A series of films released in theaters have earned hundreds of billions of VND in revenue in a short time, creating fevers from the beginning of 2025 until now, bringing remarkable prosperity to Vietnamese cinema.
According to statistics, in the first 6 months of 2025, Vietnamese film revenue exceeded 1,500 billion VND, an impressive figure showing strong growth.
Sharing with VTC News, film critic Nguyen Le said that the revenue explosion of Vietnamese cinema has many factors, but we still have many weaknesses that need to be overcome.
"Tunnel" received many compliments from experts.
- In the first half of 2025, Vietnamese cinema witnessed many films reaching hundreds of billions in revenue. In your opinion, what are the important factors driving this growth?
In my opinion, the first reason is the idea. The films are showing a willingness to delve deeper into Vietnamese culture, whether it is modern or ancient, but the more ancient the more attractive.
The second reason is that both filmmakers and moviegoers realize that the world is paying more attention to Vietnamese cinema than before. This is a somewhat stronger motivation to create finished products that help the domestic box office become more fertile.
In addition, audiences are looking for something new, and the first half of the year had many new things for audiences to pay attention to (less remakes, more Vietnamese). There are a few cases that are recommended to be taken as a standard. A typical example is Tunnels: Sun in the Dark - a war film, promoting national spirit and privately invested.
- Despite high box office revenue, many films are still rated poorly for their scripts. Do you think filmmakers today understand audience tastes better, or are they just lucky to be on trend?
I think it's both. Until now, because many scripts still use popular topics (mostly online and from young people) as the basis, the closeness of the film to the audience is obvious.
Whether that closeness creates goodwill to make success or not depends on the crew asking themselves. For example, "Do we really understand that trend?", "When that trend cools down, will the film have its own life, will it continue to live?".
- Some people say that many of today's hundred-billion-dollar films are just "lucky", and do not reflect a sustainable film industry. What do you think?
Our film industry has the advantage of being able to identify “big movie seasons” such as Tet, summer or September 2. This means that filmmakers have clear periods to target with the resources they have.
However, if we look at sustainability on a more general level, I think we still have many areas that can be reinforced and refined to create attraction. To get audiences to buy tickets based on the quality of the film rather than on external factors such as famous actors, drama... is still not completely achieved.
Tran Thanh and Ly Hai's film is considered to be a step down from last year.
- So, in your opinion, what are the weaknesses of Vietnamese cinema?
In my opinion, the biggest weakness is that most Vietnamese films still do not have an international mindset.
The storytelling of Vietnamese films is still heavily localized, requiring audiences to have a prior understanding of Vietnamese culture before they can access it. This creates an invisible pressure, making it difficult for international viewers to grasp or lose interest.
Journalist and film critic Nguyen Le.
Besides, many Vietnamese films rely too much on dialogue to convey content and messages, making the work more auditory instead of balancing images and sounds, while cinema is inherently a combination of both of these elements.
Another problem is that the English subtitling of films has not been given much attention. Some people even consider this a “troublesome” task. For the international market, subtitling is the first, or even the only, door for them to understand the film.
In addition, when Vietnamese films are released abroad, promotion is often aimed only at the Vietnamese community. Meanwhile, international professionals such as critics and film journalists have difficulty accessing film crews or finding interpreters. This makes them lack the motivation to write articles or promote Vietnamese films.
Therefore, Vietnamese films appear at many international events, but still leave little impression. The films are shown, then quietly return to digital platforms without really creating a buzz.
- When will Vietnamese cinema be able to both achieve high revenue and create a lasting artistic mark of international stature?
In my opinion, it is important to upgrade the cinematic quality of storytelling. How can the audience understand and feel the content only through images, rather than relying entirely on dialogue? The success of Parasite (South Korea) is a clear demonstration of a very Korean story, but the storytelling is universal enough for international audiences to access, analyze and empathize.
I also hope that in the near future, Vietnamese films will receive financial and spiritual support if they intend to be shown abroad.
In addition, there should be more re-screenings of classic works and events to look back at the flow of Vietnamese cinema at modern theaters. These films should also have English subtitles to serve the purpose of cultural exchange, bringing Vietnamese cinema closer to international audiences.
"Detective Kien" is the highlight of the first half of 2025.
I once went to the National Film Institute of Japan on the weekend and saw a lot of people watching old movies. Every movie had English subtitles. Even though I didn’t know Japanese, I could still understand the content and feel the spirit in each frame and sound. It is a useful activity for anyone who loves cinema, whether in or out of the industry, domestic or international.
- Thanks for sharing!
Nguyen Le is a journalist and film critic. He has worked as a reporter and film critic in the US for 10 years and has collaborated with international newspapers and film review sites such as SlashFilm, Rotten Tomatoes, and Fangoria.
He is also a member of film associations such as Critics Choice Association (CCA), International Cinephile Society (ICS), and is currently the Vietnamese representative for the International Federation of Cinema Journalists (FIPRESCI).
Ngoc Thanh - Vtcnews.vn
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/diem-yeu-cua-dien-anh-viet-ar950867.html
Comment (0)