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The Lovers and the Despot is a 2016 British documentary film written and directed by Robert Cannan and Ross Adam, about the 1978 abduction of South Korean actress Choi Eun-hee, and film director Shin Sang-ok, by Kim Jong-il of North Korea. It was pitched at Sheffield Doc/Fest's 2014 MeetMarket.

Release

Critical response

The Lovers and the Despot has received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 77%, based on 57 reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The site's consensus states: "The Lovers and the Despot offers a compelling—albeit by no means comprehensive—look at one of the more bizarrely stranger-than-fiction episodes in cinematic history."[1] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 65 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[2]

Writing for The New York Times, Manohla Dargis stated that "Despite its flaws and will to kitsch, The Lovers and the Despot has enough enigmas and chills to merit a look, even if some of its spookier moments involve cinephilia rather than the usual weapons of mass destruction."[3]

In Jordan Hoffman's review for The Guardian, he wrote that "there’s an incredible story somewhere in this tale [...], but this documentary buries it by way of over-measured effects and chronic pussy-footing."[4] In a review for RogerEbert.com, Matt Zoller Seitz called it a "frustrating missed opportunity", saying it "takes a fascinating story about filmmaking, politics, kidnapping and propaganda and gives us almost no insight into the work of its two main characters."[5]

Box office

As of 3 November 2016, the film has grossed $55,511 at the box office.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Lovers and the Despot (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  2. ^ "The Lovers and the Despot reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  3. ^ Dargis, Manohla (22 September 2016). "Review: In 'The Lovers and the Despot,' a Harrowing Korean Ordeal". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  4. ^ Hoffman, Jordan (24 January 2016). "The Lovers and the Despot: study of Kim Jong-Il's cinephilia is hard to adore". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  5. ^ Seitz, Matt Zoller (23 September 2016). "The Lovers and the Despot". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  6. ^ "The Lovers and the Despot". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 10 November 2016.

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