22 July,2025 05:21 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Park Chan-wook, Lee Byung-hun
This year will see the premiere of a new film directed by Park Chan-wook, who has directed Oldboy, Stoker, The Handmaiden, and other iconic films. It's No Other Choice is a distinctly gloomy thriller that is based on Donald Westlake's (well-known for his Parker series) novel The Axe.
No Other Choice, which sets the story in modern-day South Korea, stars Lee Byung-hun (I Saw The Devil and Squid Game) as Man Soo, a mild-mannered manager who loses his job at a paper merchant's. In an attempt to gain an advantage over his rivals, Man Soo, who is desperate for a job, takes drastic actions.
Another well-known director, Costa-Gavras, had already adapted the same book as The Axe in 2005. Four years later, Park Chan-wook started working on his own adaptation (or remake, depending on your point of view), but it took much longer to get the project off the ground than he had expected. In the meantime, Park has achieved worldwide acclaim for a number of other films, many of which are tense and contain dark humour. Among these are Lady Vengeance, Thirst, and Decision To Leave.
No Other Choice, which Park eventually shot last year, is anticipated to debut at the Venice Film Festival this fall. The film's US rights were acquired by boutique film studio Neon in June, and Mubi took it up for release in several other countries. Despite being marked as "coming soon," Park's most recent work is probably just a few months away from being released to the public, which would put it in the running for honours next year.
A competitor is undoubtedly hinted at in the first teasing trailer. gloomy, tense, wonderfully framed, and just a little strange. However, what else can we anticipate from a director such as Park Chan-wook?
Talking about Oldboy, the 2003 film established a high bar for violence in movies by presenting cruelty in a manner that defied accepted norms. One of its most famous scenes is the one-take fight scene in the corridor, which is still a masterwork of choreography despite the slick action scenes of the era. It is dirty, chaotic, and genuine.
