A critically acclaimed Canadian documentary about one of the North Korean abductees hit screens across Japan Saturday.</PARAGRAPH> <PHOTO> <TABLE WIDTH='250' ALIGN='RIGHT' BORDER='0'> <TR> <TD><IMG ALT='News photo' BORDER='0' SRC='../images/photos2006/nn20061126a3a.jpg' WIDTH='250' HEIGHT='169'/></TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><FONT SIZE='1'><B> Shigeru Yokota –

and his wife, Sakie, look at messages posted Saturday in a theater in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, by viewers of a Canadian documentary about their daughter, Megumi, who was abducted by North Korea in 1977. KYODO PHOTO

"Abduction: The Megumi Yokota Story" was released in 37 theaters in Tokyo and 17 other prefectures, including Hokkaido, Kanagawa, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka. It will be shown in 20 other prefectures by mid-February.

Directed by journalists Chris Sheridan and his wife, Patty Kim, the film details what Yokota's parents, Shigeru and Sakie, have been through since their 13-year-old daughter was abducted in 1977 and their struggle to enlist government help in rescuing her and other abductees.

The parents made speeches Saturday morning at a sold-out cinema in Tokyo's Shibuya area.

The full theater "represents the keen interest toward the abduction issue. I feel grateful and encouraged. I believe this movie will be a major help to solve the issue," Shigeru Yokota, 74, said.

Sakie Yokota, 70, said, "I hope you will continue supporting us until the issue is resolved completely."

Among its honors, the 85-minute film was named best documentary at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival and won the audience award at the Slamdance Film Festival in Utah earlier this year.

North Korea admitted to abducting Yokota and 12 other Japanese in the late 1970s and early 1980s.