Park Chan-wook's new film No Other Choice has been invited to compete in the institutional sector of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. This is the first time a Korean film has advanced to this sector since Kim Ki-duk's Pieta in 2012.
On the 22nd (local time), the festival's secretariat announced through a live broadcast on YouTube the official invitations for 21 films, including No Other Choice, in the institutional sector. Park Chan-wook's entry into the Venice institutional sector comes 20 years after his film Lady Vengeance in 2005.
The film depicts the process of a laid-off office worker trying to eliminate competitors during the re-employment process. Based on the novel Axe by American author Donald Westlake, it is Park Chan-wook's first feature in three years since Decision to Leave (2022). The cast includes Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran, and Cha Seung-won.
Director Park noted, "I think it was a good decision not to give up for so many years." Lee Byung-hun said, "I am looking forward to the finished work," while Son Ye-jin expressed, "It's a great honor that my first visit to an international film festival is Venice."
Along with this, the film Bugonia, a remake of director Jang Joon-hwan's Save Earth, has also been invited to the institutional sector. Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, with Emma Stone in the lead role, CJ ENM participated as a co-production company.
The institutional sector of this film festival also includes films such as After the Hunt (Luca Guadagnino), Father Mother Sister Brother (Jim Jarmusch), Estranger (François Ozon), and Frankenstein (Guillermo del Toro). The 82nd Venice Film Festival will open on Aug. 27 and close on Sept. 6.