Oldboy
Warning : the following take SPOILERS for both 2003 and 2013 version of Oldboy .
2003’sOldboywas refashion in 2013 , but the new version made some vainglorious changes to the archetype . The second motion-picture show in Park Chan - wook ’s Vengeance trilogy back in 2003,Oldboyis the one most associate with the director ’s winner . Spike Lee’sOldboyremake contains several differences , with changes made in a bid to give the moving picture its own identity , but it failed to make the same kind of wallop . Even after theOldboyremake follow out in 2013,2003’sOldboycontinues to breathe in modern seriesand movies . so as to fully answer the question of what ’s unlike in theOldboyremake , as well as to understand why Spike Lee remadeOldboy , looker need to know the chronicle behind the Korean thriller .
BothOldboyfilms are ground on the Nipponese manga of the same name . Written by Garon Tsuchiya and illustrated by Nobuaki Minegishi , the Old Boy manga was published by Futabasha magazine between 1996 and 1998 throughout eight volumes . The manga is mostly implausibly similar to the main storylines of both film . In the 2003 film , Oh Dae - su is being tail by a bug settle in the fillet of sole of his skid . In the manga , Shinichi Gotō has the trailing gadget inter in his back near his right shoulder leaf blade that Eri has to dig out with a knife . Notably , both the original celluloid and the manga predate thelong - runningSawfranchiseand other present-day movie and series that deeply research body revulsion .
Related : Malcolm X True Story : What Spike Lee ’s Movie Changes & How Accurate It Is
Oldboyhas even inspired a 2006 Bollywood film calledZinda , which look to be anotherOldboyremake . The plot forZindais almost identical to the storyline ofOldboy . However , the right field were never hold , and Zinda is n’t considered to be an official remake . That leaves Lee ’s film as the lone trueOldboyremake , although it also contains a deal of notable difference .
The Imprisonment Is Different In The Oldboy Remake
Both films are found on Shinichi Gotō being imprisoned for 10 years in the manga , but the 2003 film increase that time period to 15 years while the 2013 remake double it to 20 . to boot , Oh Dae - su is commit five days to project out Lee Woo - jin ’s identity to co-occur with the death of Lee Soo - ah . Adrian Doyle Pryce only gives Joe 46 minute inOldboy2013 . Though these changes seem low , they play intowhereOldboystands in Spike Lee ’s filmography .
InOldboy2003 , Oh Dae - su is a troublesome sot that is arrested for his behavior on his girl ’s 4th birthday . Upon getting free , he reach a speech sound call to his wife and girl . He hand the phone to his serious friend , No Joo - hwan , and is then kidnapped without a trace of his whereabouts . He finds himself remand in a hotel where he ’s give the same Taiwanese intellectual nourishment every daylight for every meal . All he has is the television to keep him company . He ’s provided with a pen and several notebook . Oh Dae - su uses these notebook as journals to keep a record book of his time put away off from the outside world . AlthoughOldboyandSquid Gameare vastly dissimilar , a alike word picture can also be observed inSquid Gameprotagonist Gi - Krauthead .
InOldboy2013 , Joe Doucett is an alcoholic but is never arrested ; instead he ’s shown ruining a boastful meeting by hit on the woman of a possible node . He bribe a Formosan rubber duck from a street vendor for his daughter ’s third birthday and is nobble by a womanhood carry a yellow umbrella . Most of the hotel sequences are similar , but he does n’t just use up Chinese food for thought : he ’s fed milk , Frosted Flakes , and even a microwaveable burrito , among other thing . what is more , every meal comes with at least one bottle of vodka , Joe ’s boozing of choice .
connect : What Happened To Spike Lee ’s Mookie After Do The Right affair ?
2013’sOldboyhas a unequaled sequence where Joe befriend a white mouse , who keep back him fellowship and makes him happy for a short stop of time . Joe makes a seam for her made out of torn up toilet paper , and she has babies , which Joe is ecstatic about – an empowering relationship pretty reminiscent ofRemy and Linguini in Pixar’sRatatouille . However , Joe awaken up one sidereal day to find the mouse and her babies hold up , and breathlessness over her disappearing . Later that daylight , his meal go far on a ash gray platter , and the computer mouse and her dead babies are revealed to be inside cooked with garnish for Joe .
Oh Dae - su masturbates to women he see on video inOldboy2003 . The scene is n’t meant to be sexual , but more of a means of feeling something from another human being . There are voluptuous and nauseate sound effects , but it ’s fairly abbreviated . In 2013’sOldboyremake , Joe masturbate to a woman using a thigh master inOldboy2013 and it ’s stretched out to have them groan and mutter,“Yeah,”to each other awkwardly . Joe also bite the webbing of his hand until it bleeds so as to draw a cheek in his blood on his pillowcase for comfort , in a way that reminds ofWilson fromCast Away .
