Plot
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must find his captor in 5 days.
Release Year: 2003
Rating: 8.4/10 (143,633 voted)
Critic's Score: 74/100
Director:
Chan-wook Park
Stars: Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yu, Hye-jeong Kang
Storyline An average man is kidnapped and imprisoned in a shabby cell for 15 years without explanation. He then is released, equipped with money, a cellphone and expensive clothes. As he strives to explain his imprisonment and get his revenge, Oh Dae-Su soon finds out that his kidnapper has a greater plan for him and is set onto a path of pain and suffering in an attempt to uncover the motive of his mysterious tormentor.
Writers: Garon Tsuchiya, Nobuaki Minegishi
Cast: Min-sik Choi
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Dae-su Oh
Ji-tae Yu
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Woo-jin Lee
Hye-jeong Kang
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Mi-do
Dae-han Ji
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No Joo-hwan
Dal-su Oh
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Park Cheol-woong
Byeong-ok Kim
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Mr. Han
Seung-Shin Lee
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Yoo Hyung-ja
Jin-seo Yun
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Lee Soo-ah
Dae-yeon Lee
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Beggar
Kwang-rok Oh
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Suicidal Man
Tae-kyung Oh
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Young Dae-su
Yeon-suk Ahn
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Young Woo-jin
Il-han Oo
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Young Joo-hwan
Su-hyeon Kim
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Seung-jin Lee
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Opening Weekend: $68,957
(USA)
(25 March 2005)
(5 Screens)
Gross: $14,980,005
(Worldwide)
(8 December 2005)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
The line on the painting of Dae Su's cell reads "Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone." These are the first lines of Ella Wheeler Wilcox's famous poem, "Solitude".
Goofs:
Factual errors:
Oh Dae-Su states that the maxim, "Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler," is from Proverbs 6:4; these numbers are emphasized shortly afterwards. The saying is actually from Proverbs 6:5.
Quotes: Dae-su Oh:
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
User Review
If only we were all living in Asia....
Rating: 10/10
Too start off; This is the one and only film that kept me quiet for a
whole 5 mins after seeing it. I literally couldn't close my mouth, and
yet there wasn't any sound coming out of it. Oldboy had such an impact
on me that words are too little to describe that impact. Therefore this
film is definitely in my top 3 film ever made. It belongs there because
it has a massive ingredient that a lot of films seem to miss out on; a
divine plot. Even though the acting and screenplay are world class, the
plot is really the cherry on the cake.
When it comes to screenplay Park Chan-Wook is unique (at least for
western standards) in his way of filming. The colours are so vivid and
it seems like he wanted every shot to be a piece of art. One tip: If
you like the shooting in 'Oldboy', have a look at 'Sympathy for Lady
Vengeance', the third part in Park's revenge-trilogy. It's even
superior to the camera-work in 'Oldboy'. Don't, however, expect a story
like Oldboy's, because you would be very disappointed.
When it comes to acting and the music, this film is also one of the
better films ever made. The music sticks in your head and every time I
put in my Oldboy-DVD and the theme-song comes up, I'm just flooded with
good memories (eventhough the plot doesn't have a single reason to be
happy about). The characters are also presented very well by the
outstanding cast. Especially Choi Min-Sik and Yu Ji-Tae set a very
convincing performance.
I really appreciate this film being respected as it should be, by
having a place in the top 250. If, however, it was up to me it would be
even higher in the ranking. I don't see why films like 'The Usual
Suspects' or 'Memento', which are fantastic pieces of film-making and
which without a doubt deserve a place in the top 250, are higher in the
top 250 than 'Oldboy'. They serve the same cause; a fantastic plot. But
those plots can't stand in the shadow or even come close to the plot of
'Oldboy'. The one and only reason is that those two films are better
known and from a western production company. If we were all living in
Asia, no doubt 'Oldboy' would be in the top 20 of all time.
My advice to people who haven't watched this film yet: Go see it! This
is definitely a must- see. If you have a weak stomach, pull yourself
together and still watch it. Don't be as shallow as a lot of people
here tend to be. Look beyond the violence and see the things I
mentioned before: world class acting, cinematography, music and last
but certainly not least the plot. Once you've opened yourself up you'll
find a whole new world of cinema. Enjoy!
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