User reviews

I haven't written a comment on IMDb for about 3 years but was inspired to with this film. It is not very often that I come across a film by accident (World Movies on cable) and the spend the next day scouring the internet to find out information about it and can't get it out of my head! Anyway, yep there are plot holes, but Old boy borrows a lot from surrealism and you are meant to suspend your disbelief! I don't buy comments when people say "it is so unrealistic because he should've done this ..." because it is a surrealist film and meant to be unrealistic! For me the sign of a good film is if it sticks on your head! THis one surely does (althought I did have to look away a few times ... ) Loved it!!!! Work of cruel genius!!! (HOLLYWOOD - Please don't ruin it by remaking it!!!)

I've scored this a 9 but I think I may have been a little harsh! I have just read a review that says the reviewer cannot understand the hype. I can see no hype. Everything the film promised and more was delivered. This is a truly wonderful film. It is beautifully acted, brutally and painstakingly directed and as good a display of raw emotion as I have witnessed in any language. The story is gripping, the characters believable and well rounded, the emotion human and the feeling I was left with at the end of the film is one of awe. And that was after I had watched it twice. Honestly, this is a truly, truly wonderful film. Do not miss it under any circumstances!

To start off; This is the one and only film that kept me quiet for a whole 5 mins after seeing it. I literally couldn't close my mouth, and yet there wasn't any sound coming out of it. Oldboy had such an impact on me that words are too little to describe that impact. Therefore this film is definitely in my top 3 films ever made. It belongs there because it has a massive ingredient that a lot of films seem to miss out on; a divine plot. Even though the acting and screenplay are world class, the plot is really the cherry on the cake.

When it comes to screenplay Park Chan-Wook is unique (at least for western standards) in his way of filming. The colours are so vivid and it seems like he wanted every shot to be a piece of art. One tip: If you like the shooting in 'Oldboy', have a look at 'Sympathy for Lady Vengeance', the third part in Park's revenge-trilogy. It's even superior to the camera-work in 'Oldboy'. Don't, however, expect a story like Oldboy's, because you would be very disappointed.

When it comes to acting and the music, this film is also one of the better films ever made. The music sticks in your head and every time I put in my Oldboy-DVD and the theme-song comes up, I'm just flooded with good memories (even though the plot doesn't have a single reason to be happy about). The characters are also presented very well by the outstanding cast. Especially Choi Min-Sik and Yu Ji-Tae set a very convincing performance.

I really appreciate this film being respected as it should be, by having a place in the top 250. If, however, it was up to me it would be even higher in the ranking. I don't see why films like 'The Usual Suspects' or 'Memento', which are fantastic pieces of film-making and which without a doubt deserve a place in the top 250, are higher in the top 250 than 'Oldboy'. They serve the same cause; a fantastic plot. But those plots can't stand in the shadow or even come close to the plot of 'Oldboy'. The one and only reason is that those two films are better known and from a western production company. If we were all living in Asia, no doubt 'Oldboy' would be in the top 20 of all time.

My advice to people who haven't watched this film yet: Go see it! This is definitely a must- see. If you have a weak stomach, pull yourself together and still watch it. Don't be as shallow as a lot of people here tend to be. Look beyond the violence and see the things I mentioned before: world class acting, cinematography, music and last but certainly not least the plot. Once you've opened yourself up you'll find a whole new world of cinema. Enjoy!

Imagine what you'd do, when you wake from a bad dream, to find you're held by four square walls, for as long as someone deems, no idea why you're trapped, what you've done, why you're kidnapped, just a ceaseless line of dumplings going down your gyoza hatch. Now some fifteen years have passed, every question has been asked, and you're suddenly set free, can start your own avenging spree, before you do you need to feed, by eating something that's in need, so an octopus is ordered, and head first you cross the borders. But things aren't what they might seem, tied and tethered and undreamed, as the puppet master hovers, manipulates what you'll discover.

