Dae-su Oh

Oh Dae-su is the main protagonist of the South Korean action-thriller film Oldboy. He is portrayed by Choi Min-sik and by Oh Tae-kyung as his younger self.
== Background ==
=== Before the events of Oldboy ===
The following articles contain spoilers, read at your own risk.
Dae-su attended a Catholic high school and witnessed a young man named Lee Woo-jin having sex with his sister Lee Soo-ah. He then told his Joo-hwan about Woo-jin's sexual encounter and Joo-hwan used it to spread rumors about Woo-jin's sister.
=== Oldboy ===
Dae-su, now a businessman and father is arrested for drunkenness by the police. His friend, Joo-hwan picks him up from the police station, but he is mysteriously kidnapped while talking to his daughter on a telephone booth. He wakes up from a mysterious cell where he is forced to watch a report of his wife's murder where he is the suspect. Dae-su attempts to commit suicide, but he is suddenly resuscitated by a group of men guarding the cell. To cope up with stress brought by his imprisonment, Dae-su spends days shadowboxing and digging a hole to escape. After fifteen years, he is suddenly freed from the prison where he finds out that he is skilled in hand-to-hand combat (By single handedly defeating a group of thugs) He meets a mysterious woman named Mi-do in a restaurant, whom he takes an attraction to. 
Dae-su then attempts to locate his daughter, to no avail. He decides to track down his captors which leads him to a private prison. Dae-su captures a prison warden named Mr. Park and quickly overpowers his henchmen. Later, it is revealed that his captor is a man named Lee Woo-jin who holds a grudge against him. Woo-jin threatens Dae-su to find the motive of his imprisonment or he will kill Mi-do. Determined to find out the motive of his capture, Dae-su attempts to contact his friend Joo-hwan but he is killed by Woo-jin. Dae-su eventually recalls that he and Woo-jin went to the same high school and he witnessed his sexual intercourse with his sister Soo-ah, which becomes the motive for his imprisonment. He also learns that Woo-jin's sister committed suicide, inflicting grief upon Woo-jin.
Dae-su then storms Woo-jin's penthouse and learns that Mi-do is his daughter with Woo-jin performing hypnosis on her so she will act as if she is Dae-su's lover. Woo-jin reveals to Dae-su that he wants to make him suffer by having sex with his own daughter. Dae-su cuts his own tongue as a sign of penance and Woo-jin accepts his apology as he tells Mr. Park to spare Mi-do and hide the truth from her. However, Woo-jin played an audio recording of Dae-su and Mi-do having sex to punish him. Woo-jin then enters an elevator where he recalls his sister's death as he commits suicide. 
After the incident, Dae-su meets with a hypnotist to erase from his memory the fact that Mi-do is his daughter. The hypnotist disappears and she is replaced with Mi-do who expresses her love for him. Dae-su initially smiles after Mi-do confesses her feelings but it turns into an ambiguous expression.
== Personality and skills ==
Dae-su is implied to be an alcoholic during the first scene and he frequently displays outbursts while he is intoxicated. During his prison time, he became increasingly depressed and even considered a suicide attempt. After he is freed, he is shown to be dauntless, but of morally-gray character. 
Dae-su has knowledge of hand-to-hand combat since he spent his prison time shadowboxing and learning fighting skills while watching television. This is explicitly shown in the scene where he fights a group of thugs using his fists shortly after he leaves prison. 
Perhaps Dae-su's most notable asset is his skill in handling melee weapons. In an infamous scene in Oldboy, he defeats a group of thugs in a corridor using only a hammer. 
Category:Chaotic Neutral
Category:Anti-Heroes
Category:Live Action Heroes
Category:Movie Heroes
Category:Fighters
Category:Male
Category:Lethal
Category:Tragic
Category:Jerks
Category:Karma Houdini
Category:Vengeful
Category:Deal Makers
Category:Fallen
Category:In Love
Category:Nemesis
Category:One-Man Army
Category:Obsessed
Category:Vigilantes
Category:Victims
Category:Brutes
Category:Criminals
Category:Scapegoat
Category:Heroes by Proxy
Category:Mentally Ill
Category:Poor
Category:Dimwits
Category:Egomaniacs
Category:Arrogant