The Lovers and the Despot

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."{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_lovers_and_the_despot/|title=The Lovers and the Despot (2016)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=5 November 2016}} On Metacritic, the film has a score of 65 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-lovers-and-the-despot|title=The Lovers and the Despot reviews|website=Metacritic|accessdate=5 November 2016}}

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."{{cite news|last1=Dargis|first1=Manohla|authorlink1=Manohla Dargis|title=Review: In 'The Lovers and the Despot,' a Harrowing Korean Ordeal|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/23/movies/the-lovers-and-the-despot-review.html|accessdate=3 November 2016|work=The New York Times|date=22 September 2016}}

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."{{cite news|last1=Hoffman|first1=Jordan |authorlink1=Jordan Hoffman|title=The Lovers and the Despot: study of Kim Jong-Il's cinephilia is hard to adore|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jan/24/the-lovers-and-the-despot-study-of-kim-jong-ils-cinephilia-is-hard-to-adore|accessdate=5 November 2016|work=The Guardian|date=24 January 2016}} 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."{{cite news|last1=Seitz|first1=Matt Zoller|authorlink1=Matt Zoller Seitz|title=The Lovers and the Despot|url=http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-lovers-and-the-despot-2016|accessdate=10 November 2016|work=RogerEbert.com|date=23 September 2016}}

As of 3 November 2016, the film has grossed $55,511 at the box office.{{cite web|title=The Lovers and the Despot|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=theloversandthedespot.htm|website=Box Office Mojo|accessdate=10 November 2016}}

• Abduction of Shin Sang-ok and Choi Eun-hee
• Pulgasari

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

• [http://www.magpictures.com/theloversandthedespot/ The Lovers and the Despot] at the distributor's website
• {{IMDb title|5278868}}
• {{YouTube|pXbWir8R7Bw|The Lovers and the Despot official trailer}}

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Category:2016 films

Category:2016 documentary films

Category:British documentary films

Category:2010s Korean-language films

Category:Films set in North Korea

Category:Films shot in South Korea

Category:Documentary films about North Korea

Category:Documentary films about film directors and producers

Category:2010s English-language films

Category:2010s British films

Category:English-language documentary films