No Other Choice

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://fandomwire.com/no-other-choice-review/ "No Other Choice proves to be a fantastic piece of art with superb tonal control and dedicated performances that solidify Park Chan-wook's return to the style that defines him. It's a painfully entertaining analysis of a man driven to madness by corporate greed and social pressure, and a courageous, violent, hysterical look at how dysfunctional our world has become. In the end, the film isn't just about a man who lost his job but a voracious critique of the madness of a system that teaches us to kill the rivalry, literally or figuratively, and the human cost of that survival game." Rating: A-

They say that “Imitation is the highest form of flattery,” and, arguably, that might be true – but only when the imitation works. When it doesn’t, the result is more of a pale wannabe clone, and that’s precisely the problem with this latest release from writer-director Park Chan-wook. This dark comedy essentially seeks to be this year’s equivalent to the Oscar-winning South Korean offering “Parasite” (“Gisaengchung”) (2019) from filmmaker Bong Joon-ho. But, try as it might, “No Other Choice” is no “Parasite” – not by a long shot. The edgy humor that made this film’s predecessor successful was grounded in its skillful handling, knowing just how far to push the bounds of propriety and absurdity without going overboard while still being able to evoke nervous but genuinely earned laughs from viewers. This picture, however, tries way too hard to produce those chuckles, sometimes crossing the line of appropriateness and landing in territory that falls flat, becomes excessive and sometimes even verges on being of questionable taste. These results emerge from a storyline in which Man-su (Lee Byung-hun), a South Korean paper mill manager who genuinely believes he’s attained all of the material, domestic and career satisfaction he could ever want, unexpectedly loses his job as a result of an American company buyout. Upset but undeterred, he vows to land a new job within a few months, but, much to his dismay, he’s still out of work long thereafter. He and his family reluctantly begin economizing, but Man-su is dissatisfied with the direction in which his life is heading. He thus decides to try a different approach to winning a managerial job that’s opened up at another paper company – by eliminating his competitors before they can be hired. On the surface, this deliciously wicked premise might seem like a viable plot for a sinister dark comedy, but that’s not the issue here – rather, it’s a question of (ahem) execution. To move the narrative forward, the picture relies on heavy-handed storytelling tactics that result in overwrought slapstick, dubious comedy bits (some of which aren’t even laughing matters) or material that just flat-out bombs. In addition, the story is woefully bogged down by extraneous subplots involving erroneously suspected infidelity, youthful antisocial behavior and alcohol-induced lapses in sobriety (what’s funny about any of that?). As a consequence, these ancillary story threads needlessly lengthen an already-overlong film, prompting viewers to want to yell at the screen to get on with it already. What’s perhaps most puzzling, however, is the protagonist’s single-mindedness about the need to land another job in paper manufacturing, regularly proclaiming that he has “no other choice.” Why? It’s an argument that’s made repeatedly but never adequately explained, a plot device that, in turn, causes the film to become repetitive, making this production seem even longer than it actually is (I can’t begin to say how often I looked at my watch while screening this one). These attributes also make me wonder how this release was able to earn two Critics Choice Award nominations, three Golden Globe Award nods, and accolades from numerous film festivals and critics’ organizations, given that this is one of the biggest disappointments of this year’s awards season. Indeed, I find it amusing that the protagonist routinely insists that he has no other choice about the options open to him, but, thankfully, we as viewers do have a choice when it comes to this film – by simply choosing to turn it off, a temptation I had to resist many times and almost wish I had.

Sadly for “Man-su” (Lee Byung-hun) being pulp man of the year doesn’t guarantee your future in the paper industry, and when modernisation costs him his job he has to find another one. With a house, his wife, two children and two dogs to keep he can’t be out of work for long, but he quickly realises that nobody needs his skills anymore. He tries his hand at a few more menial jobs but when “Miri” (Son Ye-jin) announces over the dinner table that she's taken a part time job; that they are going to have to economise and sell the home he had lived in as a child, he finds himself galvanised to act. He realises that he has competitors for any jobs that come up, so he quite cleverly embarks on a scheme that has shades of “Kind Hearts and Coronets” (1949) to it. He establishes who his four most likely opponents would be and then sets about ensuring that, well let’s just say that he develops quite an macabre imagination. Each of his "tasks" allows us to enjoy some escapades, many of them almost Chaplin-esque, as his would-be victim’s lives are exposed in all their tawdry finery. Meantime, "Miri" becomes a little suspicious of where he is at all the hours of the night and as we first met a sozzled wastrel of a man in the doldrums, wonders if he has fallen off the wagon again? It’s a darkly entertaining drama that’s well held together by a star who has some comedy timing and by a supporting cast who manage to present us with the best and worst of human nature along the way. It also takes a bit of a swipe at the relentless march of automation and at the people who care little for it’s impact on folks who have either given their lives to their jobs, or who might like to given the opportunity. It does sag a little in the middle third and could probably lose twenty minutes, but I quite enjoyed it.

This is sharp, merciless filmmaking that finds the comedy in desperation and absurdity in survival. The South Koreans understand something essential about dark comedy: the most horrifying truths become bearable only when delivered with a wink and a knife. No Other Choice takes aim at the particular hell of middle management in late stage capitalism, and the result is as savage as it is hilarious. Middle managers occupy the most absurd position in the corporate hierarchy; they have just enough authority to be blamed for everything and just enough powerlessness to fix nothing. They're the shock absorbers between labor and capital, tasked with translating executive sociopathy into palatable directives while absorbing worker rage, all while pretending the system makes sense. They're complicit and exploited simultaneously, grinding themselves down to please people who view them as disposable, and managing people who rightfully resent them. It's a tragicomic tightrope, and this film understands the dark humor inherent in that impossible position. The direction and pacing work beautifully; the film knows exactly when to let absurdity build and when to deliver the punchline that lands like a gut punch. The humor isn't gentle or forgiving; it's the kind that makes you laugh and then immediately feel complicit. Late capitalism doesn't just crush workers; it creates entire classes of people whose job is to manage their own obsolescence, to smile while tightening the noose around the necks of workers and, ironically, around their own necks.