Park Chan-wook's "No Other Choice" Competes for the Golden Lion

Venice Film Festival Opens on August 27
Korean Cinema Competes for the Golden Lion for the First Time in 13 Years

Director Park Chan-wook's "No Other Choice" has advanced to the competition section of the Venice International Film Festival, marking the first time in 13 years that a Korean film has been selected for this category.

Movie still cut from "No Other Choice"

The 82nd Venice International Film Festival opens on August 27 on Lido Island in Venice, Italy. Twenty-one feature films have been invited to compete for the Golden Lion. This is the first time a Korean film has entered this section since the late director Kim Ki-duk's "Pieta," which won the Golden Lion in 2012. Director Park has returned to the competition lineup for the first time in 20 years since "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" in 2005.

"No Other Choice" tells the story of Mansu (played by Lee Byung-hun), a laid-off office worker who embarks on his own battle to protect his family while preparing to find new employment. The film is based on the novel "The Axe" by American author Donald Westlake. Alongside Lee Byung-hun, the cast includes Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yum Hye-ran, and Cha Seung-won. With director Hong Sang-soo missing out on an award at this year's Berlin International Film Festival and no Korean feature films being invited to the Cannes Film Festival, attention is focused on whether "No Other Choice" will win an award.

The competition section features works by renowned directors. Noah Baumbach's "Jay Kelly," Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein," Kathryn Bigelow's "House of Dynamite," and Jim Jarmusch's "Father Mother Sister Brother" are among the films vying for the Golden Lion.

The lineup also includes "Bugonia," directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, a remake of the Korean film "Save the Green Planet." This film tells the story of two men who kidnap a pharmaceutical company president, convinced he is an alien intent on destroying Earth. CJ participated in the production from the planning stage.

Among the directors in competition, three have previously won the Golden Lion: Lanthimos ("Poor Things," 2023), del Toro ("The Shape of Water," 2017), and Gianfranco Rosi ("Sacro GRA," 2013).

The jury president is Alexander Payne, the American director known for "Sideways" and "The Descendants." The festival will run for ten days until September 6, with the awards ceremony held during the closing ceremony.