Director Park Chan-wook's new film 'Nothing Can Be Done' has been invited to compete at this year's Venice International Film Festival.
On the 22nd (local time), the Venice Film Festival announced the 21 films invited to the competition section, including 'Nothing Can Be Done', during a press conference streamed live on YouTube.
The festival described the film as "the story of a laid-off office worker who tries to eliminate his competitors while seeking re-employment."
This is the first time in 13 years that a Korean film has entered the competition section of the Venice Film Festival since the late Kim Ki-duk's 'Pietà' in 2012.
This is Park Chan-wook's second time competing at this festival, and it has been 20 years since his last entry. Previously, he was invited to the competition section in 2005 with 'Lady Vengeance', the final film of his revenge trilogy, where he received three unofficial awards: the Best Young Actor Award, the Best Innovation Award, and the Future Film Award. Earlier, in 2004, he was invited to the non-competitive section with the omnibus film 'Three... Monsters'.
Park expressed his overwhelming feelings, saying, "After completing the film and receiving the invitation to Venice, I think to myself that I’m glad I didn’t give up on this project over the long years."
Lead actor Lee Byung-hun said, "I am so eager to see the completed work," while Son Ye-jin expressed her excitement, saying, "It is such an honor and a moving experience to have my first visit to an international film festival be Venice."
'Nothing Can Be Done' depicts the story of Mansu, a company employee who lived a satisfying life but is suddenly laid off and embarks on a journey to find re-employment to protect his wife, Miri, and their two children. This is Park's new work after 'Decision to Leave' in 2022, based on the novel 'The Ax' by American author Donald Westlake.
Actor Lee Byung-hun plays the role of Mansu, while Son Ye-jin plays his wife Miri, marking their first appearance as a couple. Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-min, Yeom Hye-ran, and Cha Seung-won also star in the film.
Meanwhile, director Jang Joon-hwan's feature debut film 'Save the Earth' (2003) has also been invited to the competition section as a Hollywood remake titled 'Bugonia'.
Directed by Greek master Yorgos Lanthimos, known for films like 'The Favourite' (2023) and 'The Lobster' (2017), with Emma Stone in the lead role, this is also a global project co-produced by CJ ENM.
Additionally, films such as 'After the Hunt', directed by Luca Guadagnino and starring Julia Roberts, and Jim Jarmusch's 'Father, Mother, Sister, Brother' have also been included in the competition section.
François Ozon's 'Étrange' and Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' are both adaptations of novels of the same name and will compete in the same section.
The Venice Film Festival is a prestigious film festival known as one of the "Big Three" international film festivals alongside Cannes and Berlin. This year's festival will open on the 27th of next month. The invited films in the competition section will compete for the Golden Lion (Best Film Award) until the closing day on September 6.
In 2012, 'Pietà' became the first Korean film to win the Golden Lion.
