''Beyond Utopia'' is a 2023 American documentary film directed by Madeleine Gavin. The film debuted at the

2023 Sundance Film Festival The 2023 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to 29, 2023. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 7, 2022. Films U.S. Dramatic Competition * ''The Accidental Getaway Driver'', directed by Sing J. Lee * ...

. The documentary centers around Pastor Seungeun Kim, a South Korean human rights activist and director of the Caleb Mission, which has rescued over 1,000 North Korean defectors since 2000.

Release

''Beyond Utopia'' debuted at the

on January 21, 2023. The film was screened at the

28th Busan International Film Festival 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...

in the "Documentary Showcase" section on October 8, 2023. In the United States Roadside Attractions and Fathom Events acquired distribution rights and released the film on a two-day screening on October 23, and October 24, 2023. Independent Lens acquired broadcast television rights to the film, setting a January 9, 2024, broadcast.

Reception

Writing for ''

/Film ''/Film'', also spelled ''Slashfilm'', is a blog that covers movie news, reviews, interviews, and trailers. It was founded by Peter Sciretta in August 2005. Podcasts Six podcasts have run on the site. ''The /Filmcast'', hosted by David Chen, De ...

'', Ben Pearson awarded the film a score of 9 out of 10 and found the handheld footage to be "nothing short of extraordinary." '' Variety''s

Owen Gleiberman Owen Gleiberman (born February 24, 1959) is an American film critic who has been chief film critic for ''Variety'' magazine since May 2016, a title he shares with . Previously, Gleiberman wrote for ''Entertainment Weekly'' from 1990 until 2014. ...

praised the film for showing audiences the "forgotten" tragedy of North Korea through its use of impressive first-hand camerawork. In a more mixed review, Daniel Fienberg, writing for '' The Hollywood Reporter'', found the film to have an tension-filled and emotional story while following the defecting families, but derided the inclusion of a "dry and lifeless" history lesson on North Korea that didn't fit alongside the compelling first-hand accounts.

Accolades

References

External links

* * {{Sundance Audience Award Documentary 2023 documentary films 2023 films American documentary films Documentary films about North Korea Documentary films about refugees Films about North Korean defectors