Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist

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2026

1h 37m

Crime

Documentary

Nature

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5 Reviews

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

The life and death of Cecil, Africa’s biggest lion, whose killing by a wealthy American dentist and hunter in 2015 went viral, causing global outrage.

Ben Dowell

The Times (UK)

Feb 25

4/5

The opening scenes, which charted the founding of the Hwange National Park where Cecil was shot, were mesmerising.

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Anita Singh

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Feb 24

4/5

Feature-length documentary Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist...doesn’t quibble with the portrayal of Palmer as a villain. But it is also an intelligent, nuanced take on why the story is more complex than it first appeared.

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Pat Stacey

Irish Independent

Feb 24

5/5

Safari tourists are sold an illusion of the real Africa, while trophy hunting feeds the macho delusions of the Palmers of this world, who imagine they’re going head-to-head with wild beasts.

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Christopher Stevens

Daily Mail (UK)

Feb 24

4/5

A two-hour film shot with an aching sense of Africa's wild beauty.

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Claudia Connell

Daily Mail (UK)

Feb 24

5/5

Directed by Arthur Cary, the two-hour programme is utterly captivating and heartbreaking as it delves into the build-up to Cecil’s slaying and the fallout that followed.

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Arthur Cary

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Synopsis

The life and death of Cecil, Africa’s biggest lion, whose killing by a wealthy American dentist and hunter in 2015 went viral, causing global outrage.

Director: Arthur Cary
Genre: Crime, Documentary, Nature
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 37m

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Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist

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Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist

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