Lady vengeance was easily the 'best made movie' out of the three... however I'm not going to be so quick to choose a favorite out of the three until I watch them again. When I say 'best made movie' out of the three I mean that it was made more palatable to an american audience i think... it was a lot more 'feel good' i guess for material this heavy... well at least compared to Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy. honestly i just got done watching Lady Vengeance and the shit almost made me want to cry near the end, no homo. it was just an amazing job. but right now im also thinking about like i said how it was made more palatable for an american audience, meaning it was music heavy, kind of that american type of movie making where they use music to tell you how youre supposed to feel. you'll notice that right from the very get go of the movie, music in the background all the time to set the mood. a lot flashier use of the camera. also even though the movie started off kind of disjointed and made you pay attention very closely so you didnt get confused, it became very easy to follow after a certain point. no more twists and turns and heavy punches to the gut when you least expect it that leave you reeling and begging for it to not be really happening... there was a clear path from a certain point in the movie to the end. i mean you can just really tell that the director has his shit down at this point.. and the kind of raw feeling (especially in sympathy for mr. vengeance) just isnt quite there anymore. not that thats a bad thing.
i dont know, this is a toss up for me, i wont choose a favorite. sympathy for mr vengeance was the heaviest out of all of them, it just left a heaviness in your stomach and not necessarily a 'bad' feeling afterwards, but just an unpleasantness and deep reflection on the material. oldboy was amazing and even pretty epic in a lot of parts, and the twists and the turns and the guessing you went through throughout the movie, the heaviness of everything and how it all clashes together at the end and just blows you away.. wow. and lady vengeance, how the directors style is more fine tuned and the movie is more visually striking, heavier use of music and mood, and this amazing theme of redemption and the attachment you gain for the main character and how it ends leaving you feeling good, something you absolutely crave by the end of this trilogy, damn. and by that i mean honestly after sympathy for mr. vengeance and oldboy i was half convinced lady vengeance was going to end with the chicks house burning down and her daughter dieing in a goddamn fire lol... so i really welcomed that ending.
***SPOILERS******* lol
sorry, but fuck the poll for right now i cant choose a fave until i rewatch them again lol. im leaning towards lady vengeance though. sympathy for mr vengeance was just too fuckin boring the first 50 mins or so, and was just terrible shit after terrible shit and never let up with the negativity even at the end. theres no one to root for in that movie; and all sides lose. oldboy has the whole incest angle that is just fuckin ridiculous, especially when the guy chooses to be hypnotized at the end and will end up living out his life continuing to bang his daughter guilt free. and lady vengeance was 'mainstreamed' i guess if you want to call it that, but im not some hipster fag thats going to look past the greatness just cause "the director sold out" or changed the formula or whatever, lol.
