Intriguing premise...

Rating: 4/10 (27 May 2012)

What starts as an intriguing premise is built up to what I assumed would be a riveting confrontation between the protagonist and the villain. Oh Dae-su is held captive for 15 years and released to find out why. The initial plot outline is certainly an opening that will spark the interest of any curious viewer. Unfortunately, the melodrama and incredulity of the story causes it to buckle under the weight of its own surrealist baggage.
The big reveal is certainly sick and disturbing enough all right, but it isn't original, and where it's been done before it's been done better (Polanski's Chinatown). It seemed as if the whole purpose of the picture was to wallow in perversion, and the themes (how far the lengths of revenge and loneliness can string one along) are rather limp. At best, this film feels like an extra-saucy David Lynch picture, of which I am no fan.
There are good points to this film however. The first half is entertaining, with plenty of black humour and some fantastic visuals, camera-work, and fight choreography, with clever editing tricks to boot. But the last third of the film felt flat to me. 6.9 stars out of 10.