Beyond Utopia
| Release Date: October 23, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
85
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 16 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The PlaylistLena WilsonJan 27, 2023
This is a staggering achievement, the sort of nonfiction project that takes unfathomable guts and skill. Read full review
91
The Film StageMichael FrankNov 13, 2023
The urgency in Beyond Utopia cannot ever be understated. The consequences of the risks taken by these people––both the defectors and Pastor Kim––cannot be undervalued. Each risks everything in this journey. Read full review
91
Original-CinChris KnightNov 2, 2023
Such tales never get stale, and the ones in Beyond Utopia are almost beyond belief. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleNov 3, 2023
Documentaries with life-or-death stakes, not to mention wider resonance in our increasingly unsettled geopolitical world, don’t get much more nerve-racking or heartbreaking than “Beyond Utopia.” At the same time, the film is inspiring about the lengths people will go to for a better life. Read full review
90
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergNov 2, 2023
The engrossing, often tense proceedings are slightly marred by a pushy score. All the same, being able to experience the escape alongside these subjects greatly distinguishes this documentary. Read full review
90
Screen DailyFionnuala HalliganJan 27, 2023
This is a film you haven’t seen before from a place you’ll never visit, a first-class example of bravery and reportage melding into an filmed testament. It’s not just that it’s nailbiting. The unease lingers long after viewing, though, for every person associated with it. Read full review
90
SlashfilmBen PearsonJan 27, 2023
A powerful and important look behind the curtain, Beyond Utopia is one hell of a cinematic nail-biter and a stark reminder of the human rights violations being committed every day in 2023. Read full review
90
VarietyOwen GleibermanJan 27, 2023
What we’ve forgotten about, for too long, is the North Korean people. For years, their misery has existed under a blackout. Beyond Utopia looks behind the wall and shines a light. Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliFeb 10, 2025
A mixture of documentary and thriller, this is a compelling two-hour production. Read full review
88
Washington PostMark JenkinsNov 1, 2023
Beyond Utopia contains background material on the history, culture and travails of North Korea that’s necessary but clunkily presented. The filmmakers also take an irksome turn toward the predictable during some of the travel sequences, adding conventional piano-and-strings movie music. But the rest of the movie is fresh and compelling. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawOct 26, 2023
It’s an outstanding documentary. Read full review
80
Time OutPhil de SemlyenOct 18, 2023
The level of brainwashing, privation and systemic abuse makes for an enraging, confronting watch, but it’s refreshingly focused on the people, rather than geopolitics. Just like for its two fleeing families, Beyond Utopia is an emotional journey. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comGlenn KennyNov 2, 2023
Directed by Madeleine Gavin, Beyond Utopia is a bracing and frequently jaw-dropping look at, first and foremost, the discontented people of North Korea who attempt defections doggedly. It’s a more difficult trip than you’d probably imagine. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineDerek SmithOct 30, 2023
The searing images of various gulags, public executions, and private beatings will not be easily forgotten. Read full review
75
IndieWireChristian ZilkoJan 27, 2023
The film never fully commits to being a pure North Korean escape documentary, and its weakest moments come when it tries to be a general interest film about North Korea that happens to feature escape footage. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterDaniel FienbergJan 27, 2023
An astonishing real-life geopolitical thriller with a very run-of-the-mill historical explainer grafted to it like a remora, Madeleine Gavin’s documentary Beyond Utopia is so packed with high-stakes tension and nail-biting set-pieces that it’s fairly easy, and probably even ideal, to ignore its clunky structuring and expositional choices. Read full review
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