Now that he’s free, someone has gotta pay. Unfortunately for Oh Dae-su, he will learn shortly that sometimes the pursuit of the truth is far more satisfying than the learning of the truth.
You won’t find too many Asian Film afficiandos that don’t consider 2003’s Oldboy to be Park Chan-wook’s magnum opus. It is a mind-blowing and soul-crushing tour de force that hits home on many levels: emotional, visual and philosophical.
I think Robert Ebert said it best when he commented that, “[Oldboy] is a powerful film not because of what it depicts, but because of the depths of the human heart which it strips bare.”
Park’s middle entry of the beloved Vengence trilogy is a triumph in more ways that one; the least of which is the absolutely brilliant fight scene nested smack dab behind one of the more visceral scenes of torture that won’t allow you to look at a claw hammer the same way twice ever again.
The best thing about this wonderful shellacking isn’t the fact that it single-handedly paved the way for Oh’s eternal place in the Bad Ass Hall of Fame.
The best thing about this scene is these four minutes of beautiful mayhem were shot in only one take! Talk about having faith in your acting staff and stunt team!
It is this trust, dedication to his vision, and sense of reckless abandon that mark Chan-wook as one of the finest directors in the business and perhaps one of the most talented of all time.