Oldboy (2003) Parents Guide: Is the movie OK for kids?

Bontent's parent guide suggests Oldboy is best for ages 18+. It's rated NR. A man is imprisoned without explanation for 15 years, then suddenly released and given five days to find out why. One of cinema's most disturbing and formally perfect revenge films. Unrated but adults only — the…

Oldboy is officially rated NR. Bontent's independent parent guide recommends it for ages 18+.

A man is imprisoned without explanation for 15 years, then suddenly released and given five days to find out why. One of cinema's most disturbing and formally perfect revenge films. Unrated but adults only — the revelation involves extreme content.

The film's climactic revelation involves incest — depicted with full horror. Sexual content throughout the film in service of its mystery. Among the most disturbing sexual revelations in mainstream cinema.

A hallway fight — the protagonist against dozens of men, exhausted and relentless. Teeth pulled with a claw hammer. An octopus eaten alive. Extreme graphic violence.

Strong language in subtitles.

Alcohol as the protagonist's pre-imprisonment character flaw.

A revenge plot whose revelation destroys both the avenger and his target. The cost of a grudge sustained for 15 years. The film asks whether the truth — when it is monstrous enough — makes revenge meaningless.

Oldboy runs 120 minutes, directed by Park Chan-wook, released in 2003.

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