Oldboy 2013

Joe Doucett’s (Josh Brolin) life was a tangled web of self-destructive habits and reckless behavior, leaving him devoid of empathy or genuine connections with others. His estranged wife’s scathing rebuke about his absence from their daughter Mia’s third birthday party sparked a torrent of verbal abuse, which ultimately led to Joe’s downward spiral of excessive drinking, vomiting, and intoxication. In a haze of booze-fueled despair, he stumbled upon the street vendor, purchasing a toy duck for his daughter as a half-hearted attempt at apology.

However, fate had other plans, and Joe found himself waking up in a drab hotel room, trapped by unseen forces. His daily routine consisted of meager sustenance, primarily Chinese cuisine, with occasional gas sessions that allowed his captors to intervene while he was unconscious. As the days blurred together, Joe’s mind began to unravel, conjuring vivid hallucinations and forming an unlikely bond with a mouse, only to have it served back to him as his next meal.

Despite the isolation, Joe found solace in watching television, where a news broadcast shattered his world: his wife had been brutally raped and murdered. Forensic evidence was planted at the crime scene, incriminating Joe as the prime suspect. The weight of his innocence lost left him crippled with despair, unable to mount any sort of defense or protest.

As the years passed, Joe discovered through a TV crime show that his daughter Mia had long moved on, adopted by another couple and blossoming into a talented cello player. This crushing revelation spurred Joe to refocus his energies within his prison cell. He devoted himself to physical self-improvement, honing his body through exercise, while simultaneously pouring out his emotions onto paper in heartfelt letters to his daughter.

The walls of his confinement became a canvas for Joe’s introspection, as he etched lines on his arms, marking each year of imprisonment like a solemn reminder. He also compiled a list of potential culprits behind his predicament, his mind consumed by the mystery that had trapped him. Meanwhile, an unseen observer, Chaney (Samuel L. Jackson), monitored Joe’s every move from the shadows, capturing every moment on camera.

As Joe’s 20-year odyssey nears its climax, he orchestrates an escape plan, but fate has other plans. He awakens to find himself equipped with a sleek cell phone featuring the radiant smile of his daughter Mia, accompanied by a countdown timer that taunts him like a ticking time bomb. The familiar sight of the street vendor with the umbrella, who unwittingly sold him the duck that sparked this odyssey, sends Joe into a frenzy as he chases her down the streets. Using his newly acquired physical prowess to vanquish a group of rowdy football players who misconstrue his intentions, Joe continues his pursuit, driven by an insatiable curiosity.

The trail leads him to Marie Sebastian (Elizabeth Olsen), a compassionate nurse who dedicates her life to tending to the homeless and sensing the turmoil brewing beneath Joe’s surface. Though he remains tight-lipped about his true nature, she extends an olive branch in the form of her business card, should he ever require assistance.

Upon returning to Chucky’s bar, Joe spills the beans to his old friend, only to be summoned by an enigmatic stranger who proposes a path to redemption. With Chucky’s guidance, Joe embarks on a quest for self-discovery, pouring over the list of individuals he has wronged in the past, searching for any leads that might lead him to his captor. As the hours tick by, Joe finds no conclusive links to his tormentors, leaving him feeling more lost than ever.

Just as Joe’s resolve begins to wane, fate intervenes once more, and he succumbs to another bout of unconsciousness. When Marie arrives at Chucky’s doorstep, she stumbles upon a stack of letters penned by Joe for his daughter Mia, and her heart goes out to the beleaguered protagonist. As Joe awakens, he is consumed by outrage, convinced that these heartfelt missives were intended solely for the eyes of his beloved daughter.

Mia, a former addict, takes pity on Joe’s plight and agrees to aid him in his quest for answers. Together, they set out to uncover the truth, tracing the scent of Chinese cuisine as Joe samples dishes at local eateries, desperate to recapture the flavor of the dumplings that sustained him during his imprisonment.

As he closes in on a specific restaurant, Joe’s instincts lead him to a mysterious individual collecting a large order of dumplings. With nothing but a claw hammer for protection, Joe sets off in pursuit, determined to unravel the mystery at its core. His investigation ultimately leads him to the gates of a sinister prison complex, where he brutalizes the caretaker, Chaney, only to discover that this is merely a front for a far more insidious operation.

The revelation comes with a tape recording featuring the voice of Joe’s captor, taunting him with the realization that his journey has been but a mere precursor to a far greater struggle. As Joe fights off an onslaught of guards and succumbs to his wounds, a mysterious figure intervenes, depositing him at Chucky’s doorstep once more, setting the stage for the next chapter in this epic tale of redemption and discovery.

As Joe’s resilience begins to wane, a second call from the enigmatic stranger arrives, this time punctuated by biting taunts that leave him seething. With his ire piqued, Joe uncovers the truth behind the blocked call: it was one of Chucky’s patrons, accompanied by a formidable female bodyguard. A ferocious assault ensues, but the guardian proves more than a match for Joe’s rage, swiftly subduing him.

The stranger, revealed to be Adrian (Sharlto Copley), presents Joe with an ultimatum: uncover the truth behind his imprisonment and Adrian will provide proof of his involvement in the murder of Joe’s wife, along with a suitcase full of diamonds. But there is more at stake: Adrian promises to bring Joe face-to-face with his daughter, after which he will take his own life if Joe fails to uncover the truth.

With this new information, Adrian leads Joe to Marie’s doorstep, where Chaney’s gang lies in wait, intent on brutalizing her. A vicious beating ensues, but before Chaney can initiate a more sadistic form of torture, Adrian intervenes once more, buying off his henchman with a phone call.

