write a comment? My guess is you just could not follow the movie at all. which is my only guess actually. well enough rambling.

:::::::::: Bottom Line :::::::::

If you call common sense, and a human heart your own and like "challenging" movies, go and see it NOW.(i recommend the original korean version with subs)I also recommend the pre- and sequel to this movie. (just browse Chan Wook Park) If you think "The Fast and the Furious" is the best movie ever made, please do not even bother to watch Oldboy, and spare others your "brilliant" reviews.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Russia]

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

21 November 2003 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

15 ans volés

Filming Locations:

Songgye High School, Chinju, Kyongsangnam-Do, South Korea

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$68,957, 27 March 2005

Gross USA:

$707,481

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,999,673

Company Credits

Production Co:

Egg Films, CJ Entertainment, CJ E&M Film Financing & Investment Entertainment & Comics

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1