Review of Oldboy (2013) by Joe W — 19 Jun 2014

Spike Lee did a decent job remaking Chan-wook Park's original picture. When localizing a Korean film, one has to keep in mind subtle cultural details that will make or break the logical consistency within a movie.

For example, the fried dumplings were a big clue for the protagonist to find his captors, however in the US fried dumplings is not an everyday American food. (Might I suggest pizza or fried chicken?) I did like Spike Lee's plot twists, which did add suspense for viewers of the original, such as the fake TV show or the father incesting with the whole family! Spike Lee also did a better job at demonizing the main character played by Josh Brolin.

In the original, the main character was just a random guy who didn't seem to have any negative qualities except alcoholism, which both protagonists shared. Not sure if the Korean actors or scripts were better, but the main twist at the climax of the movie was more shocking, and more dramatic than its American counterpart.