CHUD.com Community › Forums › THE MAIN SEWER › Focused Film Discussion › OLDBOY discussion
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

OLDBOY discussion

post #1 of 11
10/21/04 at 9:58am
Thread Starter 
Old boy has been released here in the UK and lives up to the hype.
Great acting, especially by the lead. The cinematography and editing is also very good. Long tracking shots alternate with fast cuts. Various cinematic tricks are used for a reason, unlike other films such as 'Man of fire, where they are there for show. The score also deserves amention. Brooding electronic symphonies alternate with fast drumbeats.
It all serves the film.
The plot is very involving. I didn't guess the twists (apart from the last one, and that was only 3 seconds before it was revealed) and when the true horryfying story is revealed, you will be stunned. Twisted, sick and brilliant, I highly recommend it. Chewers (Chudders ?) will love it.
It is further proof, not that it was needed, that Asia is where the interesting films are right now.
I can't wait to see Park's other films
Reply
post #2 of 11
10/21/04 at 11:22am
It's great to finally see a film that actually lives up to the hype. Old Boy is the best visceral, punchy thriller since Seven . Great film that blurs the notions of revenge and justice very effectively, and the twists really are built into the story rather than tacked on, and for such a wild story it holds up really well when you think about it later, rather than leaving the theater and going "hang on, why didn't this character do this..." which is usually the case with thrillers.

His other films are good too, but don't have the perfect equilibrium that Old Boy achieved between the twisted and the cerebral. JSA is OK, has good intentions but is unmemorable, and Sympathy For Mr Vengeance has to be seen to be believed, but it is a lot less entertaining and a lot more stomach-churning than Old Boy, probably because it is a lot more distant, even Kubrickian, in its filmmaking. I can't imagine ever wanting to see it again though because it was a lot more depressing than Old Boy if you can believe it.
Reply
post #3 of 11
10/21/04 at 12:17pm
First I've heard of the movie.

For those of you also not in the know, here's the IMDB listing: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0364569/

And the official site: http://www.oldboy-movie.jp/
Reply
post #4 of 11
10/21/04 at 1:17pm
Thread Starter 
sorry - i should have given some background. I assumed everyone had heard about it as
AICN has been raving about it (although that doesn't mean it 's great), it won the grand prix at Cannes and Tarantino has been raving about it. Proves Seagal was right: 'assumption is the mother of all ****ups'
No release date for the US yet.
dddhouse might be able to help you out soon though...
Reply
post #5 of 11
10/21/04 at 3:41pm
This is one film all action/thriller movies lovers could buy blind, it is that good (I assume the DVD will come out before the US theatrical release if Shaolin Soccer and Hero are anything to go by). For once a film that Harry Knowles has been raving about actually turns out to be worth his bloated hype, AND the Grand Prix at Cannes was actually deserved - and not just pandering to Tarantino in exchange for giving Farenheit 451 the Palme d'Or for political reasons, as was the general conspiratorial belief just after the festival.

Anyway, it's a great film.
Reply
post #6 of 11
10/21/04 at 5:06pm
And you can pre-order some ridiculous metal-encased box set from Amazon or something with 4 discs and hand-embossed artwork... I don't remember all the details, but it looked neat.

Spoilery Rambling:

The thing that left me feeling conflicted about the movie is the deep sense of guilt that the hero seems to feel. I wasn't sure if it was just an emotional reaction to the situation and the revelation of what had been going on, or if he was truly warped into thinking he had some role in the villian's psychosis. It would be hard for anyone to be dismissive of that guy with such an elaborate and methodical plan after so many years, but I still felt like watching it that the hero was clearly just being wronged by his nemesis, and that he didn't really owe him anything. This point bothered me because it made the sick catalyst for the whole thing somewhat sympathetic which I felt like it shouldn't be. To me, it was a story of a man being abused and manipulated unjustly.
Reply
post #7 of 11
10/21/04 at 6:05pm
This movie is worth tracking down. I got the two-disc Korean DVD with dts. The extras are worthless unless you speak Korean, but the quality is awesome. I think the publisher's name was Starmax. That's the one to get, unless you feel like paying 80 or 90 for that four-discer. I think Harry at aintitcool said he did a commentary for that one though, so that might be pretty cool. Or maybe he'd just talk about cunnilingus the whole time. There are some bootlegs floating around but they looked pretty crappy. I got my DVD on ebay from this seller named fullhousedvd, and it was the FASTEST SHIPMENT I HAVE EVER RECEIVED. It was about 30 bucks altogether and it went from California to Kansas in two days.
Reply
post #8 of 11
10/22/04 at 5:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by zeroplate
Spoilery Rambling:

The thing that left me feeling conflicted about the movie is the deep sense of guilt that the hero seems to feel. I wasn't sure if it was just an emotional reaction to the situation and the revelation of what had been going on, or if he was truly warped into thinking he had some role in the villian's psychosis. It would be hard for anyone to be dismissive of that guy with such an elaborate and methodical plan after so many years, but I still felt like watching it that the hero was clearly just being wronged by his nemesis, and that he didn't really owe him anything. This point bothered me because it made the sick catalyst for the whole thing somewhat sympathetic which I felt like it shouldn't be. To me, it was a story of a man being abused and manipulated unjustly.
I think that's what it was, at the ends he begs and cuts himself nastily because he wants to protect the girl mainly; he can empathise with his nemesis somewhat because they've both suffered so much, and because they've both had to deal with incest, but I didn't feel the hero was shedding any tears over him, he was just being fucked right until the end, it was part of the sickly plot that he had to beg for forgiveness at the moment where he should have taken his vengeance.
Reply
post #9 of 11
10/22/04 at 8:30am
SPOILER

Quote:
Originally Posted by El Topo
it was part of the sickly plot that he had to beg for forgiveness at the moment where he should have taken his vengeance.
That shows how utterly defeated he had been. He had gone in with the intention of making Loo-Jin(sp?) "bow before Dae-Sun" with all the that aggression and single-mindedness that he'd displayed throughout the story.
It's when he realises that Loo-Jin stil has power over him, arguably the power to harm his family more than he had done already, that all the will to avenge and strength drains from him and he bows before Loo-Jin, kissing his feet and barking like a dog. There's much else revealed in that scene by Loo-Jin which lays out how Dae-Sun never had a chance and was only released for the final humiliation, but it's what he can tell his daughter that sends him to his knees.
Reply
post #10 of 11
10/22/04 at 8:37am
More here.
Reply
post #11 of 11
10/22/04 at 8:50am
Thanks, I saw that one before but avoided it due to the likely spoilers within. I'm proud to say that I saw this film spoiler-free.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Focused Film Discussion
CHUD.com Community › Forums › THE MAIN SEWER › Focused Film Discussion › OLDBOY discussion