Oldboy is one of those mangas that stay with you. As a story about a man seeking revenge after he was imprisoned for 15 years, it keeps you reading and on edge. I don’t want to give too much of the story away if you haven’t read the Dark Horse comic, so go out and read it now! The manga even won an Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material. The other option is watching the Korean adaptation OldBoy. Directored by Chan-wook Park and story by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi (who wrote the manga), the movie was released in 2003 and is definitely worth the watch.
This is were director Spielberg(Indiana Jones, E.T., Jaws) and actor Smith (Men in Black, Independence Day) come in. Universal Studios had the rights to the remake of Oldboy first, but the story has since been passed to Spielberg. He is looking for a writer and Will Smith would play the part of the main character seeking vengeance. This is still in the early stages on discussion, so nothing is finalized by any means. I will keep you updated as more information is released.
How do you guys feel about this? I don’t think it should be done. The story is too crazy for Smith to play and the original movie is amazing! I don’t see the need for the remake, but I want to know what you guys think.
November 8th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
Hmm, that would be kind of cool if they did… but they better not cut or edit anything because then it would just suck in my opinion. And yes, the Korean movie is worth watching.
November 8th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
Oh god no. Spielberg and Smith can’t be allowed to touch this movie. Why would anyone want to remake Old Boy? Is it just for people that don’t like / Can’t read subtitles?
Spielberg shouldn’t be allowed make any movies anymore, nevermind remaking originals that are perfectly fine.
November 9th, 2008 at 11:01 pm
Ohh I didn’t know it was a manga … cool!
November 10th, 2008 at 7:37 am
As long as they are trying to remake films with indescribable qualities that make them distinct, memorable and unique, I think Speilberg/Smith should also remake “The Wizard of Oz” (Will as Scarecrow), “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (Will as Holly Go-Lightly), “Enter the Dragon” (Will as Bruce Lee) and “Short Circuit” (Will as Johnny 5 AND Steve Guttenberg).
November 10th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Tony you rock again! I feel the exact same way.
November 10th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
I say STAY AWAY! I agree with Brian, there is NO reason to remake the movie, the Korean film has an amazingly high production value, phenominal cast and great writers. If you want to see the manga acted out, watch the movie. They even dubbed it in english. The only reason they would need to remake it is to please lazy American’s who don’t want to read. Arg…Plus, Will Smith is too much of a nice guy to play this role…you will know what I mean if you have seen it!