Tunnels - Sun in the Dark: An Epic Song That Touches the Audience's Heart

Tunnels: Sun in the Dark became the most popular Vietnamese war-themed film at the theater.

A work that filmmaker Bui Thac Chuyen has been nurturing and working on for over a decade, Tunnels recreates the war with a close, humane perspective on ordinary people. Individuals who, out of patriotism, became guerrilla soldiers who hid, trained and fought in cramped, dark tunnels to contribute to bringing peace to their homeland.

Indomitable people, heroic land

Although it is a historical and war-themed film, Tunnels: The Sun in the Dark is not a dry, illustrative film that “defaults” to glorify heroism or the glory of victory. The film also does not try to cover it with tragic colors to make the audience cry, but rather lets the characters and story unfold realistically in the context of war.

The film recreates the image of a small tunnel section consisting of 3 floors with many winding underground passages, representing the actual Cu Chi tunnels during the war with a total length of 250km. The tree roots weaving through the tunnels represent not only the survival instinct of nature but also the strong will of the local people. There are 21 guerrillas here, mostly young boys and girls, led by Bay Theo.

The mission of Bay Theo's group was to protect equipment, medical supplies and maintain communication lines for the revolution. They accepted Tu Dap - a skinny but intelligent guy who knew how to dismantle bombs to get explosives to make anti-tank weapons. They had Ba Huong - a strong, brave female guerrilla who developed a beautiful love for Tu Dap during hardship. They welcomed Uncle Sau - a cadre who was ready to sacrifice himself heroically and indomitably.

Hot scenes during wartime
The tunnels feature two controversial “sensitive hot scenes” in the film, especially the hot scene at the end of the film between the two characters Ba Huong and Tu Dap (filmed both boldly and delicately, with high artistic value). Director Bui Thac Chuyen explained: “Human instinct is always present in any situation. I want to highlight the character’s desire to live, love, and also the desire to be human.”
The two actors Ho Thu Anh and Quang Tuan, with their roles as Ba Huong and Tu Dap, fought together and fell in love, winning the hearts of the audience. Ho Thu Anh shared her feelings: “The darkness cannot obscure the indomitable fighting spirit of the soldiers.” Quang Tuan said that playing the role of Tu Dap “is a privilege in his acting career.”

Love, humanity in the midst of bullets

Amidst the fierce bombardment and bullets, the guerrillas living in the tunnels still had moments of daily life such as: watching movies, singing songs or sharing a piece of rice or fish in hasty meals under oil lamps. When holding guns, they fought and sacrificed heroically against the enemy with “big ships and big guns”, who were many times stronger and more numerous.

Thai Hoa (as Bay Theo) fights in the tunnels.

Tunnels: Sun in the Dark does not focus on honoring a specific character but conveys a message about collective spirit, love and humanity in wartime. Small, anonymous, ordinary people sacrificed to protect their comrades, protect every inch of land and blade of grass of their homeland and the most sacred things.

The film reminds us how brave and courageous our ancestors were to regain national independence and unify our country. After all, people who yearn for love deserve to live in happiness, or they have passed on that priceless gift to the next generation.

The war has gone far away, now, many young people who grew up in peace, united to go to the movies can deeply understand that to have the peaceful sky like today, it is because we are living and continuing the best part that the small guerrillas in the tunnels sacrificed themselves in the past.

In other words, in the darkness of the past, the sun has shone brightly on the portraits of ordinary people with aspirations for peace, for the rise of a nation with a resilient tradition.

Khanh Kien

The song Sun in the Dark surges with pride

The song "The Sun in the Dark" (music: Hua Kim Tuyen, NTB; lyrics by Hua Kim Tuyen and director Bui Thac Chuyen) was released and received much love from the public with its melody that is both heroic and tragic, yet calm and poignant.

Tunnel actors interact with the audience in the theater.

The song's content recreates the fierce wartime context and the brave struggle of the people/guerrillas in the Cu Chi tunnels. The Southern folk melody is the highlight, helping the song to convey a strong message, echoing pride: "Even though bombs and bullets fall shamefully, the sun stands tall in the darkness."

The combination of veteran singer, Meritorious Artist Cao Minh, and the clear voice of young singer Diem Hang Lamoon (who also played the role of Ut Kho in the film Tunnels: Sun in the Dark) shows a meaningful generational continuity through the song. Diem Hang said: “Perhaps the most wonderful thing for our young generation in general and young artists in particular is the luck of having the opportunity to experience and recreate the heroic period of the previous generation in works of art.”

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/dong-nai-cuoi-tuan/202504/dia-dao-mat-troi-trong-bong-toi-trang-ca-nuc-long-khan-gia-0470a0b/