This real-life espionage thriller tells the bizarre true story about a famous South Korean director and his actress wife who planned a daring escape after being kidnapped and forced to work as the personal filmmakers of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il.

For years, director Shin Sang-ok and actress Choi Eun-hee were the golden couple of South Korean cinema, linchpins of the movie business and happily married until their glamorous marriage collapsed. Then in the late 70s, both disappeared within months of each other only to surface again years later in the North Korea, charged with establishing a national cinema on behalf of the movie-mad Kim Jong-il, who subjected them to torture, imprisonment and surveillance. They soon realised that escape was only possible through filmmaking.

Collated from hours of fascinating archive clips, reenactments, audio recordings and startling clips from some incredible Korean productions (including a notorious remake of Godzilla), this is an utterly irresistible documentary in the mood and style of classic Cold War thrillers.

Special offer: Love South Korean cuisine? Enjoy 10% off food at TukTuck on St Stephens Street until 30 April with your South Korean season cinema tickets.

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