A scene in Truyện Vợ Chồng Anh Lực (The Story of Mr and Mrs Lực). — Photo courtesy of Vietnam Film Studio
HÀ NỘI — Three classic Vietnamese films, Truyện Vợ Chồng Anh Lực (The Story of Mr and Mrs Lực), Ngọn Đèn Trong Mơ (The Dream Lamp) and Giải Hạn (Relieving the Limit), will be screened for free at Ngọc Khánh Cinema from March 13-15.
The screening, organised by Vietnam Film Institute under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, aims to commemorate the 71st anniversary of Vietnamese Cinematic Revolution Day on March 15.
The Story of Mr and Mrs Lực was directed by Trần Vũ and produced by Vietnam Film Studio in 1971, starring actors Tuệ Minh, Trần Phương and Trịnh Thịnh. The film won the Golden Lotus Award at the second Vietnam Film Festival in 1973.
In the film, its main character named Lực, the head of a cooperative, decides to demolish his own house and free the land for the cooperative to dig canals. He sacrifices his personal interests for the collective and has to face and overcome numerous difficulties, including his wife's disapproval, the challenges of raising children, unfavourable weather and the collapse of their house.
Other villagers contribute to building a new house for Lực and his wife, but he selflessly donates it to the co-operative to use as a kindergarten.
The Dream Lamp, directed by Đỗ Minh Tuấn and produced by Vietnam Feature Film Studio in 1987, features main actors Tuấn Dũng and Tuyết Ngân. A renowned family drama that deeply touched both domestic and international audiences, won the Silver Lotus Award at the 8th Vietnam Film Festival in 1988.
The film portrays a small-scale story within a family, but it reflects the larger social landscape of its time, when the power of money started infiltrating and eroding family values.
The last film, Relieving the Limit, was directed by Vũ Xuân Hưng and produced by Truyen Vietnam Film Company in 1996. It won the Silver Lotus Award at the 11th Vietnam Film Festival in the same year. Actress Lê Vy received the Best Actress award at the festival for her outstanding performance in the film.
It tells the story of Triệu, an orphaned girl who gets married to a man in a long-standing weaving village. Her husband, Đại, goes abroad to work. Upon his return, despite opposition from his mother and his younger brother Thiện, Đại demands a divorce from Triệu to live in Hà Nội and engage in business with his lover.
As life becomes increasingly difficult, Triệu and Thiện face the pressure of low prices imposed on their woven goods. They exhaust their money and energy, trying to revive the traditional crafts of their village. Their weaving complex gradually becomes prosperous.
Over years of working together, Thiện develops affection for his sister-in-law, Triệu. The relationship between Triệu, Thiện, and Đại becomes tangled and complicated when Đại falls into debt. Triệu pays off the debt to save her husband from the clutches of loan sharks. Thiện, feeling disillusioned, leaves the village without notice. Triệu holds the letter Thiện left behind and chases after the departing bus carrying him, fading away in the distance.
The three films are screened at Ngọc Khánh Cinema, 523 Kim Mã Street, showing at 9am, through tomorrow. — VNS
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