The most noticeable difference between the two picture show while the main fibre is imprisoned is what they write on the theme provided to them in the hotel room . Oh Dae - su writes a detailed diary of what he goes through over the course of action of several years inOldboy2003 . Joe write letter to his daughter Mia inOldboy2013 . Before he gets mesh aside , Joe is n’t a good founding father . His letters are filled with his regrets and his desires while ask for pardon for never being there for Mia .
Oldboy 2013 Removes The Hallucination Aspect
Oldboy2003 makes a thought - evoke comparison between emmet and loneliness , as Mi - do state that when you ’re lonely and dire you hallucinate and see ant . She compares it to ant being in mathematical group and lonely soul always call up about that , since they only have themselves to keep them company . These scenes are important to why , out of themovies in Park Chan - wook ’s Vengeance trilogy , Oldboyis the most compelling . While in his hotel room , Oh Dae - su sees an ant crawling under his tegument before a swarm of them are suddenly crawling all over his expression . Mi - do have-to doe with it to a time when she was alone on the subway and saw a human being - sized ant in the same car as her .
Related : How Inside Man : Most Wanted Connects To The Spike Lee Original
Oldboy2013 compiles the hallucination and that dreaded gumption of loneliness into one short succession where a bearded and long - haired Joe get wind a bellman at the hotel sit around on his bed wipe out popcorn and laughing at the TV . He bid Joe some of his Zea mays everta but disappears once Joe mirthfully hand for some . The fancy of seeing someone or something is still there , but it does n’t dig as cryptical . Notably , Taika Waititi ’s hated filmJojo Rabbitexplores this eccentric of comfort delusion better .
No Characters Are Raped In Oldboy 2003
Oh Dae - su ’s married woman is murdered after he is imprisoned for one year . Upon adjoin Lee Woo - jin for the first time , Oh Dae - su leaves Mi - do vulnerable and she ’s take jailed by Mr. Park and his valet . She ’s tie up and her bare breast is hang up out , but the assault and harassment is entail . “ Touching ” Mi - do is all that ’s mentioned inOldboy2003 . InOldboy2013 , Joe ’s ex - married woman Donna is raped and murder . The heinous act is recorded and used as purchase against Joe . Later , Chaney has his henchman Cortez rape Marie .
Oh Dae-su & Joe’s Incarceration Differences
When Lee Woo - jin is breaking down the convention of the game for Oh Dae - su into inOldboy2003 , he claims to have a pacemaker with a remote that could cause Dae - su ’s heart to stop at any second , and menace to do this if Dae - su endeavor to kill him – one of the manyhorror movie tropes and easter eggsinOldboy . Lee Woo - jin then states that he ’ll kill Mi - do if Oh Dae - su ca n’t forecast out who he is after five days have passed .
Adrian Doyle Pryce adds more payoff to Joe ’s “ release ” inOldboy2013 . Both films miniature with the capturer releasing his captive . That release is all a part of the game as the earthly concern is essentially a boastful prison the capturer has trapped their prisoner in . If Joe can envision out who Adrian is and why he imprisoned Joe , Adrian will give Joe the transcription of him raping and killing his ex-wife - married woman , a indite confession of those crimes along with his imprisonment , $ 20 million in rhombus , and he gets to follow Adrian blow his brains out .
Related : The Best Horror Movies On Netflix
How Oldboy’s Hallway Sequences Compare
shoot over the course of study of three day inOldboy2003 , the hammering / corridor sequence has no hidden swing and is actually shot in one - take , unlike othermovies that use tricks for one - shot prospect . That read , some CGI is used for the tongue in Dae - su ’s back and to land hidden punches . what is more , the indistinctly ignite successiveness last about three minute . The hallway chronological succession is allegedly re - edited by producer inOldboy2013 and is about 15 seconds shorter in compare , and seek to outdo how impressive the original sequence is . The remaking chooses to have windows with sunlight , as the mayhem take position on three freestanding levels , and Joe seems to take less price than Dae - su . The tongue is stabbed in Joe ’s back at the goal of the combat compared to Oh Dae - su getting stabbed closer to the eye .
Oldboy 2013’s Teases Explained
Not everything fromOldboy2003 transitions over toOldboy2013 . The remaking chooses to hint at several of the most memorable elements fromOldboy2003 with teases to those beloved scene – a common tool acrossmodern movie remaking of quondam stories . InOldboy2003 , Oh Dae - su eats a live devilfish after he ’s unblock . InOldboy2013 , Joe stares at an octopus in a fish tank . The street trafficker Joe buys the gum elastic duck’s egg from is wearing holy man wing , which cite Oh Dae - su ’s birthday present to his girl inOldboy2003 . Chaney ’s bleached Mohawk pays homage to Mr. Han . Oh Dae - su cut out his clapper with a pair of pair of scissors at the remnant ofOldboy2003 . The tongue of Chucky , Joe ’s best booster , is sent to him as a gift alternatively inOldboy2013 .
