Oldboy Review

Remaking a movie has always been a questionable act in the film industry, especially when it's a remake of a really great movie; so when it was announced that Spike Lee would be remaking one of the best and most beloved movies of the past twenty years, people were rather upset. In 2003 South Korean director Park Chan-wook released a film entitled Oldboy, based off the manga series of the same name. The movie obtained instant success, garnering several awards as well as being a box office smash. And over the years Oldboy became a cult classic, especially in the United States, with many considering it one of the greatest movies ever made. Noted for its action scenes, creativity, sense of humor, and mind blowing twist, the movie has since become a classic. So I'm not sure what possessed Spike Lee to direct the remake, but the deed is done; and unfortunately, it can never be undone. Spike Lee's Oldboy follows the story of Joe Doucett, an alcoholic advertising executive and all around mess. After messing up a meeting with a potential client, Joe goes on a bender and wakes up in a motel room. Almost immediately Joe realizes there is something wrong, he's been kidnapped. While channel surfing the TV in his room, he comes upon a news show explaining how his ex wife has been killed and he is the number one suspect. One day his room is gassed and he passes out, he wakes up inside a chest in the middle of a field. He's been released after twenty years of imprisonment. Joe wants two things, to reconnect with his now grown up daughter and get revenge on his captors. Remaking a great movie is not an easy task, they rarely match the original; and unfortunately Spike Lee's Oldboy is no different. While the movie is filled with impressive actors, Only Josh Brolin as Joe stands out. The original Oldboy has one of the coolest fight scenes you'll ever see in a movie, it's a four minute long single shot from of the protagonist facing off against about thirty opponents with 2x4's in a hallway wielding only a hammer. In the remake it has a similar scene but changes it up enough to be distinct, it's a cool fight scene but feels kind of cartoonish compared to the original. It does that thing where even though the hero is surrounded, the bad guys attack one at a time while the others are in the background swinging their weapons around for some reason. One thing to note is that the remake is much more gruesome than the original. When I went to go see the movie, a couple people actually walked out during a particularly brutal torture scene. One of the problems with remaking a movie is that the remake usually lacks any sort of originality, and Oldboy is no different. Lee's version just feels like a less interesting and poorly made version of the original. He tries to change some parts up, but ultimately they're still to similar to the original. If you ask anyone who's seen the original what they remember most, everyone will say the twist ending; it's a brilliant part of the movie that changes everything. The biggest problem with the remake is also why anyone who's seen the original can go ahead and avoid it; Spike Lee uses the same twist from the original. He tries to change it up and add some elements that weren't in the original, but it's still the same ending. If you haven't seen the original you might find the remake interesting, but if you have you'll just end up leaving the theater mad. Part of me wants to commend Spike Lee for having the confidence to remake this movie; the other part of me wants to slap him for taking an amazing movie and making a subpar remake. I really can't recommend this movie, even if you haven't seen the original; there are a lot better movies in theaters right now. If you haven't seen the original, go watch it on Netflix because it is a really great movie. While it has its moments, the remake is just a dull, uninspired copy; I remember sitting in the theater and thinking to myself, "I wish I had seen "Frozen" again instead."

Pros: Some cool fight scenes, Josh Brolin gives a good performance, will probably be enjoyable for anyone who hasn't seen the original.
Cons: Lacks originality, some scenes are based too closely off the original, uses same twist as the original, brings nothing new to the table.

2/5 Stars