The Propaganda Game

The documentary goes into North Korea. Permission to film is obtained through an intermediary: Alejandro Cao de Benós is a Spanish citizen holding a post in an official institution of the country; he guides foreigners and speaks as the face of the state. The crew travels with him; schools, factories, the metro and ceremonial sites are shown. At the same time the film draws on outside sources: defectors, researchers and journalists speak. The narrative sets the two accounts side by side. Álvaro Longoria directs. The documentary dates from 2015. The real question it builds is not what is true but how each piece of information is produced; the narrative questions both the state's account and the account against it. That approach was criticised; some commentators said the film upset the balance by presenting the two sides as equal. Its most concrete side is the footage; the difference between what could be filmed and what could not is directly visible. Cao de Benós stands at the centre and the narrative treats his position as a question too. The permission process and the restrictions are described plainly in the film. Its limit is access; the crew can only go where it is shown, and the narrative accepts that. Who it is for: viewers who like political documentary and criticism of media. Who it is not for: there is little new information, the structure is contested, and it asks for knowledge of the subject.