Vietnamese American director Ham Tran, whose recently-released romantic comedy film “Am muu giay got nhon” (How to fight in six inch heels) has seen box office success so far, chose to feature a modern Vietnam in his film.
The film has drawn local viewers, especially youth, and adds new flavors to the local industry with its Hollywood rom-com, chick-flick formula.
“Am muu giay got nhon” earns about the same as hit thriller “Scandal” around the same time last year, which recently won the top prize at the 18th Vietnam Film Festival.
The film features expat actress Kathy Uyen, actor Don Nguyen and expat street magician Petey Nguyen. The man behind the film, Ham Tran, is quite happy with his work.
He took part in several film projects by overseas directors and was director of photography for a documentary titled “Oh Saigon”. Though his Vietnamese language is quite limited, he wants his film to be purely Vietnamese, not in the eyes of an overseas man.
He also believes that Vietnam has many more Vietnamese things than what overseas Vietnamese filmmakers typically incorporate in their films.
“I thought right from the beginning that I wouldn’t include the rustic scenes, the Notre Dame Catheral or the Vespa scooter in ‘Am muu giay got nhon’, as most of the films on Vietnam feature these images. I prefer to depict a new Vietnam, which I think isn’t much different from New York. Even the fashion collections featured in my film also accentuate the novelty and modernity of Vietnamese fashion and culture,” Tran shared.
Regarding the devastating box office failures of recent films such as “Lua Phat” (Once upon a time in Vietnam) and “Duong dua” (The racetrack) compared to the financial success of films which don’t receive good critical opinions, Tran remarked that Vietnamese audiences are intelligent, refined and can fully appreciate the films’ beauty and humor, even with Western humor and culture. He added that, however, just like audiences elsewhere in the world, local audiences are unpredictable and too complicated to get to know their tastes thoroughly.
Tran revealed that inspired by the current success of his second film “Am muu giay got nhon”, his next project will be a romantic thriller just like Thai blockbuster “Peemak”
“Unlike before when I focused on familial themes, now I prefer to learn more about Vietnamese history and people. I think I’m too American, I’ll definitely live here longer to discover more about my home country,” shared the director, who has lived in several countries, like Thailand and Cambodia.
Đăng ký: VietNam News