Yet another original Urban Docent spoiler-free movie review

    I had seen or heard many things about director Chan-wook Park's 2003 title, "Old Boy." before obtaining a copy from my local Blockbuster. My decision to pursue the film was spurred by a few recent discussions about film adaptations of comic books and graphic novels (seen here and here). "Old Boy" receives many high marks in discussion zones, for the most part, and is considered by some to be a fantastic adaptation.

PLOT: A drunken loudmouth (Dae-su Oh) is escorted from a police station by a friend one dark and rainy Korean night. As the duo is making their way back to the drunk's house, Dae-su Oh suddenly goes missing and later finds himself in a most curious state of confinement. Upon his release, Dae-su Oh must overcome mysterious and violent circumstances to unravel the story of his secretive imprisonment.

    "Old Boy" plays out in the most stark of fashions as its "hero" learns the truth about the single-most puzzling period of his life. The story is told in a tense, blood-soaked stream of ongoing revelations with a few flashbacks. The film is really focused on solid characters telling a vivid tale of revenge, morality and mortality.

     The technical execution of the film is really not super-star standout; don't get me wrong, it's good but not outstanding. There are even a few times where scenes and pacing just seemed a little jumbled — a key detail or two in developing the plot appeared a little mishandled.

    I cannot recall whether there was a dubbed audio track available for the film, but I automatically went for the original Korean with English subtitles. I think you get more out of it that way.

    In short, "Old Boy" is not a film that you are likely to come away from saying, "Wow! That was just so entertaining. Let's watch it again." It's more of a dramatic tragedy with images and themes that hit like a fist. This is not your standard-issue "comic book movie," it's not for kids, it's not a love story (as such) and isn't a date flick.

    I would be curious to hear from you who have seen it or receive your thoughts after you do ....

    Solid C+ film with a warning to "stay away" if you're squeamish or easily made uncomfortable