Movie Review: Viêt and Nam

Vietnam is a country still suffering from the effects of the Vietnam War. While it has moved on and modernized in places like Hanoi, in the countryside many citizens still live in poverty conditions, toiling away at difficult work for meager pay. It is in one such village shortly after 9/11 that we find Viêt (Đào Duy Bảo Định) and Nam (Phạm Thanh Hải). A pair of young lovers, they both work in the coal mines, 1000 meters below the surface. It is a dangerous job in a facility that often looks haphazardly cobbled together, but for young men in their position they have little choice.

Viêt lives with his mother, Hoa (Nguyễn Thị Nga), in a ramshackle structure that is open to the elements in many places. His father left to fight in the war and never returned, but the pair have a loving relationship and seem content spending their time working their gardens. When family friend Ba (Lê Viết Tụng) visits, a veteran who served alongside Viêt’s father, the trio along with Nam head out on a trek to try and locate the spot where he died. All the while, Nam has been preparing to flee the country with the help of human traffickers, in the hope of making a better life for himself in Europe, but sadly leaving his lover behind.

The film takes its time moving from point A to point B, almost as if afraid to expend too much energy in the Southeast Asian humidity. It never feels draggy however. Threads of pain and heartache are woven throughout the beautifully shot images of Vietnamese countryside and moments that border on magical realism keep the viewer in suspense as to where the story might be going.

The cast is largely asked to be devoid of showy emotional moments, which makes their feelings sometimes difficult to read but contributes to the atmosphere. It’s only when the lead couple look at each other that we see much emotion at all, as their affection feels deep and genuine, making their pending separation all the more tragic.

Writer / director Trương Minh Quý has stated that he intended for this movie to be a way of excising the weight of his lineage from his life, and you can see it on the screen. Much of Vietnam’s history and current conditions are examined here. While the story would ostensibly seem to be about Viêt and Nam it’s really so much bigger, touching on society’s mistreatment of the poor, the risks of the immigrant experience, and the ways that past traumas ripple down through time to affect us all. Sad but beautiful and rich with symbolism, this tale will haunt the viewer long after its striking, heartbreaking final sequence. ★★★★½