The Shocking Nature Of Park Chan-wook's Oldboy
I recently had the pleasure of viewing Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy for the first time, and I don’t know how I went so long without seeing it. The neo-noir action thriller celebrated its 20th anniversary with a 4K restoration and theatrical release thanks to NEON, with Park supervising the restoration and adding some commentary.
Based on the Japanese manga with the same title, the movie presents a loose adaptation of its storyline, following Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-Sik), a man who gets imprisoned in a cell designed to resemble a hotel room for 15 years.
Dae-su is a character as iconic and recognizable—at least in this sense—as a John Wick. His circumstance is brutal, and the film wastes no time getting to the point–much of it thanks to its superb editing and cutting.
We don’t know much about Dae-su beforehand. He appears as a typical businessman–one who was recently arrested for public drunkness and the type to miss his four-year-old daughter's birthday as a result. Suddenly, he’s taken, and a montage ensues of what he’ll have to endure for years to come.
Throughout this time, he remains unaware of both the identity of his captor and the reasons behind his captivity. After regaining his freedom, Dae-su discovers that he's far from escaping a complex scheme of intrigue and brutality, all fueled by his relentless desire for vengeance against his captors.
We’ve seen the classic vengeance plotline many times, and it’s tiring when it’s not done well. Oldboy doesn’t feel dated or derivative in the slightest. There’s a reason why so many people refer to it as a must-watch.
20 years later, the film is equally as impactful, losing none of its flare for what made it so special in the first place. Going into it with my father without much knowledge (other than every film nerd I know raving about it), I’m ecstatic that my first experience with Oldboy was in front of the big screen.
We both loved the movie, and I spent a solid day or two reading various articles, reviews, and anything else I could find on the web related to the film. Though there’s much to discuss, a few points caught my eye more than others.
First, the iconic The Corridor Fight Scene. Wow. When you talk about a long take in a film, this is how you do it. From what I’ve read, perfecting the scene required 17 takes over three days. Notably, the entire sequence was captured in a single continuous shot, without any editing, except for the computer-generated imagery used for the knife thrust into Oh Dae-su's back.
Despite visual comparisons drawn between the scene and side-scrolling beat 'em up video games, it's worth noting that director Park Chan-wook clarified that this resemblance was entirely unintentional.
While many highlight that, the Octopi scene (I’ll spare the details on this), and the ending (don’t worry, I won’t spoil), there’s so much more to appreciate than just the typical appreciation points you’d find online about the film.
Chris Stuckmann’s review said it best, highlighting how many forget to emphasize Oldboy’s ability to craft such opposite moods of revenge, brutality, darkness, and even comedy in a meaningful and impactful way.
As bleak and depressing as the film is, many moments are funny, reminiscent of what you might see in a film like Fargo or Dr. Strangelove. No matter the tonal or mood shift, the film feels cohesive, and these moments make sense and seem natural in a way.
That said, I highly recommend Oldboy if it’s not obvious enough. While the film has plenty of squirm-able moments and a generally devastating story, don’t hesitate to watch it. It’s not a shock or gore-fest for the sake of getting a reaction and has a lot to say about vengeance and its futility.