Old Boy

I will review movies I see from now on on my Blog.

I started my Auckland Film Festival campaign last night with the Korean film "Old Boy".

The premise of the film is simply that one night, a quite drunk man, is abducted and kept in a makeshift prison hotel room for 15 years. Every now and then valium gas washes over him. Knocking him out for haircuts, new clothes and things like that. Food is given. He doesn't know that it will be 15 years that he is in for and doesn't know why. He verges on madness many times. And then... He is released, waking up on a rooftop, with nice clothes and eventually he is given a cellphone and a wad of money. At this point I could honestly say that I couldn't imagine a way that this would ever acquit itself logically.

If a film hinges itself on plot, then the plot must come through for it. I like movies that can come up with a unexpectedly decent end. I can say that was part of the reason I liked Matchstick Men, it was well-crafted (although, apparently with a couple flaws) and it has a kicker of an ending.

I enjoyed Old Boy in a similar way, perhaps more so. It delivered a visceral, explicit tale of revenge (in more ways than one!). There was nothing concealed except the plot, which although I had my doubts at different points, clarified all of those doubts and more in the long end sequence. It is a story about revenge bur perhaps more importantly shame.

The acting is great. Some of the scenes are improbable, but entertaining all the same. If you cannot take scenes showing the excessive infliction of pain, or sex scenes (that become much more 'illicit" by then conclusion of the movie), then don't see it. It was a funny, enjoyable movie. Recommendable by me. In my ratings of films it easily makes it into the category of "Good film", while potentially challenging "Exceptional Film".
It won the Grand Prix award at Cannes.

One small side note is that the epilogue (the bit at the end, concluding the drama) was filmed in New Zealand.

Park Chan-wook was the director, whose work includes Joint Security Area (an exceptional movie in its own right). So I think I will be looking out for his future efforts or his other work, the interestingly named Sympathy For Mr Vengeance.