Oldboy poster

Oldboy

2003120 minutesR
8.3
Arcplot Score
💎 Masterclass
Unverified
⭐ 8.3IMDb
🍅 82%Rotten Tomatoes
Ⓜ️ 78/100Metacritic
🎬 8.2TMDb
📊 10.2Popularity
🏆44 wins & 28 nominations total
Genre: Action, Drama, Mystery
Directed by: Park Chan-wook
Abducted on a rainy night in 1988, the obnoxious drunk, Oh Dae-Su, much to his surprise, wakes up locked in a windowless and dilapidated hotel room, for an unknown reason. There, his invisible and pitiless captors will feed him, clothe him, and sedate him to avert a desperate suicide--and as his only companion and a window to the world is the TV in his stark cell--the only thing that helps Oh Dae-Su keep going is his daily journal. Then, unexpectedly, after fifteen long years in captivity, the perplexed prisoner is deliberately released, encouraged to track down his tormentor to finally get his retribution. However, who would hate Oh Dae-Su so much he would deny him of a quick and clean death?

Box Office

Budget:$3.0M
Revenue:$17.5M
Profit:$14.5M

Arcplot Score Breakdown

Beat Timing Precision7.8/10
Emotional Arc Impact10/10
Thematic Consistency7/10
Overall Score8.3/10

Beat Sheet

15 plot points

Oldboy Arcplot
1
Opening Image
1 min
2
Theme Stated
5 min
3
Set-Up
15 min
4
Catalyst
20 min
5
Debate
30 min
6
Break Into Two
35 min
7
B Story
45 min
8
Fun and Games
55 min
9
Midpoint
70 min
10
Bad Guys Close In
85 min
11
All Is Lost
95 min
12
Dark Night of the Soul
105 min
13
Break Into Three
110 min
14
Finale
118 min
15
Final Image
120 min

Emotional Arc

+100-10

Plot Points

#1

Opening Image

1 min

Oh Dae-su is a regular businessman, drinking and living aimlessly. Introduces his normal life before upheaval. Frustration and dissatisfaction with existence visible.

#2

Theme Stated

5 min

Theme of revenge, imprisonment, and fate foreshadowed. Oh Dae-su's troubles hint at larger forces controlling life.

#3

Set-Up

15 min

Oh Dae-su attends friend's party, misbehaves. His daughter is seen, adding stakes. Leaves bar, abducted mysteriously. Life upended without explanation.

#4

Catalyst

20 min

Abduction and imprisonment in a private cell for 15 years. Life destroyed, normality gone. Emotional and narrative stakes dramatically altered.

#5

Debate

30 min

Dae-su struggles with isolation. Questions fate, morality, and revenge. Receives news about daughter, increasing guilt and anger. Psychological torment begins.

#6

Break Into Two

35 min

Dae-su is released suddenly after 15 years. Must navigate a changed world. First steps into outside life, determination to find captor. Entering a new world of revenge.

#7

B Story

45 min

Meets Mi-do. Romance and trust form. Emotional anchor for protagonist. Human connection amid chaos. Stakes of relationship and secrecy emerge.

#8

Fun and Games

55 min

Investigating captor. Combat, strategy, and discovery. Dae-su learns about Woo-jin's manipulations. Tension, mystery, and emotional twists. Audience sees revenge plan unfold.

#9

Midpoint

70 min

Dae-su discovers truth about daughter and relationship to Mi-do. False victory replaced by horrifying revelation. Stakes escalate: moral and psychological disaster.

#10

Bad Guys Close In

85 min

Woo-jin's manipulations revealed. Dae-su's anger, love, and trust exploited. Mi-do in danger. Physical and psychological threats intensify.

#11

All Is Lost

95 min

Truth about Mi-do revealed: incestuous manipulation. Emotional devastation. Dae-su's revenge seemingly meaningless. Lowest emotional point.

#12

Dark Night of the Soul

105 min

Dae-su contemplates self-harm, fate, and the cruelty of the world. Psychological torment peaks. Must choose between truth and peace.

#13

Break Into Three

110 min

Decides to take drastic action: cutting tongue, erasing self from Mi-do's knowledge. Synthesis: pain for possible redemption. Courage and agency regained.

#14

Finale

118 min

Woo-jin dies. Revenge physically achieved. Dae-su seeks closure with Mi-do. Twist of moral and emotional ambiguity. Balance partially restored but at great cost.

#15

Final Image

120 min

Dae-su walks away, tongue cut, embracing Mi-do in snowy environment. Suggestion of memory loss and hope. Story resolves with tension between vengeance and humanity.