Crossing the Line (2006 film)
{{short description|2006 documentary film by Daniel Gordon}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Crossing the Line
| image = Crossing the line region 1 dvd 2006-07.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Region 1 DVD
| director = Daniel Gordon
Nicholas Bonner
| writer = Daniel Gordon
| producer = Daniel Gordon
| narrator = Christian Slater
| cinematography = Nick Bennet
| editing = Peter Haddon
| music = Heather Fenoughty
| studio =
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|2006|10|16|Pusan International Film Festival|2007|8|10|USA|df=y}}
| runtime = 96 minutes
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
Korean
| budget =
| gross = $9,258 (USA)
}}
Crossing the Line (Korean: 푸른 눈의 평양시민, A Blue-Eyed Pyongyang Citizen in North Korea) is a 2006 British documentary film by Daniel Gordon and Nicholas Bonner. Gordon also wrote the script and produced the documentary.
Synopsis
The film is about a former U.S. Army soldier, James J. Dresnok, who defected to North Korea on 15 August 1962. The documentary shows Dresnok in present-day in Pyongyang (where he lived until his death), interacting with his North Korean family and friends. Dresnok speaks exclusively to the filmmakers about his childhood, his desertion, his life in North Korea, his fellow defectors, and his wife and children.{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Hyo-won |date=2007-08-23 |title='Crossing' Reveals Untold N. Korea Story |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffairs/northkorea/20070823/crossing-reveals-untold-n-korea-story |access-date=2025-06-21 |website=The Korea Times |language=en}} The documentary also features the court marshal trial of Charles Robert Jenkins and information about Dresnok's work in the 1978 North Korean film Unsung Heroes.{{Cite news |last=Seitz |first=Matt Zoller |date=2007-08-10 |title=A Defector’s Second Life, Embracing North Korea |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/10/movies/10line.html |access-date=2025-06-21 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} The film presents information about multiple American defectors to North Korea, but focuses primarily on Dresnok.{{Cite news |last=Spiller |first=Penny |date=2007-01-23 |title=Last US defector in North Korea |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6267645.stm |access-date=2025-06-21 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}
Production
Daniel Gordon began filming the documentary in 2004, featuring James Dresnok and Charles Robert Jenkins, the last two surviving American defectors in North Korea at the time. The film features the first ever Western interviews with Dresnok since his defection.{{Cite web |last=Abele |first=Robert |last2=Olsen |first2=Mark |last3=Goldstein |first3=Gary |date=2007-10-12 |title=Deserter explains his story |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-oct-12-et-capsules12-story.html |access-date=2025-06-21 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}
Cast
- James Joseph Dresnok
- Charles Robert Jenkins
- Christian Slater as the narrator
Reception
The film was well-received, and has a rating of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.{{cite web |title=Crossing the Line |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/crossing_the_line_2007 |accessdate=22 August 2017 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |language=en}} Writing for Slate, Ed Gonzales said that the documentary was interesting but compromised by the director's aesthetic choices. He additionally criticized the psychoanalysis of Dresnok provided by the film.{{Cite web |last=Gonzalez |first=Ed |date=2007-08-03 |title=Review: Crossing the Line |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/crossing-the-line/ |access-date=2025-06-21 |website=Slant Magazine |language=en-US}} Additionally, The New York Times criticized the film for its photography and editing.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=0473181|title=Crossing the Line}}
- [https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/crossing_the_line_2007 Crossing the Line] on Rotten Tomatoes
Category:British documentary films
Category:Documentary films about North Korea
Category:2006 documentary films
Category:2000s English-language films