Oldboy (2013) Movie Review 0 2164

oldboy-2013-movie-review

As with every remake, there’s always the potential that it could be worthwhile and find a fresh way to tell a story that has been told on-screen before. However, from the outset the project that is Spike Lee’s Oldboy was a pretty thankless one. The idea of remaking the South Korean modern classic for a Western audience was foolhardy at best and tantamount to cinematic cultural disrespect at worst. And the result of taking and twisting it to suit, let’s face it, an subtitle-phobic demographic has led to a drab, misjudged and altogether uninspired revenge thriller that retains none of what made the original so fantastic.

The film tells the story of Joe Doucett (Josh Brolin), an advertising executive and alcoholic who is one day kidnapped and imprisoned in a strange, motel-like room without explanation. He is kept in there without knowing why for 20 years with only a TV for company, along the way learning that his ex-wife has been murdered and that he is the prime suspect, leaving his daughter an orphan to be brought up by adoptive parents.

Then one day, again without apparent reason, he is set free wearing a black suit, given a mobile phone and some money. He soon meets Marie Sebastian (Elizabeth Olsen), a nurse who offers to help him. While working from a list of possible enemies that could have imprisoned him he is confronted by the culprit, The Stranger (Sharlto Copley), who makes him an interesting proposition that could lead to him finding out the reason behind what happened to him.

Let’s get the elephant/squid in the room out of way: this remake is an absolute shadow of the original. It’s hard to talk about it without thinking of Park Chan-wook’s masterful revenge tale – the film itself makes no bones about the fact it’s a remake, stating as much in the opening credits – and the film is in a lose-lose situation when it comes to Westernising the story. Any attempts to hint at the 2003 film, such as the famous squid-eating scene or single-shot corridor fight, only seek to remind you how woeful this is in comparison. And as a revenge thriller taken and judged on its own terms it falls way short of the mark, free of any palpable urgency, suspense or mystery but rather achieving a sense of going through the motions.

Quite apart from the fact that the further it delves into the reasons behind what’s happening to Joe the less it makes sense for a Western audience (the title along presents problems), it’s never confident enough with the story and keeps moving forward in fits and starts, mistaking slow scenes with little or no dialogue for character or emotional depth. The screenplay, by I Am Legend and Thor screenwriter Mark Protosevich, is at once overly convoluted and disappointingly simplified in how it handles the main themes of this story. It almost seems shy of many of those ideas, only hinting but never committing to them, all the while banging you over the head with unnecessary exposition; at one point Joe’s friend Chucky (Michael Imperioli) actually says something to the effect of, “Who would wanna do something like this to you?” in a moment equivalent to Basil Exposition explaining time travel to the audience in Austin Powers.

Brolin does what he can with the lead role and provides any of the emotion the film manages to scrape together by the end but he’s ill-served by a screenplay that turns him into a superhero about two thirds of the way through instead of the broken man doing bad things the character is originally supposed to be. Olsen plays a vitally important character but she feels miscast and too bland to make the sort of impact needed.

It also suffers from what has to be one of the worst cinematic villains this side of Robert De Niro in The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle. Played by the otherwise talented Sharlto Copley, his terrible (I guess it’s supposed to be…) English accent and body disfigurement makes him seem ripped straight from a third rate beat ’em up video game or some reject from a Bond villain fancy dress party. He’s supposed to be menacing and mysterious but he’s so campy, over-the-top and all around ridiculous that it rips any possibility of that away. Similarly hamming up the screen is a bizarrely dressed Samuel L. Jackson, complete with a blonde mohawk and waistcoat, playing the man in charge of maintaining the jail-like facility.

Once the film trudges through its heavy-handed plot mechanics it gets to a revelation that should, as a viewer, shock you to the core. It’s quite an achievement, then, that it comes and goes without great effect, almost as an afterthought. This is undoubtedly down to the fact that the film hasn’t built up enough intrigue or made you care enough about the central character(s) for it to have the intended impact.

Spike Lee’s Oldboy is a pointless remake if ever there was one. Beyond the idea of opening up the story to audiences who (sadly) just won’t watch films with subtitles, it’s tough to see what he has brought to the table or added to the conversation, as much as you squint your eyes and scratch your brain through the half-hearted, lukewarm proceedings. The visual inventiveness and moral complexity of the original is swapped for a frequently brutish, often tasteless and ultimately dull revenge film that seems to enjoy the squalor of its violence rather than examine its futility, all of which leads to an ending that lacks catharsis and simply leaves you wondering why.

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I'm a freelance film reviewer and blogger with over 10 years of experience writing for various different reputable online and print publications. In addition to my running, editing and writing for Thoughts On Film, I am also the film critic for The National, the newspaper that supports an independent Scotland, covering the weekly film releases, film festivals and film-related features. I have a passion for all types of cinema, and have a particular love for foreign language film, especially South Korean and Japanese cinema. Favourite films include The Big Lebowski, Pulp Fiction and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

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Tolkien Biopic to Be Released in May 0 4946

10th May, 2019 is when Tolkien will be released to the world, an autobiographical film that will revolve around the early days of legendary author J.R.R. Tolkien before he became the literary giant that he is today.

Here on Thoughts on Film we are big fans of his work and the recent films made by Peter Jackson. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings (LOTR), are responsible for originating a universe that has gone on to inspire movies, animation, fiction, and modern media interpretations.



