Movietime in Manhattan: FILMMAKER N.C. HEIKIN’S CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED KIMJONGILIA
Kimjongilia is a haunting look at the reality inside the most secretive country in the world. Told from the perspectives of North Korean refugees who shine light on the atrocities taking place in their homeland, and juxtaposed with clips from North Korea's mass propaganda machine that has indoctrinated citizens to worship the North Korean leadership, Kimjongilia is a film that shocks, enlightens and stays with you. –Laura Ling, journalist, held captive in North Korea over five months in 2009
KIMJONGILIA, The Flower of Kim Jong Il (Lorber Films), is the first film to fully expose the humanitarian crisis of North Korea, examining the mass illusion possible under totalitarianism and the human rights abuses required to maintain that illusion. This documentary is eye-opening and certainly transports you from everyday life in Manhattan to a world that can be experienced when you are not American. It raises awareness constructively and will heighten your appreciation for the world in which we live here today in New York.
North Korea is governed by a totalitarian regime that has controlled all information entering and leaving the country for the sixty years since the conflict with South Korea. A cult of personality surrounds its two leaders: Kim Il-Sung (“Great Leader”), and his son, Kim Jong-Il (“Dear Leader”). For Kim Jong Il’s 46th birthday, a hybrid red begonia named kimjongilia was created, symbolizing wisdom, love, justice, and peace. The film draws its title from the rarefied flower and reveals the extraordinary stories told by survivors of North Korea’s vast prison camps, devastating famine, and every kind of oppression. Filmmaker N.C. Heikin provides a historical backdrop to North Korea’s situation in her deeply moving documentary that examines why defectors fled, gives accounts of their harrowing escapes, and reveals the dangers they face in China, hunted by both Chinese and North Korean police. The refugees, who were interviewed in South Korea, where they now live, come from every walk of life, from child concentration camp inmates to an elite concert pianist. Their stories, however, all speak to repression and the breaking of body-and-soul. In essence, these humble heroes are inspiring, for despite their unimaginable suffering, they continue to hold out hope for a better future. For further information on Kimjongilia, please visit www.kimjongiliathemovie.com, or the Facebook Fan page here. For film times and tickets, please visit www.cinemavillage.com.