It was 18th Century Augustan poet Alexander Pope who famous stated ‘blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed’.

Clearly he was not a big film fan because many is the occasion I have thrilled in the wait for a new Star Wars movie, the next James Bond, the latest Christopher Nolan or some other trilogy closer or series peak. The anticipation for The Return of the King was frankly sublime and by the time Avengers: Endgame came out I was joyously beside myself. Sure, sometimes the film in question is not quite what you might hope (Die Another Day, Solo) but those days and weeks leading up to a release like that are genuine fun. Every day is Christmas Eve.

I’m also not a purveyor of the idea that high expectations always lead to a difficulty with critical appraisal. No matter how excited I’ve been on these occasions I’m always able to judge a movie on what it is, not what I’ve wanted it to be. 

Until now perhaps. 

I’m really not sure what I make of Park Chan-wook’s latest. The man is without a doubt one of my favourite directors; his films Stoker, The Handmaiden, Decision to Leave and of course Oldboy are all works of twisted genius. His handling of shot composition, storytelling, character and drama is absolutely masterful and he is the absolute king of the denouement. He is great at managing tone as well with several of his movies incorporating elements of humour without comprising the seriousness of the narrative. 

With No Other Choice though, which is still dark but more openly comedic, I’m not sure it totally works. Maybe it does, I’m saying I’m not sure. Maybe this time I can’t see it because I’d somehow expected something else. Maybe that Pope guy wasn’t so full of it after all. 

Parts of it are undeniably brilliant, I have no trouble seeing that. There is one incredible scene as the hero, a recently laid off factory supervisor who decides his only hope at securing the job he really wants is to permanently remove his opposition, is in a scrabble over a gun with one of his selected victims. This is both serious and funny in a way the Cohen brothers can only dream about. The progression this character makes from bungling assassin to meticulous killer is also very well handled. Then there are the supporting players, most notably his wife, who also add great value. 

More than ever before with Park’s work though this feels like a serious of slightly disjointed moments. The plot runs consistently throughout but some bits jar either narratively or emotionally. There is a beat with a local businessman being blackmailed that seems a bit contrived, and this itself ties up a brief side episode that feels rushed and underdeveloped not fitting in with the rest of the film. This time the ending is a bit loose as well and that is uncharacteristic. Park’s films are normally so neat but this one is a bit scrappy.

Part of this might be the source material. It’s not the first time Park Chan-wook has adapted a book; The Handmaiden is a version of Sarah Waters’ Fingersmith, and maybe he was attracted to something different here but I’m not sure it suited him. 

I’m not sure.

Others are raving about this film. The Time Out poster quote proclaims it as the director’s masterpiece but I know that’s not true. A lesser Park Chan-wook movie, if that’s what this is, is still better than most other films so you should definitely watch it but this time though it didn’t measure up to what I’d expected, or to be more precise I didn’t feel about it as I thought I would feel. As Robbie once sang ‘when my head speaks a language I don’t understand, I just wanna feel’.

You can’t argue with that.

Williams is the real poet.