La Biennale di Venezia
MOVIE REVIEW
No Other Choice (2025)
If the premise of Park Chan-wook’s Venice International Film Festival entry, “No Other Choice,” sounds vaguely familiar, that’s because it is based on Donald E. Westlake’s “The Ax,” which was previously adapted as “Le couperet” two decades ago by Costa-Gavras, to whom the new film is dedicated. I vaguely recall pitching Film Comment to review the Costa-Gavras iteration, but the magazine’s then-editor deemed him no longer relevant. “Le couperet,” which has yet to receive distribution of any kind in the States, is finally getting its long overdue flowers in 2025 thanks to Mr. Park.