Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to make the bed! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the zombies of “We Bury the Dead,” the psychological drama of “The Plague” and the social satire of “No Other Choice.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “No Other Choice,” a new comedic thriller from Oscar winning director Park Chan-wook, a middle-aged paper mill manager is driven to violent extremes after being laid off after twenty-five years of working for the same company.
CAST: Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran and Cha Seung-won. Directed by Park Chan-wook.
REVIEW: A satirical black comedy that touches on themes of economic anxiety and living to work instead of working to live, “No Other Choice” is a timely, if exaggerated, look at the price people pay to make money.
When the story begins Yoo Man-su (Lee Byung-hun) has a good, long-time job at the papermaking company Solar Paper. When he’s not at work he lives a comfortable life with wife, children and dog. But when an American company buys the factory, Man-Su is laid off, throwing his life into chaos.
Unemployed for the first time in twenty-five years, he promises his family he’ll be able to land another job, maybe even a better one, within three months. Thirteen months later, still unemployed and unable to pay the mortgage, he devises a risky plan to reclaim his dignity and provide for his family—he’ll make himself in-demand by killing his competition. “It’s how I’m meant to be,” he says, “I’ve no other choice.”
Despite the dark subject, Man-su’s desperation and the relatively high body count, “No Other Choice” is a playful film. Director Park Chan-wook’s peek at ruthless corporations and expendable workers is delightfully absurd and yet grounded in real human behavior.
Man-su’s actions are over the top, and increasingly chaotic, but the driver of his deadly journey are the primal forces of respect and self-worth. The film’s villain isn’t entirely the guy who’s knocking off his competition, it’s the dehumanizing system that pushed him to extremes, that gave him “no other choice” but to act out.
“No Other Choice” isn’t a delicate movie. It’s a hair overlong and delivers its message with the subtlety of a slap across the face, but the story’s unpredictability is very entertaining.