Some films you cannot watch too often and this is one of the greatest pieces of cinematic brilliance ever created.

I looked at program for today and I saw movie "Oldboy". I read plot and I liked it. What I expected is decent thriller from very good South Korean cinematography,something like "Salinui chueok ". But once again I was wrong. "Oldboy" is masterpiece, so unusual from all other movies. I've seen lots of violence on screen and to me this isn't nothing new but I think that people under 18 really shouldn't watch this one. It's because movie is brutal and I don't think that younger ones would fully understand this one.

To say something about plot is quite impossible because I don't know where to begin. If I start talking about the movie I could tell few important things and I know that people often read other comments because they didn't watch that movie. So,I'm going to say only what I read before watching this movie.

On his daughter's birthday, Oh Dae-su gets drunk and soon he's arrested by the police. His best friend No Joo-hwan somehow manages to get him out of jail and when No Joo-hwan is making a phone call Oh Dae-su disappears. Someone kidnap's him and puts him into room during 15 long years.But one day he's released.

That's the plot. Very interesting, you should watch this movie and then judge it. By the rating on IMDb this movie is in top 250 movies. Now I can understand why. This plot that I wrote doesn't reveal the greatness of the people who wrote the script. I bow to them because this movie is so good, with all those twists and it really represents a whole new wave of making a movie, of writing a script and of acting in it. About direction and actors I can say only good things. Director Park Chan-wook won prize Grand Jury at Cannes. That's enough about direction part. About actors. I can say that I'm impressed by one actor:Choi Min-sik. He's amazing in major role and he showed great potential. I hope I will see him again in some good movie.

I cannot say anything more because I could reveal some secret and I don't wanna do that to all new viewers. Only a recommendation. Beautiful, intelligent masterpiece of movie that I highly recommend for everyone with strong stomach and too all of you who want to see one excellent, but sick story. 10/10

I don't know why but this movie will always be my favorite. Maybe because of amazing screenplays, very emotional soundtracks or feeling the high tension in every second. I watched so many movies which includes fight scenes. Some of them were good and some of them were bad but in Oldboy... I guess the best describing word is '' real'' about that fight scenes. Because I felt they were. And that scenes are covering about only 2% of the whole movie. Cinemography, perfect harmony of music and scenes, an amazing story and one of the great plot twists in movie history. I am struggling to find the correct words for this movie because this is a movie not a book. And I may easily say it is a masterpiece... I enjoyed the movie with every second of it. I wish there were more movies like Oldboy.But who knows? Maybe there will be...

I decided to check this movie out after Ebert's 4 star rave review, and the cult status this movie has received (and was also intrigued by the sexy-looking Ultimate Edition), so I decided to rent it. I was VERY surprised at how different it was than I expected it to be - I expected a ton of violence and not much in the way of writing or acting. The first time I saw it, I wasn't blown away, just kind of like whatever.

When I watched it for the second time, however, I really started to notice how well it's made, in addition to liking it more. Every shot is bursting with background detail, a great amount of attention on the production design (the theme of a certain color in a scene was restrained, yet perfectly balanced). The actors really gave it all, especially the 2 male leads who really blew me away. The music is a varied mix of beautiful classical music and some pretty cool techno. The screenplay is brilliant; the characters are developed very well, extremely complex, and the plot is not only ingenious, but the payoff and twists are 1000x better than any Shamaylan movie.

Simply put, from a technical point of view, it's one of the best movies ever. From a critic's point of view, it is a very well-done movie that goes a little overboard in sex and violence, and is just a little strange.

After reading praise after praise about this film on the internet from mostly western viewers (such as the completely clueless Tarantino) and seeing as how it won a major prize at the most recent Cannes Film Festival, my expectations were naturally high when I finally got around to viewing it.

I'm sorry to say that I do not share in their optimistic appraisal of this movie.

