A brilliant, emotional, yet comic book style revenge film.

Rating: 9/10 (10 July 2005)

Let me start by saying this- Oldboy, while being quite difficult to watch in places, is not a stereotypical "by-numbers" thriller which the Hollywood audience seem to have grown accustomed to in recent years. I, for one, would not have guessed the ending in a million years. The explanation for a major event in the story I found o be very unrealistic and disappointing as a result, but I can assure you that this does not make the film any worse.
The plot. A man, Dae-su Oh, is locked away in a hotel room for fifteen years, with no explanation. The only company he has is a television, which really is his window to the outside world. On the news, one day after being locked up for a while, he finds his wife has been murdered. And guess who gets the blame? Dae-su Oh essentially becomes a fugitive, locked in a tiny hotel room.
After fifteen years of being locked up, he is released- with no explanation. However, he is given new clothes, a phone, and money. Diven by is desire for revenge, he embarks on a journey that truly makes you feel for this (as some may describe him in places) anti-hero. Eventually he comes face to face with the man responsible for getting him locked up. Dae-su Oh is given an ultimatum- he has three days to find out why he was locked up for all that time. If Dae-su Oh does not achieve this, his newly found love will be murdered.
Coming from the director of Sympathy For Mr Vengeance, this is truly piece of art. A blood-pumping, emotional, "makes you think" piece of art, but art nonetheless.