Documentary on the Assassination of Kim Jong-nam Unveiled at Sundance Film Festival

On February 13, 2017, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia, Indonesian Siti Aisyah (right) and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong (left) were arrested by local authorities on charges of killing Kim Jong-nam by applying the chemical weapon VX nerve agent to his face. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] A documentary film dealing with the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, will be screened at the 36th Sundance Film Festival.

On the 26th (local time), the American entertainment media 'The Hollywood Reporter' reported that the documentary "Assassins" will have its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival that day.

The documentary, directed by Ryan White, who won the American Documentary Directing Award, tells the story of Kim Jong-nam, who died from the VX nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia on February 13, 2017, and the subsequent events.

At the time, Malaysian police arrested Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, who smeared poison on Kim Jong-nam's face, but the perpetrators who provided and instructed the administration of the nerve agent had all fled abroad.

The filming crew conducted in-depth coverage of Siti and Huong's trials locally, raising the possibility that the two were deceived by North Koreans claiming they were filming a hidden camera for reality TV and were used for the assassination.

However, the Malaysian prosecution argued that these two were not innocent victims but trained assassins.

On the other hand, the filming crew raised suspicions that the prosecution, having missed the actual perpetrators, exaggerated the roles of Siti and Huong to punish them and thereby restore their own prestige.

Eventually, it is known that Siti and Huong were able to be released in March and May of last year, respectively, through long-term diplomatic lobbying led by the Indonesian and Vietnamese governments, following the withdrawal of charges.

The running time of the documentary film is 104 minutes, and it will be screened on the 28th, the 30th, and the 1st of next month at the Sundance Film Festival.