'Tunnels' - Vietnamese film of international stature

True to the introduction of the war film on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the country's reunification, 'Tunnels: Sun in the Dark' received many compliments.

Movie poster "Tunnel: Sun in the Dark"

Tunnels: Sun in the Dark begins showing nationwide from April 4.

Tunnels: Sun in the Dark is the latest work conceived over a decade by director Bui Thac Chuyen.

This film is also part of a series of activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and the reunification of the country. With Tunnels: The Sun in the Dark, for the first time, the war and daily life of guerrillas in the Cu Chi tunnels are recreated in a realistic and vivid way.

After the first screenings, audiences and experts expressed their emotion at watching such a realistic and engaging Vietnam War film by a Vietnamese director.

Proud historical film of Vietnamese cinema

The film Tunnels: The Sun in the Dark is set in 1967, when the Vietnam War was increasingly fierce. The 21-man guerrilla team led by Bay Theo (played by Thai Hoa) at Binh An Dong base became the number 1 search and destroy target of the US military. The guerrilla team was assigned to protect a new strategic intelligence group that had just taken refuge at the base at all costs. Radio communications with the intelligence group were detected and located by the US military, taking away the guerrilla team's only advantage of invisibility in the vast, complex and mysterious tunnel system.

In addition, the film also tells a story intertwined with the camaraderie, love and desire to live of the soldiers, but above all, the spirit of sacrifice for the Fatherland. For example, the love story between the guerrilla Ba Huong (played by Ho Thu Anh) and Tu Dap (played by Quang Tuan) is realistically recreated during the war.

The images in the movie are reproduced realistically.

Initially, the film's pace was quite leisurely, with images of the lives of those who stayed in the tunnels to perform their duties, from the modesty in their daily lives to the necessities, to the absence of love between couples. The film realistically recreated the loss of humanity, the scene of the guerrilla soldiers painfully watching their comrades being bombed, shot by the enemy and heroically sacrificed. The film is filled with historical material, like a slow-motion film, helping today's generation clearly visualize the lives and struggles of their ancestors in the fierce years of the past.

The investment in the setting also helps the film to be more realistic than ever. Director Bui Thac Chuyen said that this is the first time a privately produced film has mobilized many heavy weapons that were used by the US in the Vietnam War, such as: M-48 tanks, M113 armored vehicles, UH-1 helicopters... Thanks to that, the scenes of explosions, close combat, and sweeping landings of the US expeditionary force become as realistic as a documentary, bringing a vivid and haunting experience.

In addition, the film also made a strong impression on the acting, mostly in a static style. The actors not only practiced hard to have the right appearance, but also devoted themselves to the harsh filming conditions. The cast crawling from underwater to shore, entering narrow tunnels also helped recreate the difficult days of our ancestors, at the same time showing the spirit of dedication to art.

Director Bui Thac Chuyen conceived "Tunnels" for more than a decade.

Director Bui Thac Chuyen once shared that Tunnels: The Sun in the Dark is not only a film but also the spirit of those who want to make historical films, the spirit of those who sacrificed for this land. The positive energy of the people of Cu Chi, the guerrillas of Cu Chi is very strong.

The work aims to celebrate the 50th anniversary of national reunification, is a historical war film made from socialized budget, with the hope of being one of the works that suggests the potential of national historical films to be released in theaters.

While participating in the film, the cast experienced the arduous military training, the smoke and fire, and bombs of the film set. Many of them had never experienced war, so this was probably the most emotional and memorable film.

Actor Thai Hoa said: "The war film about Vietnam through the perspective of Vietnamese people and made with modern filmmaking technology, that is something new for me and for my colleagues in the profession. I also really like the humanistic perspective on war of Mr. Bui Thac Chuyen in the film, I hope the audience will also sympathize with that."

Experts talk about "Tunnel"

Director Huu Tuan affirmed that The Tunnels is a film that has almost reached the perfection of a war film. He confidently said that the film can completely become a candidate for the Oscar in the category of "Best Foreign Language Film" in 2026.

Talking about his feelings when watching the film, director Huu Tuan used the word "wonderful" to express. For him, the film's release at the time of the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification Day is completely appropriate. This further evokes the audience's patriotism and pride when enjoying a cinematic work.

"The film only has portraits of people in the war, and therefore the way they live and fight in the tunnels is the main character, with personality and soul. War is cruel, extremely stressful, even if it is just killing in a small underground space. But the life of the tunnels is still love, forgiveness, and protection. They fight like our daily livelihood in peacetime, that is why the tunnel guerrillas have won more than once. After decades, they are the final winners against the enemies "big ships, big guns, very good fighters", he said.

The film was highly appreciated by experts.

Director Huu Tuan believes that historical films are always considered to be selective in terms of audience, which is completely wrong. He affirms that this is a genre that many directors desire and wish to make, however, the production cost is very high.

"With Tunnels, although only filmed in a studio, the investment level of the film was up to 55 billion VND. To have more historical films, I think there needs to be enthusiasm and reason from investors. First of all, state management agencies and the Ministry of National Defense must be ready to coordinate with these types of films. In addition, policies are also needed to minimize risks for private producers if we want to encourage them to make historical films," he expressed.

The male director of the film For June also commented that the film Tunnels deserves to have a high revenue of up to several hundred billion VND.

On his personal page, film critic Le Hong Lam also gave countless compliments to Tunnels , especially the fact that the film has the stature of an "international" work. The dedication of the cast and the rawness of war clearly reflected in the film are what made a strong impression on Le Hong Lam. He also affirmed that Tunnels is the best film of director Bui Thac Chuyen.

"The cast in the film really put in the work and although there was no outstanding role, there was no obscure character either. Singer Cao Minh did not appear much but had many impressive scenes. Thai Hoa, Quang Tuan and Ho Thu Anh also had moments to shine on screen because of their dedication to their roles," Le Hong Lam wrote.

Director Ly Minh Thang commented: "The tunnel guerrillas were all ordinary people - in adversity they became extraordinary. Even in a dangerous direct confrontation scene, I still saw a small girl but a hundred times stronger than a tall, battle-hardened Western soldier. The film's plot is very suspenseful, dramatic, with many emotional and proud scenes."

Director Phan Gia Nhat Linh said it had been a long time since he had seen such a "good" Vietnamese film. "Magnificent. Touching. And makes me proud of the country's history. Khoai Uncle Sau and his beautiful moments are probably the most touching scenes of the film for me," he wrote.

With director Charlie Nguyen, he affirmed "it's been a long time since I've had such a great cinematic experience. It deserves to be released worldwide, not just domestically."

TH (according to VTC News)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/dia-dao-phim-viet-co-tam-voc-quoc-te-408592.html