Movie Review: "Oldboy" (2003)

Very few movies come out with such intensity and universal impact that it starts to change the whole course of movie history altogether. "2001: A Space Oddysey" gave ust the first images of space in full color. "The Godfather" made gasngsters cool. "Star Wars" combined Fanstasy and Science Fiction. The "Sixth Sense" and "Fight Club" gave us the sudden twist ending. "OldBoy" is one such movie.
The first fifteen minutes just suck you in. A loudmouth drunk gets arrested and kept in a police station for hours. We don't know why. he gets bailed out by his best friend and is being taken home so he can give his birthday present to his little girl. He dissapears. We don't know why. Next scene-he is being sent food into the crack of a solid steel door that served as his prison for the past 2 months. Who put him there. We dont know. Why? We don't know. We later learn that he stays in the prison for 15 years. He tries to escape. Suddenly, he is released. Why? What do you think?
The protagonist Oh Daesu is played by Min-sik Choi (of Failan) and Ji-tae Yu(of "..into the Mirror") plays the antagonist. I wont give any more details. You figure out the rest when you watch it. You can visit the asian cinema sites in the links section of this blog and you won't find a single review that doesn't give it praise.

It has been called a "Sucker-Puncher" of a movie because it catches you off guard. Makes you look into yourself and prompts you..even forces you to look into a direction you find apalling or disgusting. The sudden twist in the end may not be a new thing anymore, but it hasn't been done this way before. Oh no, sir.
OldBoy has received awards in numerous different film festivals including second place in the Cannes Film Festival. My bet is that this will be a strong contender for this years Oscar for best Foreign Picture. A Hollywood remake is under talks, I just hope thgey make a totally new thing out of it and not associate it with this masterpice. This movie is in my top ten of all time for sure.

Rocketboy's Rating: ***** (5 out of 5)