A new Oldboy featurette from Spike Lee’s remake of the popular 2003 Korean film by Park Chan-wook is floating around the internet, and boy, does it have die-hard fanboys all up in a tizzy.
For true fans of the original movie (me), Oldboy is an amazingly original story that deserves to be adapted. The film concerns an every-man who one day, out of nowhere, is kidnapped for no apparent reason and locked up in solitary confinement for fifteen years in a highly secured and monitored hotel-room turned prison. He eventually decides to work out, beef up on his ass-kicking skills, and plot his revenge. Until one day, just as random as his imprisonment, his anonymous captors release him out into the world.
It’s not surprising that the 45 year old actor happily jumped on board with the project.
“You see every type of behavior,” says Brolin on the role. “Angry, lonely, delusional.”
The Oldboy featurette really pushes the fact that Brolin went all out for this film– gaining fifteen pounds, building muscle, and training. “He had to lose that weight like over the weekend,” says Lee, who also adds that he was “blown away” by the actor’s performance.
This is a smart move on the part of the film’s promoters. Even for those who haven’t seen the original, Brolin’s Oscar-worthy reputation and screen presence might be enough to drive audiences to the theaters.
There’s little I can say about Josh Brolin’s natural abilities as an actor that hasn’t already been said. But here’s a true story: A few years ago Brolin was filming Men In Black III in Brooklyn. One day, I was sitting with my best friend in a tea shop across from Washington Square Park when Josh Brolin strolled in! He got in line at the counter and stood directly behind my friend’s back. My mind flooded with all sorts of wonderful memories of one of my favorite films of all time, No Country for Old Men. My friend was updating his Facebook status on his phone when Josh Brolin peeked over his shoulder, saw the status (“Josh Brolin is standing behind me”), smiled, and gave us both a thumbs up.
Needless to say, combining one of my favorite actors with one of my favorite films and one of my favorite directors is like a dream come true. Spike Lee is an incredible director. One only has to watch the grossly overlooked 25th Hour to see how Lee has a superb eye for human misfortune and endurance. I’m certain his unique perspective and film stylewill add much to the 21st century classic tale of revenge.
Source: Latino Review