OLDBOY (2013) – The Review

Not even a week after the release of Hollywood’s English language remake of the French-Canadian comedy STARBUCK, re-named DELIVERY MAN (so as not to be confused with the ubiquitous coffee chain or the Battlestar Galactica ace fighter pilot), now comes a new take on a fairly recent Korean revenge thriller. Of course, the big studios have been doing these sort of re-interpretation or re-imaginings for decades. Sometimes the settings are completely changed, as with the case of SEVEN SAMURAI which begat the classic hit Western THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN which itself became the sci-fi drive-in gem BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS. Or more radically when Ingmar Bergman’s art house fave THE VIRGIN SPRING was the basis for Wes Craven’s gruesome debut film THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT. On rare occasions the original director has helmed  the remake as with that new Vince Vaughn comedy/drama and the 1988 and 1993 versions of THE VANISHING. But this is not the case with OLDBOY, from the ten-year old cult hit, which itself was based on a popular graphic novel (or manga). Iconic independent cinema director Spike Lee helms this tale of carnage and mystery. Can this new take retain the original’s gritty flavor? Or even come close to its shock and surprise?

Mr. Lee’s version begins in 1993 and focuses in on boozing advertising salesman (think of a much sleazier Don Draper) Joe Doucett (Josh Brolin). After a “liquid lunch” with some pals he gets into a screaming fight over the phone with his ex-wife because he must take a client to Dinner and miss his neglected three year-old daughter’s birthday party. When said Dinner proves disastrous, Joe goes on a “bender” and meets a mysterious Asian woman who’s twirling a bright yellow umbrella. The next morning he wakes up in a somewhat seedy hotel room. Things must’ve gone well with the lady. But Joe’s all alone. And he can’t get out of the room. And he remains locked inside there. For 20 years! The only human contact is a glimpse of his captor’s boots as his food tray is pushed thru the small opening in the steel door. It’s a pint of vodka along with corn flakes, burritos, and some nasty Chinese dumplings. Well, at least he has a TV where he can keep up with the news (the presidents change) and catch a popular reality true crime show that has updates on the murder of his ex (Joe’s the missing prime suspect) and his daughter, who has been adopted by a loving family. Occasionally a knock-out gas wafts in through the vents in order for his captors to clean up the room and Joe himself (haircut, shave, etc.). That is until that fateful day when Joe wakes up inside an old-fashioned steamer trunk plopped in the middle of a lonely field. Opening the lid, he’s almost blinded by the sunlight. He’s clean-shaven and dressed in a snappy new suit complete with a wallet loaded with cash and a new cell phone. Prompted by clues from the caller identified only as “the Invisible Man”, Joe sets out to locate his daughter and find out the reason why someone stole the last two decades from his life. Oh, and lots of violent payback is on his ‘to-do list”.

Brolin’s a great choice for the film’s surly avenger. He’s able to convey that sense of loss and age convincingly from the film’s opening hot-shot jerk (quite unlikable) to the hardened truth-seeker. More importantly he’s able to bring a real sense of out-of-control zeal to the action sequences, much as in GANGSTER SQUAD. He has a much more difficult time showing regret and getting past his constant scowl once he’s been freed. Elizabeth Olsen brings a quiet, wounded-soul quality as Marie, a health-care worker who befriends Joe and becomes his aide, confidant and so much more. We can see in her sad eyes that life hasn’t been far from fair to her also. Samuel L. Jackson returns to the Spike Lee rep company of actors as Chaney, the mean-spirited thug who may or may not know the identity of Joe’s tormentor. He’s basically a variation of the wild-eyed, MF-screaming, violent creeps that Jackson has played in films like JACKIE BROWN and THE SPIRIT complete with crazy facial hair, piercings, and jewelry. DISTRICT 9’s Sharto Copley appears late in the film as the mysterious Adrian and exudes an air of cultured menace (kind of a less sinsister Vincent Price in his film noir days) that doesn’t really mesh with the down-and-dirty tone of the rest of the film. We know that man to man he’d be run over by Brolin’s freight train of vengeance.

Surprisingly Lee has retained much of the tone of the original while utilizing several of his own filmmaking flourishes (the camera trained on the actor who seems to floatdown the street, the back of the head shots, etc.). He’s even added a few touches to enhance the storytelling, particularly the “Unsolved Mysteries”-style TV show. But some of the original’s set pieces become a bit silly filtered through his lens. The big battle of the Korean classic was a messy explosion of mayhem, while Lee’s version seems to0 choreographed and unrealistic (what, none of these henchmen has a “gat”?). And they just keep coming in endless waves. I was reminded of the martial arts parody in KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE. After the Bruce Lee-type hero dispatched a room of baddies, dozens more came charging down the corridor, prompting a WTF double take to the camera from said hero. So,  Joe became so unstoppable after watching 20 years of cheesy chop-socky flicks on cable TV? Really? And the final act with the villain explaining his reasoning goes on so long that we start to pick apart his logic. Who has such limitless financial means and patience to do this? And how did he really predict what Joe would do next? The big derivation from the original comes with an pre-fadeout epilogue that rings so false you’ll be shaking your head in disbelief. What worked in the earlier film comes off as an ugly, relentlessly mean slog in this misguided re-working. Some of the action scenes are inspired, but man, what a downer! If you’re wanting to escape from bright happy spirit of the holiday season, then OLDBOY just may be your cup of curdled egg nog.

2.5 Out of 5