'Sister-in-law': Hong Dao, Viet Huong and Le Khanh save the movie

"Sister-in-law" is a Vietnamese film with a famous cast, led by Hong Dao and Viet Huong. The film chooses a familiar family theme with a simple way of exploiting comedic and tragic situations, lacking the element of surprise.

Sister-in-law is one of the Vietnamese movies set to be released at the end of this year. The work attracts attention because it brings together a cast of familiar faces such as Hong Dao, Viet Huong, Dinh Y Nhung, Ngoc Trinh, Le Khanh.

Many audiences are curious about the first time Viet Huong and Hong Dao collaborate on the big screen. Not to mention this is also the project that marks Ngoc Trinh's return after her private life's turmoil and legal troubles.

Not a new idea

The film has a simple concept, the content revolves around a death anniversary of a family of five women. The title sister-in-law is Kieu Nhi (Viet Huong) - the most powerful woman in the house. On the death anniversary, she has to take charge of everything, with the help of her four sisters-in-law.

Viet Huong plays the sister-in-law in the movie.

The five characters in the film belong to different generations, positions, backgrounds and personalities, so it is understandable that conflicts arise.

For example, Miss Ba Ky (Hong Dao) is a cosmetic surgeon, a smart, modern woman. However, she also likes to control and lives by principles. Meanwhile, Miss Nam Thu (Le Khanh) is humorous and outspoken but also has many unspeakable feelings inside.

Normally, only three characters are enough to portray the modern-day sister-in-law and brother-in-law relationship. However, the screenwriter made the story more dramatic by adding two more characters: Miss Tu Anh (Dinh Y Nhung) and Miss Ut Nhu (Ngoc Trinh).

The conflict began when sister-in-law Kieu Nhi decided to hold a grand death anniversary, then wanted to renovate the family temple, making the four sisters-in-law unhappy. The reunion became an opportunity for the sisters to express their jealousy and calculation, but also to express their suffering that they could not share with anyone.

Basically, Sister-in-law has a way of posing the problem that is not new, reminiscent The Dark Night (2022). But one movie is a memorial service and the other is a funeral.

The script is still ok. build Following the familiar motif of Vietnamese films, the first half takes viewers through light humorous situations, the second half incorporates many details to intensify the drama, leading to an emotional ending.

The laughter is built on awkward details. For example, the guests attending the funeral often ask tactless questions about the host's career or children. The conflicts between the characters at the end are also predictable, making the film lack the element of surprise.

Sitting in the director's chair is Khuong Ngoc. His previous published works such as Love must use tricks (2016), Strange Forest Story (2017)... were not highly rated. Even the most recent, Live: Live streaming (2023) was considered a "disaster" by many audiences.

Therefore, Sister-in-law is an opportunity for Khuong Ngoc to reaffirm his position, especially when more and more young, talented directors appear.

With this work, Khuong Ngoc chose a simple, uncomplicated approach, reminiscent of Ly Hai's "popular" filmmaking style with a series of Flip side. The images and camera angles are not too flashy or colorful so that the audience can easily feel the story. Even the setting mainly focuses on the communal house in the poor countryside.

The acting salvages the content.

The "money point" of Sister-in-law is the famous cast. In which, most of the faces have participated in "hundred billion" film projects released this year, such as Hong Dao with Mai , Dinh Y Nhung with Flip Side 7: A Wish or Viet Huong just caused a fever with Ghost skin

All five actresses played their roles well, as if they were “tailored” for each role. The director arranged the roles properly so that each had their own part to play, and had the opportunity to shine in their own scenes.

But because they fit the characters, they failed to surprise the audience. Viet Huong and Hong Dao took on the dramatic scenes, with quite “tense” exchanges. Meanwhile, Le Khanh, the main “comedian”, continued to score points with her gentle, graceful acting.

Back to cinema later Sisters, sisters, sisters (2023), Ngoc Trinh did not leave much of an impression when playing the role of Ut Nhu. The role was not too difficult and she still acted instinctively rather than focusing on technical handling.

Ngoc Trinh does not stand out when standing with her seniors.

Initially, the crew Sister-in-law The film was scheduled for release in March 2025, then suddenly moved the release date up nearly three months earlier than expected. The film hit theaters and faced off against blockbusters. Mufasa: The Lion King - prequel to the famous animated masterpiece The Lion King produced by Disney

Thanks to the cast, Sister-in-law quickly attracted the attention of the audience. Right from the first screenings, the film surpassed Mufasa: The Lion King to top the sales charts of Box Office Vietnam (independent box office monitoring unit) with more than two billion dong.

This is likely to be the highest-grossing film that Khuong Ngoc has ever directed. However, the chance of the film exploding at the box office is not high, it is difficult to reach the "hundred billion dong" milestone.

Not to mention, next week Kaleidoscope The movie version will be released, more or less directly affecting the movie's revenue.

In general, Sister-in-law The film's ideas and methods are not groundbreaking. The highlight of the film is in the casting process, gathering talented faces, which somewhat helps the story.

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