"Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone."

Year: 2003

Directed by: Park Chan-wook

Written by: Garon Tsuchiya (story), Nobuaki Minegishi (comic), Park Chan-wook, Chun-hyeong Lim, Jo-yun Hwang, Joon-hyung Lim

Oh Dae-Su is hold prisoner for 15 years, and he has no idea why. When he gets released, he has five days to get his vengeance and find out the reason for his imprisonment.

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To be hones I'm in a shock right now. 

The story of Oldboy is absolutely horrible. And no, I don't mean it's written badly, I mean the story is so horrifying that after I was done I just had to sit and stare the screen for a while. The only thought in my head is: "What the hell did I just see?" This is the beauty of movies with clever plot twists that actually do surprise you: Oldboy, Primal Fear, Fight Club... I'm sure there are many more, but just making a list would be lazy. The plot twist in Primal Fear is just surprising. It's clever, but the thing is, it's not that bad. while Oldboy... That plot twist is absolutely shocking. And the story is well written even when you don't count the plot twist. The main character's narration gives a lot more interest to the story. The mystery is intriguing, and the writers have a way of keeping the viewer invested in the story. Even when you don't really like Oh Dae-Su, you still want to know why. And even Oh Dae-Su is not really a likeable character, you still wonder if he deserved that. That would be an interesting philosophical debate.

There are a few group fight scenes in this film, and they are excellent. They are well coordinated and enjoyable (or as enjoyable as fight scenes are) to watch. The visual side of Oldboy amazes with how good it looks when it needs to. There were few gore-y scenes, yet nothing too horrifying was shown, so something was left to imagination. Still those scenes keep you on the edge of your seat.

There's always that one problem when watching a foreign film: cultural differences. That's mostly the case with Asian movies. When a character says something you find weird, is it a cultural thing, or is that character weird even in that culture? That problem wasn't that huge with Oldboy though. How many Korean movies have I seen? Not enough, but Oldboy definitely gives a good first impression on Korean cinema. 

Oldboy is a very well made movie. It's shocking, and I'm not sure how good it is when you watch it a second time, but at least after this first time I am astonished - and shocked. I'd love to recommend this movie but I don't know how risky that would be. 

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

8 / 10