A Modern Classic That Raises The Bar For Future Films

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2011)

Can you take revenge on someone for imprisoning you if you do not know the reasons behind their actions? This is one of the notions that permeates Park Chan-wook's 'Oldboy' that sees an ordinary man, Oh Dae-su(Choi Min-sik) imprisoned inexplicably for 15 years before being abruptly released and given 5 days to find out who locked him away. Opening with a terrified man being hung over a building by his tie, Oldboy never lets up in its furious pace as an urgent Dae-su attempts to piece together the reasons for his incarceration. Aiding him in his trials is the young chef Mi-do(Kang Hye-jeong) whose attachment to Dae-su is out of mutual loneliness and a secret unknown to either. Much more than an average revenge thriller the likes of which Hollywood continually regurgitates, 'Oldboy' focuses on the themes of isolation and of revenge itself as Dae-su uses his prison television as a companion during his separation from society as well as feeling and sniffing the first man he encounters after his release. Mi-do, in addition, recounts how she once saw a six foot ant in her train travelling home in a stylistically eccentric scene that references her assertion that lonely people imagine ants. As with the other two components of his Vengeance Trilogy - 'Sympathy for Mr Vengeance' and 'Lady Vengeance' - 'Oldboy' examines the nature of revenge itself and how the futility of it brings no closure but only more pain. This is apparent when it becomes clear to the audience that Dae-su's revenge is not the only one at work. Choi min-sik puts in a powerhouse performance as Oh Dae-su portraying the immature drunk from the opening of the film then descending into desperation and anguish before excelling as the post-captive Dae-su whose thirst for vengeance gives way to a more sadistic character who thrives on both receiving and administering pain. In the standout scene of the film - the now famous tracking shot - Dae-su fights 20+ thugs in a narrow corridor with a knife lodged in his back before smiling nonchalantly as an elevator opens to present even more assailants to him. In a film full of classic scenes this is one of the most exhilarating as we watch Dae-su cleave through his enemies like a force of nature. We are never in any doubt that he will win the fight; we simply sit back and admire the choreography and sound effects of Dae-su's callus hardened fists meeting various parts of anatomy with a force that is going to do more than just tickle. Kang Hye-jeong likewise puts in a tragic performance as the ill-fated Mi-do: the image of innocence who is corrupted by two opposing evils. In a powerfully symbolic scene Mi-do adorns a pair of angel wings, unaware of their significance as Dae-su's terrible scream roars across the screen. As Dae-su's captor, Lee Woo-jin, Yu Ji-tae delivers a twisted performance as the obsessive mastermind whose imprisonment of the protagonist is only the precursor to his elaborate plot. As the wealthy recluse, Ji-tae portrays a man perfectly in control who in his final scene descends into grief-stricken remembrance that allows the audience to understand but not condone his machinations. In his crafting of 'Oldboy' Chan-wook has delivered a modern classic that will stay with audiences long after the credits roll. Not simply a thriller but a meditation on the destructive force of revenge nowhere is this better epitomised than the final scene where Dae-su's lingering smile slowly fades into a grimace as he embraces Mi-do in the snow.