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Movies / On DVD / Oldboy
Oldboy

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Oldboy (2005)

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Reviews Counted:118

Fresh:96

Rotten:22

Average Rating:7.3/10

Consensus: A strange, powerful tale of revenge.

Rated: 18 [See Full Rating] for strong violence including scenes of torture, sexuality and pervasive language.

Runtime: 2 hrs 25 mins

Genre: Foreign Films

Theatrical Release:15-10-2004

Synopsis: It would be a sin to reveal too much about this riveting and bizarre thriller from Korean director Chan Wook Park, except to say that it's about a man named Dae-Su (Choi Min-Sik) who is locked in a... It would be a sin to reveal too much about this riveting and bizarre thriller from Korean director Chan Wook Park, except to say that it's about a man named Dae-Su (Choi Min-Sik) who is locked in a hotel room for 15 years without knowing his captor's motives. When he is finally released, Dae Su finds himself still trapped in a web of conspiracy and strangeness. His own quest for vengeance becomes tied in with romance when he falls for an attractive sushi chef (Gang Hye-Jung), who feeds him live octopus and who may or may not be involved with the bizarre mystery. This is all served up in a striking palette of purples and dark reds; oozing with post-neo-noir style, and stuffed with insanely malicious twists and turns. Choi Min-Sik is terrific in the lead, counterbalancing over-the-top hysterics with deadpan cool to run the gamut of Asian antihero traits. There are intense fight scenes (Dae Su's favorite weapon is a hammer), look-away moments of torture and self-mutilation, sex, and gallons of black humor. Not for the squeamish, but for those seeking something wholly original and daring, this cinematic entree is alive--it's hard to imagine a better slice of psycho-shock sensationalism. [More]

Starring: Choi Min-Sik, Bo-Kyeong Kim, Yoo Ji-tae

Starring: Choi Min-Sik, Bo-Kyeong Kim, Yoo Ji-tae

Director: Chan Wook Park

Director: Chan Wook Park
Screenwriter: Chan Wook Park
Studio: Tartan Films

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Reviews for Oldboy

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Not to everyone's tastes, but if you have a strong stomach, OldBoy is sure to impress.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/01/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Quite an achievement then, and well worthy of its Cannes prize.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Trevor Johnston
Trevor Johnston
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A dark and thrillingly horrible adventure into the realms of the unthinkable.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
05/13/05
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Kinetic and energetic, funny and more than a little insane, the film ingeniously gets us into the mind of its hero.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
11/08/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Full of insanely grand passions, bloodthirsty violence and jet black comedy, it's a sadistic masterpiece that confirms Korea's current status as producer of some of the world's most exciting cinema.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
10/06/04
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
04/29/09
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
10/18/08
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Big Picture Big Sound | comment Comment
12/27/07
Joe Lozito
Joe Lozito
Big Picture Big Sound

As played by Choi Min-shik, Dae-su attains tragic stature. He's like a shaggy King Lear undone by his own foolishness.

Full Review Source: KPBS.org | comment Comment
04/19/07
Beth Accomando
Beth Accomando
KPBS.org

There's a lot less here than meets the eye.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
04/17/07
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader

Definitivamente no para todos los gustos, esta violenta y asombrosa película coreana promete convertirse en una de las verdaderas sorpresas del año.

Full Review Source: Uruguay Total | comment Comment
05/23/06
Enrique Buchichio
Enrique Buchichio
Uruguay Total

Park has a strong visual style and a near-surrealistic noir touch, but unraveling the mystery scarcely repays sitting through his relentless rounds of gut-wrenching violence.

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment 2 Comments
05/12/06
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
01/17/06
Sydney Morning Herald
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Be amazed at my cruel virility. Feel the pain. Oh yeah.

Full Review Source: Film Experience | comment 1 Comment
11/22/05
Nathaniel Rogers
Nathaniel Rogers
Film Experience

Its tentacles are still wriggling in my memory, as if I just ate something that should never have been served in the first place.

Full Review Source: Looking Closer | comment 3 Comments
10/31/05
Jeffrey Overstreet
Jeffrey Overstreet
Looking Closer

That Park has talent in the technical department is a given; that he's a good filmmaker is debatable.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
10/14/05
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

It's hard to make an argument for Oldboy based on anything other than pure cinematics, but when the style speaks this loudly, it's an argument worth making.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
09/26/05
Scott Tobias
Scott Tobias
AV Club

This is absolutely not a film for all tastes, but it's a masterpiece of pitiless power whose audacious, ambiguous climax strikes a note of insane romanticism as haunting as it is perverse.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
09/24/05
Maitland McDonagh
Maitland McDonagh
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Three couples were talking out loud as the film started. But before I could give them the traditional New York 'Shut the #%*& Up,' the movie shut them the #%*& up for me.

Full Review Source: Offoffoff | comment 1 Comment
08/07/05
Joshua Tanzer
Joshua Tanzer
Offoffoff

Wow!

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
07/21/05
David N. Butterworth
David N. Butterworth
rec.arts.movies.reviews
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
all

Latest News for Oldboy

November 10, 2009: Oldboy Remake Rumored Dead Opens in new window
Is the Steven Spielberg/Will Smith "Oldboy" remake dead? That's the inside scoop from sources at Latino Review. More...

June 29, 2009: Oldboy Remake Slowed by Legal Battle Opens in new window
Despite a behind-the-scenes legal tangle involving a pair of production companies that no longer exist, Will Smith and Steven Spielberg's planned "Oldboy" remake continues to... More...

May 24, 2009: Cannes 2009: The Tomato Report - Haneke's The White Ribbon Scoops Palme d’Or
Michael Haneke took Cannes' top honour tonight as his film, The White Ribbon, won the prestigious Palme d'Or. It's Haneke's third major Cannes prize but his first Palme d'Or.... More...

May 15, 2009: Cannes 2009: The Tomato Report – Thirst’s Vampires Descend on the Croisette
Park Chan-wook is best known for his exceptional Vengeance Trilogy -- Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy and Lady Vengeance -- three blood-soaked, expertly drawn films that... More...

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