If you spend any time on the internet, you’ll know that many people are debating whether Spike Lee’s Oldboy remake will hit the tone of Park Chan-wook’s original instant classic revenge thriller. Critically acclaimed, the Korean original has a very strong following of true cinema lovers, many of which who opposed the idea of a remake from the start. But, can we really write a movie off before even seeing it?
Many movies are remakes and we don’t even know it, plus not all remakes have a negative impact. Recent horror movies have given remakes a bad name, but thanks to some serious surprises this Comic Con from the people behind Oldboy, I’m here to say that we shouldn’t be so quick as to assume the ball is going to be dropped on November 27th when Josh Brolin steps into this coveted lead role.
Attending the Oldboy panel at New York Comic-Con were Michael Imperioli, Pom Klementieff, and writer Mark Protosevich, and although he couldn’t make it, Josh Brolin appeared on the big screen for an introduction to the event. Speaking to how dark the film is, Brolin assured us he’s “gone completely insane after this movie,” and our expectations should be met. Sure, we can trust an actor only so much, but then a clip was supplied as backup – a clip that had the entire crowd wincing and screaming.
Here’s a rundown of the scene we were shown:
The piece opens with Josh Brolin’s character, Joe Doucett, sitting in a Chinese-type restaurant. We cut to the pick-up station and see a pile of food for delivery. In walks Henchman #1 to pick up lunch for his hideout, and that’s where things get interesting. Brolin gets up and follows him closely, grabbing a hammer and stealing the delivery boy’s bike. Pursuing the henchman, who is driving an Escalade, the two turn into a warehouse area. The car parks, and just as the henchman starts walking away, Brolin sneaks up on him and cracks his face open, along with another guard (who we see dead).
He’s buzzed into the next room, hiding his face behind the food so the next security guard doesn’t know he’s there. Spitting out a quick one-liner, Brolin pierces the new victim’s head with the sharp end of the hammer, producing a gasp-worthy blow – but he’s not done. The camera shows Samuel L. Jackson monitoring security cameras, Brolin walks in, clocks him, and ties him to a table. With Sammy J regaining his wits, Brolin draws a dotted line across his neck and takes out a box cutter. Jackson pleads, simultaneously begging for his life and cursing Brolin out, but Josh cuts one of the lines off his neck. Continuing, he cuts another and throws the fleshy waste in the garbage – with Jackson swearing profusely the whole time. Brolin snickers though, like he’s getting some sick pleasure out of the act, and simply responds with something Jackson’s character doesn’t want to hear – “I’m going to keep going until I can pull your head off with my bare hands.” End Scene.
