60-second cinema

7 out of 10 Completing my viewing of Park Chan-Wook's vengeance trilogy , Mr Vengeance is probably the simplest, plot-wise, of the three films. A young man struggling to find — and pay for — a kidney for his dying sister goes to unwise lengths to help her. Initially duped into swapping one of his own kidneys plus cash for a compatible donor kidney (which nevers turns up), he then resorts to kidnapping to raise the cash for a legit transplant. At which point, it all starts going seriously pear-shaped. Despite the film's title, there are actually multiple vengeances being sought here. And you can sympathise with all of them. The film remains entertaining and gripping throughout, but its relative simplicity felt like a slight let-down after seeing Oldboy and Lady Vengeance . Or maybe I was just up to speed quicker with this one. Anyway, as this rounds out my viewing of the vengeance trilogy, I feel I can now say it's a seriously good set of films. Granted, each is unr...

7 out of 10 Last time I watched this, I gave it 4 out of 10. What the hell was I thinking? As I recall, I was unimpressed with transparent blood(!) and struggled to keep track of the characters' relationships. Whatever, it was all pretty clear this time and the blood was a non-issue. As it is, it's just another good revenge film from Park Chan-Wook, albeit with a sudden slowing of pace at the end. Looking forward to seeing Mr Vengeance now. :)

10 out of 10 This is the second time I've seen this film and it really does stand up to repeat viewings remarkably well. In fact, I'd even say it gets better with repeat viewings, hence me upgrading it to a ten. Oldboy tells the story of a man imprisoned for 15 years without knowing either the reason or the identity of his jailer. While we do get a summary of his internment, it's his subsequent quest for understanding and, perhaps, vengeance that dominates the story. Frankly, it's a bit of a masterpiece. Yes, that's an over-used phrase, but I've never known another tale of revenge that even comes close to the brilliance of Oldboy. I could elaborate, but that would only spoil things for you. Instead, I'll say just this: rent it, buy it, or borrow it. Regardless, just watch it .

4 out of 10 Not a patch on Oldboy , the only other Park Chan-Wook film I’ve seen. Or maybe that says more about my more Hollywood-like expectations of cinema. Regardless, I felt the start of this tale was too disjointed to draw me in and the end too implausibly told and too protracted to win me over. Lee Yeong-Ae, mind, was pretty damned stunning, so it’s not all bad. :)