One director sees the rise in gratuitous sex scenes in Vietnamese cinema as just a way to pander to the audience and increase sales.
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| Director, People\'s Artist Khai Hung |
Director, People’s Artist Khai Hung expressed his opinion on the trend of sex scenes in Vietnamese films.
“I think there is nothing wrong in these “hot scenes”, as long as they are appropriate to the film\'s context," adding that such scenes must be done tastefully and add to the drama, instead of simply an excuse to see nudity.
The film "Bi, Don\'t Be Afraid" has a number of steamy scenes throughout, although the filmmaker\'s aim was not nudity for it\'s own sake.
Hung commented, "I may be a bit strict, I do not appreciate sex scenes that are unnecessarily forced into Vietnamese films."
He said that many years ago, he had to queue to buy a ticket for a Polish or Hungarian film that had a provocative shots. However, in these movies the scenes were not gratuitous, but were beautiful and added to the movies.
“In 1992, a film set in Vietnam called “The Lover”, by French director Jean-Jacques Annaud, was released. Although it contained very explicit scenes, according to the director, "they were in good taste."
Sex sells
Hung commented, "I\'ve seen statistics that 80% of Vietnamese internet users search the word "sex" in search engines. So obviously they are curious about these matters."
"It gives filmmakers an opportunity to cash in on this curiosity by adding unnecessary sex scenes to their films just to attract more viewers. It has become normal in the business. All businesses in the country must adhere to the laws, but ours are not strict enough to deal with the marketing of these kinds of films."
However, viewers may soon turn their backs on low quality films with too much gratuitous nudity. Trailers often misrepresent the tone and spirit of the films they are advertising.
Hung insists that, "Sex scenes are very necessary to cinema. They can communicate the feeling of human love. But while watching these scenes in some Vietnamese films, I\'ve noticed viewers laughing because they are so unconvincing. This is the reaction of the viewers."
He added that there are some Vietnamese directors who believe they were developing a new trend, one of sexual liberation. But they\'re mistaken since nudity has been relatively common in international cinema for several decades.
According to the director, “For a Vietnamese film to win international prizes, it must first find success in this country."
He also disclosed that he really likes a film “Mua len trau” (The Buffalo Boy). He says this film helps viewers, both foreign and Vietnamese, to understand the culture and traditions of southern people. He especially admires the "rising water" scene, which is an aspect of southern life that many people from the north may not know about.
A scene in “Bi, Don’t Be Afraid”
A scene in “The Buffalo Boy”
