'Old Boy'

[FILM]

'Old Boy'

Directed by Park Chan-Wook

Won the Grand Prix award at the 2004 Cannes film festival.

My Korean housemate recommended this film, and as I had never seen a Korean film before, I was quite intrigued simply to see whether the film techniques and style were different to that produced in America. I was pleasantly surprised- although pleasant is probably the wrong word for this gripping, ultra-violent revenge plot. I was not only surprised by the high production values but also the the well written narrative. The obvious route would be to compare this film to the revenge-thriller 'Kill Bill'. Although the summary of the plot may apear rather similar (a man who has been locked in a cell for 15 years without explanation, is freed and goes on a rampage to seek revenge), 'Old Boy' is much darker and has more twists - definitely a narrative that is less obvious and predictable. Although when viewing the film I picked up on a few characteristics that were similar to 'Kill Bill', it wouldn't be fair to suggest that one influenced the other, as they were both produced in 2003.

'Old Boy' became controversial in 2007, when it created media hype and moral panic, as it was said to have influenced the shootings by Cho Seung-Hui. This was due to photogrpahs that the killer took of himself resembling scenes from the film. The film features scenes described by an article in The Sun (20.04.07) as "tongue slitting, skull hammering, dental torture and someone eating a live octopus", and headlined the article "Cho 'copied' video nasty". In a similar but more balanced article (April 2007), The Telegraph pointed out that although the photos "show Cho holding a gun to his head and wielding a hammer, images that appear in the film, [he] made no reference to the film in any of his accompanying notes and messages". Although it is a very violent film, there has been no proof of any copy-cat murders, and my view is that it was simply another moral panic created by the media in order to sell.
One negative aspect that my Korean housemate pointed out while watching the film, was his frustration over the inaccurate translations of Korean to English in the subtitles, which resulted in some of the script being less effective and dramatic as probably intended. He pointed out even odd words that could have been translated better and more effectively. However, I presume this is a problem with any translated film.
Now I feel I have warned enough about the violence (it really isn't that bad but I know some people may want to look away!) I also feel the need to mention the narrative twist that some may frown upon... I will say no more so not to ruin it, but it's kind of... sick!

One last thing- I have also read that Will Smith has signed up to star in a 'family-friendly' Steven Spielburg make of 'Old Boy', which I initially wasn't keen on the idea of, as it sounds like they are planning to change it quite a lot. However, it also sounds like the Hollywood version will bear no resemblance whatsoever to the original, and will in fact be based on the original manga comics rather than the film, so it's probably worth giving it a chance as a completely different film! It's currenlty at the centre of a legal battle with the publishers of the manga comics, so there is no certainty as to when, or even if, the American adaptation will be made.

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Peter Bradshaw (The Guardian): "When it comes to gut-wenchingly violent cinema, the Koreans are going further than anyone. And doing it better, too."

Daniel Etherington (Channel 4): "Intense and dark but also humorous and moving, this is an ambitious film that fulfils its promise, despite an arguably overly protracted denouement. Excellent."

Jamie Russell (BBC website): "With its twisting and turning plot, it's hard to talk about Old Boy without spoiling the delirious sense of disorientation that awaits first time viewers."