Divisive Josh Brolin Movie Enters Netflix’s Top 10

These days, Josh Brolin is commonly most well-known for his Marvel film roles, but recently one of the actor’s more divisive movies entered Netflix’s Top 10 list. Back in 2013, before he played the villainous Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Brolin starred in Oldboy. The film is a remake of an iconic 2003 South Korean film of the same name, directed by Park Chan-wook (Snowpiercer). Oldboy (2013) peaked at the No. 7 spot on Netflix’s Top 10 Movies list but has since been knocked off.

In the film, Brolin plays Joe Doucett, an alcoholic advertising executive who passes out drunk one night and then wakes up locked inside what appears to be a hotel room. He’s kept there for two decades, and told by his anonymous captors that he’s been framed for the rape and murder of his ex-wife. Joe is eventually  released, inexplicably, and once free he sets off on a blood-soaked crusade to get vengeance against those who killed his wife and imprisoned him for 20 years. Joe’s nemesis eventually emerges, but not without one last horrible secret to unveil.

The film is directed by Oscar-winner Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman), from a screenplay by Mark Protosevich (I Am Legend). In addition to Brolin, the film boasts a star-studded cast, including Elizabeth Olsen, Samuel L. Jackson, Sharlto Copley, Michael Imperioli, Lance Reddick, Pom Klementieff, Rami Malek, and Max Casella. Unfortunately, Oldboy (2013) was not the hit that producers had hoped it would be, earning only $5.2 million on a budget of $30 million.

The film also did not find critical success, as most critics were very harsh in their reviews. “Why would we want to watch a chronicle of Joe’s agonies, and the agonies he gets to inflict on others? Passing it up would be the best revenge,” wrote Wall Street Journal critic Joe Morgenstern, as shared by Rotten Tomatoes. “Much of the dialogue is stilted (several scenes are laughable) and the melodrama feels unmoored without the lurid, baroque atmosphere of Park’s film — which, after all, was kind of the whole point,” added Associated Press journalist Jake Coyle.

However, Oldboy (2013) did have some supporters, such as Jonathan Robbins of Film Comment Magazine. “Viewers new to Oldboy will appreciate Lee’s affecting and entertaining tale of a man unjustly imprisoned,” he wrote. “Fans of Park’s film-and there are many wildly loyal ones-will likely be far less impressed.” Oldboy (2013) is now streaming on Netflix.