On the afternoon of July 23, the film crew of "Red Rain" held a film launch event in Hanoi . After "The Scent of Burning Grass," this is the second film about the "fiery summer" of Quang Tri in 1972.
The crew including writer-scriptwriter Chu Lai, director-Colonel Dang Thai Huyen, actors and producers shared many behind-the-scenes stories.
Along with the film crew were living witnesses who fought in Quang Tri 53 years ago, contributing to recreating the atmosphere of one of the most fierce battles in Vietnamese history, likened to a "human meat grinder."
The fallen soldier only had time to say "Mom, sister"
At the launch, writer Chu Lai said "Red Rain" is an exception in his writing career.
The writer said that he often writes from short stories to novels, from novels to films, then from films to reformed operas, plays… but “Red Rain” was written as a movie script in 2010 - 6 years before the novel of the same name was published. The reason is because the event of 81 days and nights is so large.
“At the front at that time, the sun was as hot as a ‘desert war.’ The soldiers’ clothes were torn to shreds and they were covered in lice. When it rained, water flooded into the trenches. Some martyrs died, their bodies burned black and red from the sun above, and soaked in water below, as white and limp as boiled fish.
Writer Chu Lai (holding the mic) with production director-Deputy Director of People's Army Cinema Kieu Thanh Thuy (left), director-Colonel Dang Thai Huyen (right) and actors. (Photo: Anh Vu/Vietnam+)
380 thousand tons of bombs were dropped. Some soldiers died up to 7 times a day. Too many people died to be carried across the river and had to be buried on the spot, continuing to endure the bombardment. Every time a bomb fell, their bodies flew into the air, until in the end only one body was left. No matter how you write, you can never fully describe the spirit of Quang Tri. No matter how powerful this film is, it is still just a slice of the story,” the writer said.
The battle of Quang Tri citadel in 1972 was famous for its fierce fighting day and night and high intensity firepower.
Present at the event, veteran Dao Van Phe – former soldier of Battalion K3 Quang Tri (code name Tam Dao) – could not hold back his tears when watching some film excerpts.
“Our comrades sacrificed a lot. We had just sat together when the enemy came and we volunteered, knowing that sooner or later we would also sacrifice ourselves.
Veteran of Battalion K3 Quang Tri Dao Van Phe. (Photo: Anh Vu/Vietnam+)
Today, watching these scenes, I found them quite close to the battlefield situation. We are very proud to be young men who directly defended the citadel. Being alive is a great happiness. My brothers who went to war were all only eighteen or twenty years old, when they sacrificed, they did not know what love was and never knew the atmosphere of April 30, the day we hugged each other and shouted, 'Mom, we are alive.' The country has today because of the blood that was shed."
Director, Colonel Dang Thai Huyen also cried because of this detail when he first read the script in 2012. “Sitting in the office reading the script for the first time, my tears could not stop falling. The detail that made me cry the most when reading the script as well as on set was the scene where the soldiers crossed the river. Under enemy artillery fire, they sacrificed themselves and could only call out, 'Mom, sister.'”
Burn incense for the deceased
Veteran Nguyen Van Hoi - author of "Nguyen Van Hoi's Diary: From Khe Sanh to Quang Tri Citadel" was also present at the film premiere.
He was also a soldier of Battalion K3, one of the 7 people who promised Commander Le Trong Tan: "As long as K3 Tam Dao remains, Quang Tri ancient citadel remains."
“Just mentioning it makes me cry,” Mr. Hoi said emotionally. “This film is not only for the young but also for the adult generation. More than 1 million martyrs died in the war to protect the Fatherland. The road to today is not bread and roses, but the blood and bones of soldiers.”
Veteran Nguyen Van Hoi shares after the film premiere. (Photo: Minh Anh/Vietnam+)
In the film, part of the story of K3 Tam Dao is recreated through Squad 1, the fictional K3 Tam Son Battalion. Squad 1 includes the central characters played by Do Nhat Hoang (film Once Upon a Time There Was a Love Story ), Lam Thanh Nha, Nguyen Hung ( Wooden Fish )...
Do Nhat Hoang shared that although “Red Rain” is only his second film, it is definitely the biggest project of his career, saying, “We hope that the work will still be mentioned 30 or 40 years later.”
Producer Nguyen Tri Vien shared that the original plan was to film for 13 weeks, but due to lack of funds, it was reduced to 10 weeks and finally only 53 days of filming.
The 50-hectare film set of "Red Rain." (Photo: Provided by the film crew)
He said the entire crew had a hard time filming during the rainy season in Quang Tri. "There was a day when we went to set at 5pm and it rained until 10pm. If we waited any longer, we didn't know if the rain would stop. More than a month of continuous rain had worn down the crew's will, but we still encouraged each other every day to move forward step by step and complete the film on schedule."
Major General Nguyen Xuan Thuy - Deputy Director of the Department of Propaganda, General Department of Politics , Vietnam People's Army - said "Red Rain" is not only a work of art, but also a stick of incense and a deep gratitude to the soldiers who heroically sacrificed during 81 days and nights of fire, along with the soldiers who fell to protect the Fatherland.
The 1972 victory in Quang Tri was an important step forward in many ways, leading to the Paris Agreement in January 1973 on ending the war and restoring peace in Vietnam. In "Red Rain" there will also be a segment recreating this historical event.
Director, Colonel Dang Thai Huyen confirmed to reporters of VietnamPlus Newspaper that there will be actors recreating talented Vietnamese diplomats, such as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam Nguyen Thi Binh, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam Nguyen Duy Trinh and Special Advisor Le Duc Tho, however, there has been no specific disclosure of who these actors are.
"Red Rain" will be officially released from August 22 on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day September 2.
(Vietnam+)
Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/mua-do-nha-van-chu-lai-pha-le-dao-dien-thai-huyen-khoc-khi-doc-kich-ban-post1051377.vnp
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