What a disturbing film.
P L O T
Old Boy follows the story of one Oh Dae-Su (played by Choi Min Shik), who is locked in a hotel room for 15 years without knowing his captor’s motives. When he is finally released, Dae Su finds himself still trapped in a web of conspiracy and violence. His own quest for vengeance becomes tied in with romance when he falls for an attractive sushi chef (source: wikipedia).
T H O U G H T S
It has been said that Old Boy is such a classic korean movie that one can’t call himself/herself a kmovie addict without seeing it. Hence, the reason why I watched it. I’m not saying that I am a certified kmovie addict but after reading the praises for this film, I decided to give it a try.
Before watching Old Boy, I was aware that it isn’t one’s typical Korean movie and one has to be prepared for the surprises ahead. But still, after mentally preparing myself, I was left dumbfounded by the end of the film.
I can’t exactly describe how great the film is because it depends on one’s interpretation but what I can tell you is out of all the Korean movies I watched, I’m pretty sure I’ll never forget Old Boy. Why? Aside from the gruesome, gory, and whatever you like to call it scenes, every minute of the movie had left me curious. Curious on why on earth did Dae Su deserved to be imprisoned for 15 years when in the first few minutes of the film, his character seemed so nice and cheerful. At first, I thought this would be the central theme of the story, but how wrong I was. There’s even something bigger in store for the audience, and as I’ve already said, it is disturbing. And I was wondering, was the reason for everything that happened worth it?
What amazes me is Choi Min Shik, my first impression of him was that he looked so normal, and I was wondering how did he managed to reach the level of popularity he’s currently experiencing. However, he proved to be a magnificent actor, I don’t know but his acting seems so natural, I could imagine him as a comedian but then he portrays a “psycho/violent” guy really well.
Then, there’s the ending, it was confusing but from what I read, it was indeed the intention of the director.
My advice for you if ever you’ll find yourself interested in watching Old Boy is to mentally prepare yourself. haha. There’ll be lots of violence + xrated scenes (glad that I’m already of legal age for that, lmao) + the “interesting” twist in the end.