This is why Tolkien is regarded by many as the greatest fantasy author of all time. His creative stamp can be seen nearly everywhere in modern media. There’s the direct reinterpretation of his work in the recently released action roleplaying game Middle Earth: Shadow of War, where players are thrust into a major role in Tolkien’s literary canon. George R.R. Martin, who originated the now globally-popular Game of Thrones series on HBO, openly reveres LOTR as the inspiration for his work, citing the early death of Gandalf in Fellowship of the Ring as having a profound effect on his “own willingness to kill characters at the drop of a hat.” On the web, more Tolkien-inspired work can be found on leading slot portal Slingo and its many online titles dedicated to the fantasy genre, including Amazon Queen, Fae Legend Warrior, and Magic Castle, all of which feature elements that can be traced back to the author’s massive body of work. Technically speaking, the same can be said of nearly every major fantasy brand out there today, from Dungeons & Dragons to Magic: the Gathering. In short, almost every type of entertainment that features western fantasy can be traced back to the works of Tolkien.

In the upcoming Tolkien movie, the man will be played by Nicholas Hoult, whom is best known for Mad Max: Fury Road and Hank McCoy in the most recent X-Men movies. And now, the actor’s versatility will be tested as he steps into the shoes of the most iconic fantasy writer of all time. Starring alongside Hoult will be the actress Lily Collins as Edith Bratt – the woman whom Tolkien loved above all and is reportedly the inspiration for all “elven princess characters” in the LOTR series.

Helming the film is director Dome Karukoski whose CV includes 2017’s Tom of Finland, a critically acclaimed chronicle of the life and works of the controversial artist of the same name. And while media outlets haven’t yet heard from either the cast, director, or crew of the film, an official synopsis of the movie has been released via Collider. “Tolkien explores the formative years of the orphaned author as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts at school. This takes him into the outbreak of World War I, which threatens to tear the “Fellowship” apart. All of these experiences would inspire Tolkien to write his famous Middle-earth novels.” It sounds like a real treat for film, literature, and Middle Earth fans.

Feature: 2019 Oscar Predictions 0 4022

I think it’s fair to say that the run up to this year’s Oscars has been a little messier than usual, from unexpected and bizarre wins at other awards shows (Vice winning Best Editing at the BAFTAs, anyone?) to ridiculous decisions by the Academy to change the show around.

The latter has proved a particular point of contention with both those in the industry to onlookers on social media, with choices such as not letting all the songs be performed to introducing a Best Popular Film category (whatever that means) to not airing four categories live; Editing and Cinematography proved a particular issue, sending the folks of Film Twitter into a Hulk-like rage.

Thankfully all of these decisions except for the one to not have a main host have taken the walk-back of shame; I look forward to Clint Eastwood talking to an empty chair again. Of course there’s still the issue of plenty of thoroughly deserving films, filmmakers and performances not being up for any Oscars at all (*cough* Toni Collette! *cough*) but of course that’s not an issue unique to this year.

The show must go on, as they say, and I thought a week out from this year’s ceremony I’d throw my hat into the ring as far as predictions goes. Below I’ve listed what I think will win in each category, as well as what I personally would like to see pick up that little gold man come next Sunday evening.

Best Picture

Want to win: A Star is Born
Will win: Green Book

Lead Actor

Want to win: Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born)
Will win: Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody)

Lead Actress

Want to win: Olivia Colman (The Favourite)
Will win: Olivia Colman (The Favourite)

Supporting Actor

Want to win: Richard E. Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?)
Will win: Mahershala Ali (Green Book)

Supporting Actress

Want to win: Emma Stone (The Favourite)
Will win: Regina King (If Beale Street Could Talk)

Director

Want to win: Alfonso Cuarón (Roma)
Will win: Alfonso Cuarón (Roma)

Animated Feature

Want to win: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Will win: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Adapted Screenplay

Want to win: BlacKkKlansman
Will win: BlacKkKlansman

Original Screenplay

Want to win: First Reformed
Will win: The Favourite

Cinematography

Want to win: Roma
Will win: Roma

Documentary Feature

Want to win: Free Solo
Will win: Minding the Gap

Foreign Language Film

Want to win: Roma
Will win: Roma

Film Editing

Want to win: BlacKkKlansman
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Sound Editing

Want to win: A Quiet Place
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Sound Mixing

Want to win: A Star is Born
Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Production Design

Want to win: Roma
Will win: The Favourite

Original Score

Want to win: If Beale Street Could Talk
Will win: Black Panther

Original Song

Want to win: Shallow (A Star is Born)
Will win: Shallow (A Star is Born)

Makeup and Hair

Want to win: Mary Queen of Scots
Will win: Vice

Costume Design

Want to win: Black Panther
Will win: The Favourite

Visual Effects

Want to win: Avengers: Infinity War
Will win: Ready Player One

Animated Short

Want to win: Bao
Will win: Bao

Live Action Short

Want to win: Marguerite
Will win: Marguerite

Documentary Short Subject

Want to win: Black Sheep
Will win: Lifeboat

Do you agree? Disagree? Feel free to leave your predictions/wishes for the winners below or tweet @TOF_UK or @rosstmiller.

Roll on Sunday!