I’m not sure what I was expecting from Oldboy but I didn’t think it would be quite so hard to watch.

Park Chan-wook (The Handmaiden) isn’t known for pulling his punches so perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised that this early classic is so bloody and down-beat.

Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik) is a bit of a dill. He’s the kind of guy who shoots his mouth off and can’t understand why people have a problem with it. That doesn’t seem to be reason enough though for him to be kidnapped and kept imprisoned for 15 years. While locked up, his mental state is seriously messed with and, when released, his mysterious captor keeps undermining his understanding of reality.

He meets a young woman Mi-do (Kang Hye-jeong) who may or may not be in on it. There’s deception, fight scenes, gory torture and eventually a secret uncovered.

There are some great set pieces, including arresting and visually dramatic moments that we are dropped into, like the opening scene where Dae-su is suspending a man holding a cute dog off the edge of a building, and cleverly choreographed fight scenes like the famous hall-way scene. For a long time we are like Dae-su, unable to fathom why he is being treated this way, and we are kept off-kilter and in a state of unease throughout.

We do find out who the villain is – the deliciously psychopathic Lee Woo-jin (Yoo Ji-tae) – and there is an excruciating final battle where we finally understand the true horror of his vengeance. Although Dae-su is essentially the hero of the story, identifying with him is an uncomfortable journey as the difference between him and Woo-jin becomes smaller and smaller.

I could tell this film had been made 20 years ago as the only significant female character is there only to be catalyst and victim. Although there is still plenty of that in films today, it’s usually not quite so blatant. The scenes where Mi-do is victimised are particularly unpleasant.

The ending has all the elements of ambiguity and discomfort that have permeated the film and we are left with a sinking feeling at our hero’s prospects.

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Have you seen this film? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Image via filmlinc.org