Cinematic quality in Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories

"The Girl from Yesterday" is directed by Phan Gia Nhat Linh and adapted from the novel of the same name by Nguyen Nhat Anh.

On June 19, the producer announced initial news about the movie project Once Upon a Time There Was a Love Story. The film is adapted from the novel of the same name by writer Nguyen Nhat Anh.

After The Girl from Yesterday and Blue Eyes, another intense and mature "love triangle" by Nguyen Nhat Anh has hit the big screen. It's no coincidence that his stories have received so much attention and adaptation from filmmakers.

Emotional story, full of memories

Each book by Nguyen Nhat Anh, when released, creates a cultural and publishing phenomenon. Reading his writing, we always see a special and attractive writing style, coming from humor, clarity, full of kindness and love.

Although the works are aimed at children, Nguyen Nhat Anh's short stories can also touch the souls of adults.

Amidst the evil and falsehood that surround daily life, Nguyen Nhat Anh's literature makes us still believe: goodness, kindness, and beauty always exist in life and in relationships between people.

Director Phan Gia Nhat Linh skillfully brought nostalgic slices of the not-so-distant white-shirt era to the screen in The Girl from Yesterday (2017). The film has a bright, humorous color scheme of a generation that likes "slow but intense love". The emotional music is also a notable highlight of the work.

Director Phan Gia Nhat Linh said Nguyen Nhat Anh is one of the most successful writers in Vietnam. His books are frequently reprinted, and all three films adapted from his stories have been very popular.

Audiences go to the cinema not just to watch dramatic, climax-filled movies; many audiences still love the romance. Otherwise, the movies adapted from the stories of writer Nguyen Nhat Anh would not have attracted such great attention.

"I think it's the gentle elements, the lack of dramatic climaxes, and the lingering feelings of first love, of a time of innocence in Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories that attract audiences to the theater," he commented.

Meanwhile, director Victor Vu was quite successful with I See Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass (2015) and Blue Eyes (2019).

In I See Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass, Victor Vu sticks firmly to the plot, using poetic visual language to bring the audience into the world of children in a village. With smooth transitions and solid acting, the film highlights the story of brotherhood and student love, bringing the audience back to a beautiful childhood.

"I see yellow flowers on green grass" is authentic and simple

Meanwhile, Blue Eyes is realistic and soulful, not overly beautiful or heavily staged. The story is arranged naturally, although there is no climax, it still leaves an impression, keeping the audience's attention until the end.

When adapting this work, director Victor Vu shared: "Many literary works are rich in characters but the story does not have many highlights, structures or is just a series of confidences and inner thoughts. The filmmaker's job is to find the main, most prominent thread to build everything around that thread."

Nguyen Nhat Anh has a diverse readership.

Regarding the reason why Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories are favored by many filmmakers, producer Nguyen Cao Tung (who has produced films adapted from Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories such as Co gai den tu hom qua, Toi thay hoa vang tren co xanh) shared that Nguyen Nhat Anh's readers are very numerous, not only the elderly but also many young people still in school.

Young people (especially those under 25) are fascinated by the space of childhood, first love, and the breath of hometown and family in Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories. This is also the main target group of moviegoers.

"Because readers always find themselves in Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories, his works are often noticed by filmmakers to put into production," he commented.

"Mat Biec" caused a fever in 2019 under the direction of director Victor Vu

Director Le Anh Tuan (Master, lecturer of the Faculty of Television - Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema) commented that Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories are rich in imagery, touching on the beautiful and gentle things in the soul.

"When turned into movies, Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories are often successful mainly thanks to the emotional element, bringing the audience humanistic values, instead of big and bold things" - the director acknowledged.

Meanwhile, director and producer Nguyen Luong Hang expressed: "Many generations of modern Vietnamese people, including filmmakers, grew up with Nguyen Nhat Anh's literature, so it has become a big part of their nostalgia.

Uncle Anh's writings often tell about people and memories of the past, especially classic romantic love, like handwritten letters, overcoming distances in space and time... - something we lack in our changing modern life. I think that whatever we lack, the need to find it again will be great, especially with movies - where there is the power to turn memories and dreams into reality."

In addition, according to Nguyen Luong Hang, Nguyen Nhat Anh's literature is a rich and suggestive source of material, creating space for filmmakers to be creative in terms of cinema.

According to Tuoi Tre