It is almost certainly best to go into this film with as few expectations as possible, though a bare bones knowledge of the plot line doesn't hurt anything. The movie starts out on a surreal and strange note, as we meet Dae-su. Drunk and belligerent in a police station, it's made clear from the outset that his character is less than savory. Nonetheless, Old Boy is Dae-su's story, and he is such an engaging personality that it's impossible not to be consistently fascinated by the events unfolding onscreen.Soon after being bailed out of jail, Dae-su is kidnapped and taken away to a small room where he is kept prisoner for reasons unknown. Although he is uncertain at first how much time has passed, before long he is passing the years (yes, years) by tattooing his arm with a new mark at each anniversary. The television that sits before him shows the world events that have taken place during his lost time. He even sees that his wife has been murdered, and he is the prime suspect. As he waits, he also whittles away the hours by carving an escape route through his wall. Before he can finish at the 15-year mark, though, he is unexpectedly and inexplicably released. And all of this action takes place in the first 20 minutes of the film.Once Dae-su is out of his strange prison, his focus naturally becomes revenge against the people who had him placed there. As he rattles off a list of potential perpetrators who might have had reason for wanting to hurt him, it becomes even more apparent that Dae-su is a man with a checkered and dark past. Part of Old Boy's intrigue comes from the fact that we suspect the protagonist is a badass, but we're just not quite sure how or why he is that way.The final hour and 40 minutes of the film are spent unraveling the mystery behind why Dae-su was imprisoned, who did it, and the means our hero takes to exact his retribution. However, the movie is far more involved than a simple tale of angry vengeance.There's also a scene in the film, where he eats live octopus. Great film.
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I taped over my Dr No! Rats!