After being imprisoned for 15 years for unknown reasons by an unknown person/persons, Daesu (Min-sik Choi) is naturally a bit upset and is dying to figure out who imprisoned him and why. Borrowing a page from M. Night Shyamalan's guide to movie surprises, writer/director Chan-wook Park (along with 3 other writers) attempts to craft a whodunnit that will keep you guessing and interested until the very end. Well, they only half succeed. I'll admit that I'm normally slow when it comes to movie surprises, but this one jumps out at you as soon as Daesu gets out of prison. It couldn't be more obvious unless the director was sitting next to you whispering it into your ear. From that point on, the movie really begins to drag as we watch Daesu meander from one place to the next in an unfocused attempt to find his enemy and discover the reason behind his imprisonment. Perhaps the main problem with the film is the severe lack of information given to both Daesu and the viewer. Rather than finding out the real truth on his own, he is essentially told everything in the end thanks to a well choreographed monologue. This is not a "detective"-style story that gives you clues along the way. Some secrets and identities are revealed much too early, leaving only the unknown reason for Daesu's imprisonment the movie's last remaining attempt to keep the viewer interested. When we finally learn of the reason, it's a total letdown and should leave any experienced movie watcher either scratching their heads in total disbelief that someone actually considered this as a basis for a film or make you angry enough to stop the movie right then and there. With the movie's undeniably gritty sense of style and beautiful classical score, this should have been mind blowing. But it's not. It's pathetic. It's obvious the filmmakers really didn't know how to craft a film of this caliber, so they fall back on the "H" word (you'll catch the "H" word when you hear it in the film) to solve ALL of their screen writing problems.

Thankfully the movie does have some positive aspects. The lighting and color scheme really reflect the inner conflicts within Daesu. This is a dark film, and it shows. The cinematography is inventive and vibrant with clever scene transitions and unique movements. The aforementioned score couldn't be better. It's a great mix of classical pieces, original music inspired by classical pieces, and moments of pseudo techno/industrial music, and it certainly does a great job of infusing the viewer with a sense of doubt and depression. Min-sik Choi gives an extremely admirable performance as the mentally conflicted Daesu and handles all kinds of scenes from action to romance with a great sense of confusion and surprise. Finally the relationship between Daesu and the mysterious Mido (Hye-jeong Kang) is really quite touching, allowing for some nice dramatic moments.

That being said, it's ashame that the film's story couldn't match its style.

Chan-wook Park has directed some of Korea's best and most memorable films in recent memory, such as JSA and Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, but Old Boy is simply a semi-interesting film. In the realm of revenge flicks, this is perhaps one of the more ambitious (which is definitely a good quality) films out there, but ambition can only get you so far, and Chan-wook Park just can't pull it off. Worth a look for film fans, but it's just not remarkable enough to be recognized on a global scale. Beware before you buy, for you could end up being sorely disappointed as well. 6/10

I read the review for "Oldboy" a few years ago and have since read praise about the movie from IMDb posters. Often times movies with that kind of hype tend to fall short and is a major disappointment. I don't know anything about Korean cinema so I had fairly low expectations. I had expected it to be a simplistic revenge film, shot in bad film stock. Well I have to say that I'm glad I was wrong, and even gladder still that I actually watched this film.

The basic story is that a man named Oh Dae-Su is kidnapped and held captive for 18 years and then released. He has no idea who or why this is being done to him. While in captivity he readies himself for the day when he gets out and take revenge on those who imprisoned him, and to find out why he was imprisoned. So far it sounds just like any old revenge martial art flick and up to this point it pretty much is, but it's incredibly well crafted. I have to admit I have not paid much attention to Asian martial arts films since Bruce Lee died and maybe I should now. Mainly because this movie doesn't have the jumpy camera work, or bad editing of those old flicks. This movie is a crisply shot as any Scorcese film. That alone elevates this movie to a higher plateau.