Marie, shaken but unbroken, is determined to help Joe unravel the mystery. Utilizing a Shazam app, she identifies the ringtone on Joe’s phone as the alma mater anthem of his former prep school. Convinced that the old institution holds the key to solving the riddle, Marie and Joe embark on a journey by car, with Adrian maintaining a constant watchful eye.

As they delve deeper into the mystery, Joe and Marie pay a visit to Edwina Burke (Linda Emond), the former headmistress of Joe’s prep school. While Marie works her charm, convincing Ms. Burke that Joe may be innocent and someone from his old school is attempting to frame him for his wife’s murder, Joe sneaks into the apartment, driven by a burning desire to uncover the truth.

Marie’s efforts yield results as she learns that Joe met his future wife at the school, but also gained a reputation as a self-absorbed student, perhaps inciting envy and resentment among his peers. A perusal of the yearbook reveals Adrian’s name and image, establishing a connection between him and Chucky. The revelation sends them on a mission to uncover more information about the closed school, with their sights set on returning in the evening when the gates are open.

As Chucky delves into the dark recesses of the internet, he stumbles upon a peculiar discovery that sets off a chain reaction of events. He uncovers the fact that Adrian had a hospital built in honor of his deceased sister, and suddenly, a long-forgotten memory resurfaces. Seizing the moment, Chucky leaves Joe a cryptic message, alluding to “the whore,” unaware that Adrian has intercepted the call. Fueled by rage and hurt, Adrian makes his way to the bar, where he brutally takes out his vengeance on Chucky.

Meanwhile, Joe and Marie retreat to a motel to tend to Joe’s wounds, but their intimacy is disrupted when they unwittingly become the subjects of Adrian’s voyeuristic tendencies. Later that evening, they embark on a daring mission to infiltrate the prep school, uncovering clues that reveal Adrian’s troubled past. As they delve deeper into the mystery, Joe’s conscience begins to stir, and he recalls his own history of bullying Adrian’s sister. His memories are further stirred by Chucky’s ominous message, which sends him reeling back to a traumatic event from their shared past.

During their investigation, Joe and Marie stumble upon newspaper clippings that detail Adrian’s family’s tragic demise in Luxemburg. The revelation sparks a new wave of questions, as they uncover the shocking truth that Adrian’s sister was involved with her own father, a revelation that Joe had previously mentioned to Chucky. Outside the prep school, their tranquility is shattered when they discover a gruesome package in their car - Chucky’s severed tongue.

The discovery sends them reeling back to the motel, where they’re met with an even more disturbing sight: a photo of Mia, brutally battered and bruised. Faced with this new evidence, Joe feels compelled to confront Adrian, ignoring Marie’s desperate pleas for him to stay safe.

As Joe arrives at Adrian’s doorstep, a fleeting skirmish with the bodyguard - ultimately resulting in the guard’s demise - precedes Joe’s revelation of having solved the enigmatic puzzle. However, Adrian’s ire is piqued as he accuses Joe of being responsible for the calamity that befell his family, leading to his imprisonment. It wasn’t until this fateful evening that Joe stumbled upon the unsettling truth: the sex scandal entwined with an incestuous relationship. Adrian responds with a chilling admission, divulging that his cherished father was a pedophile who maintained separate sexual relationships with both him and his sister. Despite their initial contentment, the scandal’s proliferation forced them to relocate to Luxembourg, ultimately culminating in their patriarch’s heinous act of killing his wife, daughter, and himself, leaving Adrian severely wounded.

Adrian reveals that Joe’s imprisonment was a direct consequence of his actions, but he keeps his promise by escorting Joe to meet Mia. As they arrive at her location, Joe learns that the crime show he had witnessed during his captivity was meticulously staged, with Mia being a professional actress recruited by Adrian from an early age - even the final photograph depicting her bruised visage was fabricated. Incensed, Joe physically assaults Adrian, demanding to be taken to meet his real daughter.

Adrian matter-of-factly remarks that Joe never posed the correct question: instead of inquiring about his imprisonment, he should have asked why he was set free. As Adrian continues to display photographs of Mia’s life, it becomes apparent that she was raised after her mother’s passing and grew up as Marie. Adrian had orchestrated events to ensure Marie became addicted and developed a paternal complex, allowing her to eventually pity Joe, ultimately culminating in their illicit encounter serving as a form of psychological torment for Joe.

Devastated by the revelation, Joe implores Adrian not to divulge the truth to Marie, instead offering himself as a sacrifice to be used at Adrian’s whim. However, Adrian reveals that he has no desire to kill Joe, stating that he now occupies the perfect position to vicariously experience Adrian’s pain. With his revenge complete, Adrian ends his own life in a final, poignant act of self-destruction.

As desperation sets in, Joe resorts to drastic measures to rectify the situation, leveraging Adrian’s treasured diamonds as a means of redemption - not just for Marie/Mia’s sake, but also for the benefit of Chaney, who is enticed by an offer of financial compensation and facilitates Joe’s decision to voluntarily return to his former prison confines. A poignant letter, accompanied by a small token - the duck toy that once brought solace to their tumultuous relationship - serves as a heartfelt farewell from Joe to Marie/Mia, beseeching her to move on from the memories of him and find peace in the knowledge that he has committed an unforgivable act. Meanwhile, Joe finds himself back behind bars, his visage now bearing a hauntingly somber expression, the weight of his actions etched indelibly upon his countenance.