“No Other Choice” is a 2025 South Korean satirical black comedy thriller film co-written, produced, and directed by Park Chan-wook and based on “The Ax” by Donald Westlake. The film stars Lee Byung-hun as a desperate paper industry expert who decides to kill his competitors to secure the job he seeks and maintain his way of life. The film had its world premiere in the main competition of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it received universal critical acclaim for its writing, direction, editing and lead performance from Lee Byung-hun. At the 83rd Golden Globe Awards, it was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Foreign Language Film, and Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Lee Byung-hun). It was also selected as South Korea’s entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 98th Academy Awards and the Golden Globes. Park Chan-wook and Lee Byung-hun were kind enough to spend some time talking with Giovanni Lago about their work and experiences making the film, followed by Dan Bayer’s conversation with the film’s editors Kim Sang-bum and Kim Ho-bin, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will open in limited release on December 25th and nationwide this January from NEON. Thank you, and enjoy!
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