If you asked me what it's like being gay in Vietnam, especially in a rural area, I'll ask you back if you could have one hour and a half to watch this movie to be fully acknowledged of it.
The film did a wonderful job of delivering realistic cultural facts in Vietnam by portraying normal life in the countryside of a family, where there is one homosexual grandson.
A little bit of background for you guys who are unfamiliar with the situation here: The deceased father of the main character (Nau/Van) is the first son of the family, and Nau is the only child of his parents. In Vietnamese culture (I would say inherited from Chinese culture, but that's a different story) it is assumed that he plays an important role in maintaining the bloodline and stuff. The tradition is even more conserved, as one lives in a rural area. So it is even more challenging for one in such situations to come out than it is already.
You may find yourself failing to understand some of the scenes: one being forced to drink beers together, being forced to touch a girl's thigh, a group of women appearing out of nowhere and yelling aggressively. That is just how things happen in Vietnam. I, as a Vietnamese, have been dragged into these situations many times.
The acting was, by the way, good and emotionally correct, the mom made me miss my mom, the grandma made me miss my grandma, and the aunties also made me miss my aunties. And the choice of 2 young new actors to play the 2 main characters was somewhat fit, their unskilled performance fits with how dull and goofy the foreigners are supposed to be when they come to Vietnam.
The film did a wonderful job of delivering realistic cultural facts in Vietnam by portraying normal life in the countryside of a family, where there is one homosexual grandson.
A little bit of background for you guys who are unfamiliar with the situation here: The deceased father of the main character (Nau/Van) is the first son of the family, and Nau is the only child of his parents. In Vietnamese culture (I would say inherited from Chinese culture, but that's a different story) it is assumed that he plays an important role in maintaining the bloodline and stuff. The tradition is even more conserved, as one lives in a rural area. So it is even more challenging for one in such situations to come out than it is already.
You may find yourself failing to understand some of the scenes: one being forced to drink beers together, being forced to touch a girl's thigh, a group of women appearing out of nowhere and yelling aggressively. That is just how things happen in Vietnam. I, as a Vietnamese, have been dragged into these situations many times.
The acting was, by the way, good and emotionally correct, the mom made me miss my mom, the grandma made me miss my grandma, and the aunties also made me miss my aunties. And the choice of 2 young new actors to play the 2 main characters was somewhat fit, their unskilled performance fits with how dull and goofy the foreigners are supposed to be when they come to Vietnam.