Once he is released, Oh Dae-Su goes on a quest to find what happened to his family and to find the identity of those who had him captured. During the quest for the bad guys, the movie played out like an old fashioned detective movie. The search wasn't rushed and neither was it boring. I suppose the set up made us want to go on this quest with Oh Dae-Su which sounds like Odysseus, and just as Odysseus went on one incredible quest so did Oh Dae-Su.

It's when he finds the man who had him held captive that the movie truly departs from being an average revenge film to something that is extra ordinary and extraordinarily disturbing. It's at this point that I have to say that the less said the better. It's something totally out of the ordinary and something that I think will repulse some viewers, but at the same time one can't help have sympathy for all the characters even the man who ordered Oh's incarceration.

The acting in the movie is excellent. I had no idea that Korean cinema has such skillful actors. They all really played their part incredibly well. Min-sik Choi, who played Oh Dae-Su was incredible. He goes through the rigors of being a desperate captive, to being a determined man on a mission. Along the way he runs through the gamut of so much emotion and not once did he hit a false note.

Overall I have to say that this movie is incredibly well crafted and as good as everybody say, however I find it a little disturbing so I can't give this movie a ten. But don't let my not giving the film a ten scare you away it's a good, enjoyable film.

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.

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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.

I feel compelled to defend this film from some quite frankly unwarranted criticism. Although it isn't without its flaws, and all films have a few,it certainly isn't a one star film.What this film has is the ability to be sublime, shocking, ridiculous, mildly amusing and visually stunning which is some feat for any film.The sheer scale of the comments here suggests that here is a film that gets to you in one way or another. This film is as far away from Maborosi as you can get yet both films are up there as great pieces of cinema. I wont divulge the plot or end this comment with a Latin quote to reinforce my self importance i'll just say go and watch it, preferably if you're not too squeamish and don't mind subtitles.This film left me thinking about it the following day which is normally a good thing (atleast it shows my memory is working!)

Oldboy takes a hammer and "batters" its American equivalents, leaving them as pulped as a chewed up squid. Park Chan Wook displays what America misses with his ultra-stylish, ultra-violent thriller. Why watch Ben Affleck fail spectacularly to summon any displayable talent, when Min sik Choi serves up a memorable role as the disturbed, vengeful Dae Su Oh, in the second of the Vengeance trilogy. Park skillfully creates a compelling plot that will have you guessing through the entire film, up until the final shocking revelation. The Cinematography expertly done by Jeong-hun Jeong, who also worked on the follow up to this film, Chinjeolhan geumjassi. Everything about this film is done in style and panache and creates a memorable experience, and has many memorable scenes.

Many people accuse this film of being "unrealistic". These people forget that this a film, not a documentary. No one complains About Star Wars being unrealistic, and rightly so. Films have a right to stretch out reality, don't forget the reason it does this is to be entertaining.

Although the film has strong violence of a graphic nature, I advise you to watch it, if only to broaden your perspectives of world and Asian cinema.

The first time I watched "Old-boy", I was half-amazed, half-disgusted. I wasn't quite sure how to rate the movie in general. I knew 2 things: 1. From a visual point of view, it's one of the best movies I have ever seen. Cinematography & scenography are nothing short of perfection. 2. I had problems with the plot, some holes in it, and a general feeling of injustice, as crime seemed to be pretty lightweight compared with the punishment.

2nd time was a weird situation. A girl I knew tried to get into the film school, and the day before her exam she asked me to supply her with some movies that were interesting visually. 2 films we watched were "Natural Born Killers" and "Old-boy", and, especially the 2nd 1 was a revelation.

Knowing the plot, it was easy for me to concentrate on the visual side, and my friend always consumes the movies this way. Results of paying attention to the tiniest of details were stunning. I don't think there's 1 scene in there shot without an idea, without something happening in the background, or without an image responding to the theme of the scene.

Don't be a baby crying about violence - camera turns away in key moments. Don't be a smartarse, picking on the shortcomings of the plot - think about Hitchcock or Chaplin and how they gave a flying f... about plot. Appreciate the work of the whole crew, and for best effects watch it a couple of times. It's worth it.

