‘The Lovers and the Despot’ is a Gripping True Story of Movie Stars, Secret Spies and Kim Jong-il

The Lovers and the Despot is the kind of documentary that tends to be praised for being “like a spy thriller.” As in its story plays out like one in a fiction film. Maybe this doc will receive that comparison from critics, too. But it’s not like anything. It is a spy thriller. Albeit one that doesn’t focus on the spies. And it doesn’t play like a script…