Vietnamese historical films have not yet become prominent due to many obstacles.

Difficulties piled up

Director Luong Dinh Dung (who directed the films Cha cong con, 578: The madman's bullet ...) has just announced that he will start working on a new film project called Anh hung . The film, written by Le Ngoc Minh, is set in 15th century Vietnam and is expected to be released in late 2024. The film will recreate the story of King Le Thanh Tong re-opening the Le Chi Vien case, clearing the Nguyen Trai family of the crime of killing the king. However, director Luong Dinh Dung said that the film will not focus on the Le Chi Vien massacre in 1442, but will take place in 1464 with the journey to "clear the name" of King Le Thanh Tong.

Director Luong Dinh Dung makes a film about cultural celebrity Nguyen Trai

The film crew is currently in the casting stage, making costumes, props... under the advice of historical research experts. Luong Dinh Dung shared that he is very honored to be able to make a movie about the hero Nguyen Trai, although he knows that making a historical film is extremely difficult in all aspects such as: budget, setting, portraits of the characters Nguyen Trai, Le Thanh Tong, then costumes, special effects...

Previously, when announcing the film Quynh Hoa Nhat Da about the life of Queen Mother Duong Van Nga during the Dinh - Tien Le period in September 2020, director Ly Minh Thang was criticized by the online community for the inaccuracies in the appearance and costumes of the character Duong Van Nga played by Thanh Hang. After that, the film crew spoke up "to listen and make corrections before the film starts filming in 2021". However, up to now, Quynh Hoa Nhat Da is still "inactive". Responding to Thanh Nien reporters on the afternoon of June 24, director Ly Minh Thang said: "Due to the Covid-19 pandemic lasting more than 2 years, the project's progress has also been affected. Since then, the pre-production part, contacting the crew to prepare for costumes, hair, settings, etc., has cost the film crew more than 10 billion VND. We need to prepare more capital to make a truly meticulous and quality film. Currently, with the chaotic economic and film situation in Vietnam, it is really difficult to find investors. But we will still try our best to complete the project and not abandon it. It is expected to start filming at the end of 2024." He also shared: "Only those who start making historical films know how difficult it is. Because the conditions, facilities, and all the stages of making historical films in Vietnam are not yet available, everything has to be researched and explored from the beginning, so the investment is very expensive. Even the special effects and post-production, if the film is modern, have a pre-existing framework, but historical and legendary films have to be completely redrawn. When the film is released, it is still scrutinized and analyzed to see if it is historically accurate, so producers and directors are very worried."

Thanh Hang with the image of Queen Mother Duong Van Nga in the movie Quynh Hoa Nhat Da

When the reporter asked producer - actress Truong Ngoc Anh about why the legendary film about the life of Hai Ba Trung named Trung Vuong (English title: She-Kings) announced the project since October 2019 until now there has been no further movement, she said: " Trung Vuong is still on the way to carry out everything, not canceled and will be produced by the original partner Janet Ngo, I am just a supporter. Currently, director Phillip Noyce (who made the film The Quiet American ) is working closely with Janet Ngo for this project in editing the script and many other stages, and he may be the director or co-producer of the film. This film's budget cannot be less than several tens of millions of USD, so everything is being calculated more carefully, both in terms of international distribution, and the story and image of the film itself, so that it is commercial but still ensures Vietnamese cultural identity".

To make Vietnamese historical and legendary films more prosperous and memorable

In December 2022, Legend of King Dinh about the hero of the flagpole Dinh Bo Linh (directed by Anthony Vo) - a rare historical film released at the Vietnamese box office in recent years - only earned more than 42 million VND after 1 week of showing in theaters. The film was pointed out by the audience for a series of flaws and shortcomings in terms of image and content; and the director also admitted that there were many unfinished points due to limited production budget. Most of the audience shared that they were willing to support the country's historical film if it was created by a dedicated and visionary filmmaking team; but would "say no" to low-quality, unscrupulous works.

The original poster of the movie about the Trung Sisters was called Trung Vuong.

Currently, it is known that there are some historical films that have been finished filming or are in progress, such as: a film about cultural celebrity Doan Thi Diem, a film about the hero Tay Son by director Ba Cuong's team, and a film about Queen Nam Phuong by V Pictures. Talking about how to make Vietnamese historical and legendary films flourish and have a better impression, director Ly Minh Thang expressed: "If we want to achieve better quality, we must go through quantity first. There must be many people working together so that every stage can be gradually built into a market, so that the cost will be low. At the same time, the audience needs to have a more impartial and open view of Vietnamese historical films in criticizing and evaluating, because Vietnamese history has many periods that lack accurate documents and even when there are documents, the film will still have many perspectives from the creativity of the filmmakers. Therefore, after calculating, we chose the genre for the film Quynh Hoa Nhat Da as a historical biographical film with events closely following history, but the character's inner thoughts can be fictionalized according to the perspective that the film script aims for. We always know that the audience's expectations for historical films are higher, so once we started making historical films, we had the heart to do it well, with the goal of helping young audiences become more interested in historical films. love Vietnamese history as well as this genre of film in Vietnam .

Actress Truong Ngoc Anh added: "The State should also have policies and create good conditions to support historical films, such as film studios and budgets if the project is worthy. The film market in Vietnam is young and does not specialize in historical and historical films like Chinese and Korean cinema, so it is clear that the private sector cannot just spend a lot of money to make good films. Everything must be carefully prepared over a period of time, and cannot be rushed. I think that in the initial stages of this film genre in Vietnam , having a decent production is already a cause for celebration. In my opinion, in addition to superficial factors such as setting, techniques, etc., the spirit of transmission, core content, and storytelling are still the main factors that attract audiences, especially young people, to Vietnamese historical films. This requires creative filmmaking thinking, research, and a thorough approach to Vietnamese history from the producer."

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