With no clue how he came to be imprisoned, drugged and tortured for 15 years, a desperate businessman seeks revenge on his captors.
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Waste of time
Undescribable Perfection
How sad is this?
The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.
I know my title might sound a little dramatic but it is true. This was one of the first Korean movie's I had ever seen and after that I was hooked. The story is original and beautifully shot. I never understand why people write a synopsis in a review. You can watch the trailer or read what IMDB already has under description. Moving along the movie is great. Good story, drama, fights, and twists. It's on Netflix so catch it while you still can. Stay away from the atrocious American remake. That movie was garbage and a mockery of this Korean classic. Hope this review helps.
I am saving the second half of this for another day.It is marvellously funny, and not a little peculiar, even for a Korean film.Eating an octopus alive isn't the most obvious way to remedy a vitamin deficiency, and relying on your ability to distinguish one particular dumpling from hundreds to get your revenge is uncommonly optimistic.I'd have gone for kimchi soup myself, even though it has fewer tentacles.Having a remote control to your pacemaker so you can stop your heart when you feel like it might be quite a popular option. I think my father would have liked such a remote, near the end of his life.Then there's the case of the third chopstick.. and the homage to 'Marathon Man"....and to Kafka, though seeing an empty carriage on the Seoul underground is probably the bigger surprise.
Altho I can't say that I did not like the american remake as much as this one, still, you can feel the originality in this masterpiece. Also it is obvious how Hollywood adapted the movie for wider audience, since this movie has 10 times more gore, sexuality and R rated scenes that are some points are hard to be watched. Still, the movie would not be even half of what it is without those scenes. The only negative aspect for me was the slow-tempo building which makes the movie a bit boring at some moments, that was not the case in the remake. All in all, a crazy psycho story that will bust you out of your shoes, great typical asian acting and a brutal ending. 8/10
I've heard about Old Boy for many years now but never got around to watching it. So I finally got the opportunity and was severely disappointed. It tries to be shocking just for the sake of it. The plot is nothing special and it left me disgusted with all of the incest involved. I couldn't root for any of the characters as their acting is too poor. Avoid is my advice, unless you like so called art cinema.