8.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.1 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.1 |
Oh Dae-su is an ordinary Seoul businessman with a wife and little daughter who, after a drunken night on the town, is abducted and locked up in a strange, private "prison." No one will tell him why he’s there or who his jailer is. Over time, his fury builds to a single-minded focus of revenge. Fifteen years later, he is unexpectedly freed, given a new suit, a cell phone and five days to discover the mysterious enemy who had him imprisoned.
Starring: Choi Min-sik, Kang Hye-jeong, Yoo Ji-tae, Yoon Jin-seo, Oh Dal-suForeign | 100% |
Drama | 92% |
Dark humor | 36% |
Mystery | 26% |
Thriller | 17% |
Comic book | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
Korean: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
Korean: Dolby Digital 5.1 EX
Korean: Dolby Digital 2.0
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 2.0
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Imagine your life suddenly ripped from your grasp. You find yourself in an apartment prison where you are routinely fed, gassed and hypnotized. You have no clue why you are there or who has imprisoned you. From TV broadcasts, you realize that you have been framed for the murder of your wife and even if you could escape, your family would not welcome you back. Everything has been taken from you: freedom, relationships, human contact. The hours stretch into weeks, which stretch into years and one thought keeps you going: to discover the identity of your captor and exact full revenge. Suddenly, after 15 years, you are freed with no explanation.
With a new suit, a cellphone, a pocketful of cash and a beautiful, mysterious girlfriend, Oh Dae-su finds himself released from a small apartment where he was held in isolation for 15 years.
With a gracefully stylized approach to the visuals, Oldboy is a perfect candidate for Blu-ray release. The camera angles and framing of each shot are impeccable. Any videophile or film afficianado will consider Oldboy a treat in this 1080p release. Colors achieve a suitable richness such that the vibrancy does not dominate the noir elements and textures of shadow and neon.
The imagery in this rich, high-resolution picture is staggering. Watch the restaurant scene after Dae-su is released and requests to eat "something living". What follows is one of the most visually astonishing feats ever captured on film, as Dae-su is served a live cephalopod--I think it's an octopus--and proceeds to eat it as its tentacles flail wildly around his face. Each delicate appendage is perfectly resolved as it probes and wraps itself around Dae-su's chin, cheeks and neck.
Indeed, the stress of Dae-su's predicament is permanently stamped in the lines of his face, his eyes and stubble. With such important details to mine, no NTSC image can do this film justice. But the depth and definition of the picture in the Blu-ray version is quite extraordinary. Kudos to Tartan Video and Asia Extreme for the commitment to quality here.
Almost as impressive as the video is the audio quality. One of the few examples of 7.1 DTS-HD, Oldboy boasts a modern, haunting soundtrack. The repeating melody and the gruff sound of Dae-su's voice itself become audible planets in the film, anchored in familiarity, and other audio cues revolve around them like satellites. Indeed, recorded audio plays a key role in the plot, and the clarity and definition is suitable in the DD 5.1 track as well as the DTS-HD. A PCM track would be nice, but there may not be enough capacity on the 50-GB Blu-ray to include 7.1 PCM with the MPEG-4 AVC.
With the cult following of Oldboy, Tartan understood the importance of including ample supplementary material. In fact, an entire bonus disc is included. Unfortunately, the bonus disc is standard definition, but even the Blu-ray itself is packed with special features. These include a feature with optional English, director commentary, cast commentary, cinematographer commentary, the original trailer and deleted scenes with optional commentary.
The standard definition bonus disc includes five behind the scenes documentaries: Making the Film--The Cast Remembers; Production Design; The Music Score; CGI Documentary; and Flashback. A featurette entitled "Le Grand Prix at Cannes" is included as well as cast and crew interviews.
Oldboy is not for everyone. The Korean language makes it exotic and also inaccessible to viewers who find subtitles sterile. The bristling characterization of Dae-Su will undoubtedly put off other viewers. But it is the uderlying secrets later rising to the surface of the story that are genuinely disturbing on every level. No viewer will be immune to these unsavory developments, but some may find them so revolting that they overshadow any redeeming qualities. The film does have many such qualities, though they are not always easy to see. The disturbing twists go beyond vengeance, so consider this a warning for those not in the mood to experience repulsion and shock.
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