Yes this is a twisted movie with plots that unravel slowly and sometimes there are scenes that are slow. But over all it's incredible. Some of the symbolism behind the scenes are stunning. You have to go deep to appreciate it. There is a lot of gore and violence that can turn you off, but I was simply amazed by the depth and width of some of the scenes.

Without giving anything away, once the main character is released he meets a man with a dog. It's seems to be an irrelevant scene, but put yourself in a cage for 15 years and think about how you would act? What happens to that man? Isn't he also in a cage? Aren't we all? What is the symbolism of that man? How about the dog? Revenge to the main character in this movie is his life. Why? And you don't question it because you know what happened to him. He doesn't question it either.

To me this was one of the greatest depictions of Oedipus or other Greek characters I've seen this decade in a movie. Nothing is new. If you liked "Requiem for a Dream" or "Blue Velvet." Consider this one.

When I search google for the most confusing movie this movie was on the list so I gave it a shot didn't expect it to be this good the way it shows the story line it was amazing and creative. Loved every bit of it. Kind of disturbing but for those who like adult kind of movie it surely a must watch.

I saw Old Boy on a grey market DVD about half a year ago and fell asleep during the first twenty minutes. Since then, my friends have literally been begging me to see it to the end, so this Saturday I watched it on the big screen where I had no chance of escape.

Boy was that a mistake. Old Boy is by turns idiotic, horrendous and senselessly violent. It lacks the glee of the most basic revenge film. Even Kill Squad did it better.

Old Boy simply has no point to speak of. My question is: How did the director and scriptwriter screw up a revenge thriller?

Old Boy is very reminiscent of Takashi Miike's far superior Ichi the Killer. The difference between Ichi and Old Boy is one of extremes. Both films revolve around extracting brutal revenge. In this film, the eponymous hero seeks vengeance for fifteen years of imprisonment in a hotel room. In Ichi, Kakihari, a Yakuza enforcer, must track down his kidnapped Boss who may or may not be dead. Both Kakihari and Old Boy use torture to achieve their ends, but in Ichi the violence is committed by such dedicated sadists that it transcends itself and becomes Dionysian. Thusly, Ichi is far more violent than Old Boy, but far more aware. In Old Boy, the violence does nothing but communicate itself as alternately grotesque and depressing.

The end of this film is so unbelievable that it made me wonder why they didn't just let a seven year old rewrite it. It was that bad. If you thought the end of Ichi was head-scratching, wait until you see this one. You will feel so betrayed by Old Boy's cop-out you may never want to see another South Korean film again.

I think the ridiculous praise this film received (Ebert and Tarantino included) happened because NO ONE was comfortable recommending Ichi. Additionally, Ichi was not distributed theatrically in Ontario (Where I live) and was for a period, even banned.

Ichi is a more violent, more difficult film, but it's rewards are far greater than this misdirected piece of trash. How this film ended up at Cannes is beyond me. I think it was because of the reputation of Park Chan's much better "Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance".

Most likely, nothing I'm going to write here is going to prevent the curious from seeing this film. But if you feel like your time was wasted, don't tell me I didn't warn you.

In an age of American cinema where our biggest blockbusters are based on films already successful overseas, this is one movie that needs to be seen by more American movie goers. This is the movie that got me hooked on Asian revenge films. Oldboy is an original movie that shows what happens when a man's freedom is taken away and he doesn't know why, or by whom. He is sudden thrust back into society where he must track down the person that took away his freedom. Along the way come multiple plot twist and surprises that you just don't see coming.

It's a shame so many American film goers refuse to see foreign films, because this movie is genius. Who knows, maybe someday the movie will get remade for audiences here in the U.S. and the main character will be played by Mel Gibson or Bruce Willis. If you want to stay true to the Asian vision, I even think Jackie Chan could be a candidate.