Oldboy 2013 Combines The Mr. Han & Mr. Park Characters From Oldboy 2003
Mr. Park pass everything at the hotel inOldboy2003 , and he ’s more of a secondary crime lord to Lee Woo - jin , who keep tabs on all of the hotel ’s tenant . Mr. Han is Lee Woo - jin ’s right - hand man that fights for him and protects him at every turn , like how the notorious Luca Brasi servedDon Corleone inThe Godfather . Mr. Han and Mr. Park seem to have been rolled into one inOldboy2013 . Chaney is fundamentally both theatrical role while Adrian ’s escort is a cleaning lady named Haeng - bok ; she has very few lines and does n’t do much besides fight and concur an umbrella .
The Oldboy Remake Changes The Characters' Incest
What drives Lee Woo - jin to imprison Oh Dae - su for so long inOldboy2003 is that Dae - su severalise his good admirer , Joo - hwan , about Lee Woo - jin and his sister , Lee Soo - ah , having gender with each other back in high school . Joo - hwan then tells his lady friend and password quickly spreads around campus . Lee Soo - ah commits suicide because of it . Lee Woo - jin ’s revenge comes in the form of hypnotizing both Oh Dae - su and Mi - do to descend in love life with each other , but due to being in prison for 15 class Oh Dae - su does n’t recognize that Mi - do is his now adult daughter . In a way , this has provide a blueprint forhow series / movies use incest for plot twistsin more late media .
Related : Why Park Chan - wook Has renounce His Debut The Moon Is The Sun ’s Dream
Meanwhile , in 2013’sOldboy , Joe catch Adrian ’s baby Amanda having gender with their founding father Arthur at school . She ’s horribly badger by all of the students afterwards . By the end of the picture , it ’s revealed that Arthur is having sexual urge with both Amanda and Adrian . Arthur strike his category off to Luxembourg where he later murders his married woman and daughter with a shotgun and only wounds Adrian .
How Oldboy’s 2003 & 2013 Endings Are Different
Oh Dae - su cuts out his glossa and hypnotizes himself to forget about the the true regarding Military Intelligence Section 6 - do inOldboy2003 . It ’s never revealed who Oh Dae - su really is to her . He can no longer verbalise , but they can now know happily together without interference since Lee Woo - jin commits suicide . Meanwhile , Adrian counterfeit television system ’s longest break away crime programme just to get inside Joe ’s question inOldboy2013 ’s ending – not unlikeWandaVision ’s darkly comedic exercise of a sitcom - within - a - series . The program only has one viewer for its total run . A well - paid actress has pretended to be Mia the intact time , as well . Since Joe make headway Adrian ’s game , he receives the $ 20 million in diamonds . He fall in most of them to Marie along with a corner full of other memento like the arctic duck and a missive saying she ’ll never see him again but that he ’ll love her forever . She drives off to live her life with the natural rubber duck on the dashboard of her truck . Meanwhile , Joe gives the rest of his diamonds to Chaney who imprisons Joe back in the hotel room for the rest of his life .
Oldboy Remake Vs. Original: Which Is Best?
Park Chan - wook’sOldboy , the original movie , is definitely unspoiled than the 2013Oldboyremake , which is one of the more underwhelmingfilms made by Spike Lee . The trouble with remaking a pic that ’s hinged around a exclusive giant twist is that the factor of surprise no longer applies . In fact , because of the originalOldboy ’s cult status , even some who ’ve never seen the moving picture are mindful of its father - daughter incest twist , which has become the case of jokes , meme , and online discussions about pop finish . That said , it ’s incorrect to label theOldboyremake a spoilt picture . What ’s unlike in theOldboyremake also makes it unique , and it remains a worthwhile slice of movie theater living in the shadow of a bully slice . As Spike Lee himself explain , 2013’sOldboyremake is more a reinterpretation of the original Korean thriller than a remake . Although Spike Lee’sOldboyfails to use the element of surprisal and capture the intuitive nature of Park Chan - wook ’s moody incestuous tale , it ’s still a protection that warrants a watch .
Oldboy’s Josh Brolin And Elizabeth Olsen Joined The MCU
Oldboyisn’t the onlymovie feature both Josh Brolin and Elizabeth Olsen . The two doer are more famously known by their several characters in the MCU – the Mad Titan Thanos and Scarlet Witch . aside from bringing new biography to 2003’sOldboyin Spike Lee ’s remake , Brolin and Olsen ’s pairing are at the centre of the Thanos and Scarlet Witch squawk , which was one of the most anticipated confrontation during the MCU ’s Avengers era . Although Thanos is dead , give Brolin and Olsen ’s onscreen chemistry , the two could soon twin up ( or face up off ) once more in another feature .
Next : Why Zombie Scarlet Witch Ca n’t Defeat Ultron ( But Wanda Could Beat Thanos )
