© Cailley Frank-Lehrer
Recent favorites like Serial, The Jinx and Making a Murderer have sparked a widespread obsession with mystery documentaries where the layers are slowly peeled back to reveal the truth. But ABDUCTION: THE MEGUMI YOKOTA STORY set a high bar back in 2006, so chances may be you haven’t seen it. The documentary is currently not available on streaming favorites like Netflix and SundanceNow Doc Club (I’ll cross my fingers for you that that changes soon). The gripping story of a 13-year Japanese girl kidnapped by North Koreans has enough twists and turns to leave even the most suspense-hungry viewers utterly satisfied.
During Tuesday night’s screening at Stranger than Fiction at the IFC theater, author of the book The Invitation-Only Zone: The True Story of North Korea’s Abduction Robert Boynton joined moderator Hugo Perez on stage. Boynton’s book explores the phenomena of Japanese and South Korean kidnappings by the North Korean regime. Some of the kidnappees were eventually allowed to return to Japan following large-scale social protests spearheaded by the victims’ families.
In one particularly arresting scene, viewers are taken into the room where a North Korean defector who participated in these kidnapping missions is being interviewed.
“It’s not that hard to kill someone,” he says matter-of-factly. “It’s like animal.”
His voice rises and he notes in a frighteningly-genuine way, “It’s easier.”