Czech cinema to screen Vietnamese blockbuster

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese movie Người Vợ Cuối Cùng (The Last Wife), a blockbuster Vietnamese-American director Victor Vũ, will be screened at multiplex cinema theatres in the Czech Republic from January 18.

Distributed by the 3388 Films – a film production, post-production and distribution company in California, The Last Wife will be screened at the Praha Flora and Praha Chodov cinemas located within the Atrium Flora and Westfield Chodov shopping centres in the capital city of Prague.

A scene from the movie Người Vợ Cuối Cùng (The Last Wife) by director Victor Vũ. — Photo courtesy of TFILM

In December, 3388 Films presented this movie in Canada and the US, and at present it is still screening here in Việt Nam.

The Last Wife is about Vietnamese women under the Nguyễn Dynasty in the 19th century. 

The movie tells the story of a young woman, played by Kaity Nguyễn, living in a poor family during the semi-feudal colonial society of Việt Nam. Love and betrayal, social and family issues are themes of the film. 

In mid-November, another Vietnamese movie also was presented in US theatres by the 3388 Films.

Live – Phát Trực Tiếp by director Khương Ngọc has riveted Western audiences at its sold-out North America premiere as the official selected Vietnamese Spotlight Film of the 2023 Newport Beach Film Festival.

A scene from the movie ‘Live – Phát Trực Tiếp’ by director Khương Ngọc. — Photo courtesy of Lotte Entertainment

The movie portrays vividly the hyper-competitive world of live-streaming mukbangers [the person who creates and publishes mukbang videos] and online reviewers in Việt Nam.

Although the film didn’t get high revenue in Việt Nam, it received positive reviews from Western audiences and critics when it was screened in the US.

Asian Movie Pulse – an online platform focuses on Asian movie entertainment, has ranked this movie among top 5 in its list of 30 Best Southeast Asian Movies of 2023.

“Live – Phát Trực Tiếp is an excellent film that manages to eloquently communicate its plethora of comments while also retaining entertainment through an approach that moves towards comedic, dramatic and even horror paths,” it wrote.

Director of the 3388 Films, Thiên A. Phạm, said: “This is a special time for us as a film distributor because we believe that we can bring both the movies to present abroad, accessing international audience.

“It’s certainly not an easy road, but we are willing to take risks for independent and international filmmakers, and we will continue our efforts to explore new distribution avenues for these movie.” — VNS