Acclaimed actor Lee Byung-hun and filmmaker Park Chan-wook are reuniting for No Other Choice, a tense new thriller opening in theaters Thursday. The film examines economic desperation and moral collapse through the story of an ordinary man turned killer. In recent interviews, the director and star discussed the unsettling emotional core of the film, adapted from Donald Westlake’s 1997 novel The Ax.
A laid-off worker becomes a killer
Lee plays Man-su, a supervisor laid off from a paper factory. When he learns a position has opened at another mill, he takes drastic measures, deciding to eliminate competing candidates. Park explained that the film’s murders are symbolic reflections of shared struggle. Man-su sees his victims not as strangers but as mirror images of himself — aging men forced out of work and clinging to survival.
“It’s almost as if he’s eliminating himself,” Lee said through a translator.
Park adds emotional nuance to the killings
Park and co-writers Lee Kyoung-mi, Jahye Lee, and Don McKellar added sequences showing Man-su’s empathy for his future victims. In one scene, Man-su phones his first target, Bummo, diverting him from walking in on his adulterous wife before the murder. Park said the moment reveals the killer’s conflicted nature. Even while planning violence, he feels connection and pity, deepening tension around his choices.
A commentary on layoffs and corporate cruelty
The title No Other Choice references the company’s repeated justification for layoffs. Park links that refrain to broader systemic failures prioritizing profit over people. Park said executives claim they have “no other choice” but to cut workers, while benefiting from high salaries and focusing on short-term returns. The filmmaker acknowledged the story remains relevant amid ongoing layoffs in global industries.
Man-su struggles, not a trained assassin
Although Lee is known for roles as skilled killers in I Saw the Devil, G.I. Joe, and The Good, the Bad, the Weird, Park emphasized that Man-su is inexperienced. Watching him attempt murder introduces suspense rooted in clumsiness, fear, and hesitation.
The assassination of Bummo receives the longest screen time because Man-su surveils him, projecting his own insecurities onto the man’s life and marriage. Lee said the emotional connection makes the act more difficult.
Relatable fears in film and life
Park revealed he initially developed the adaptation for Hollywood studios but turned to Korea after the project was declined. Like Man-su, he imagined himself carrying around a résumé searching for work if filmmaking opportunities vanished. Lee said many actors live in similar limbo, unsure of their next paycheck. Though he considers himself fortunate, he understands the anxiety embedded in Man-su’s story.
Earlier this year, Lee voiced the villain in KPOP Demon Hunters, a role he accepted partly to give his young children a project they could watch. Despite its violent premise, No Other Choice aims to explore compassion and human frailty rather than celebrate brutality.
