Violence and sex in Hong Anh's new film

Violence makes the living space gloomy, while sex brings out the desire for freedom of people in "Island of the Immigrants".

The Island of the Immigrants was adapted by writer Nguyen Quang Lap from the short story of the same name by Do Phuoc Tien. The film is set in a small restaurant in a coastal town with many conflicting fates, thereby depicting the concerns in the journey to find happiness and the meaning of life of the characters. The work was cherished by Hong Anh for 10 years.

The film does not stop at individual characters but also depicts a picture of a multicultural society. The Chinese owner's family (Hoang Phuc), a Vietnamese young man named Phuoc (Pham Hong Phuoc), a Khmer man named Mien (Nhan Phuc Vinh), an Indian chef (Hoang Nhan)... all live in a closed space in the 1990s. Moon Night Goat Restaurantlike an "oasis" - where the Chinese boss's family has its own unspoken rules andisolated from the changing society outside.

* Trailer for the movie "Island of the Immigrants"

In The Island of the Inhabitants, violence and sex intertwine, both poetic and brutal.

Violence is the dark backdrop of the film. It extends from the scene where Mien kills a goat, the flesh is sliced ​​by a sharp blade, blood splatters on his bare chest. Every evening,Mien drove the goats on the road with an empty can tied to their tails until they were exhausted.He seemed to find pleasure in his murderous work.

Mien is not the only one in the house who likes violence. The Chinese boss is ready to use force on his servants and his wife and children when they displease him. The violent scenes taking place in the old, closed house make the atmosphere of the film even more depressing.

Mien and Phuoc quarrel with each other in a scene.

Chu (Ngoc Thanh Tam) - the boss's paralyzed daughter - lives alone in an attic room. She dreams of being like a fish scale cloud floating across the attic porch, she wants to go on a picnic, she wants to go to the sea, but above all, she wants to be a woman. Every day, Chu hums love songs in a mournful voice as a way to affirm her existence. That strange sound stimulates Phuoc's curiosity. The young man finds his way to the attic and becomes Chu's confidant.

One night, Phuoc discovered strange sounds coming from Chu's room. Through the window, he saw her clinging toCambodia's solid body. In the following days, Phuoc carried jealousy into his lovemaking with Chu. Chu accepted both men as if to fill his incomplete life.Mien brings her a fierce, passionate physicality while Phuoc explores Chu's body slowly and softly. The two contrasting scenes exude poetry thanks to the hazy color of the moon, the camera angle alternating between medium and close-up.

Director Hong Anh once talked about how she portrayed the characters: "I am haunted by the loneliness and dreams of freedom of the destinies... The film will have long shots and fixed angles that are repeated to create strong contrasts in the characters. The sounds in the film are the real sounds of life, old songs interspersed with long silences."

Ngoc Thanh Tam plays Chu - a paralyzed girl with a complex inner life.

Chu fights against fate, protests against her father's imprisonment with sex. It is different from her mother's resigned attitude when secretly touching her husband's private parts. In the short story, nHa Van Do Phuoc Tien calls the physical needs of these characters"passions that are sincere, pure and vibrant."

Sex liberates the human soul but it is also the source of tragedy.The Chinese boss loved his son to the extreme. He created protective barriers to confine and separate Chu from the outside world.

The ending of the film leaves viewers confused and regretful as all the troubles and conflicts have not found answers.

From left: actors Nhan Phuc Vinh, Hoang Phuc, Ngoc Thanh Tam, Pham Hong Phuoc, director Hong Anh. The film won the categories of “Best Film”, “Best Actor” and “Best Director of Photography” at the ASEAN Film Festival in May.

Literary critic Pham Xuan Nguyenthink the movie has been transmittedunderstand the content and message of the original short story. That is "fate is not determined by heaven, fate is created by the people we meet in life".

Mr. Pham Xuan Nguyen highly appreciated the performances of actors Hoang Phuc (as the boss), Meritorious Artist Ngoc Hiep (as the boss), Pham Hong Phuoc (as Phuoc) and Nhan Phuc Vinh (as Mien). He said that Ngoc Thanh Tam had not fully portrayed the complex personality and inner self of Chu - a bright spot in the dark, gray picture.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thi Minh Thai commented that Hong Anh's debut film exudes a strong Asian character. This element is shown through the slow pace, dense descriptive details, narrow frames, almost swallowing the characters. She said that the film has the same color as Moon at the bottom of the well (directed by Nguyen Minh Son) - a work in which Hong Anh played the main role 10 years ago.Associate Professor, Doctor assessed that The Island of the Immigrants is a beautiful film.However, she felt a bit regretful that the relationships in the film were not completely resolved, especially Chu's ambiguous feelings for the two men./.

According to VNE