Overview

• The darkly comic feature opened the 30th Busan International Film Festival, where Park addressed press before the gala screening.
• Adapted from Donald E. Westlake’s 1997 novel The Ax, the film explores job insecurity through a Korean lens with leads Lee Byung-hun and Son Ye-jin.
• Park said he added an AI‑automated factory sequence late in postproduction to reflect accelerating anxieties about automation and obsolescence.
• Calling the industry’s situation “enormously difficult,” Park urged audiences to return to theaters, a message echoed by the cast highlighting the film’s meticulous mise‑en‑scène.
• Following a Venice world premiere and an International People’s Choice Award at TIFF, the film is slated for South Korean theatrical release on Sept. 24.