Glorious Ashes

Glorious Ashes (original title: Tro tàn rực rỡ) is a 2022 Vietnamese drama film directed and written by Bùi Thạc Chuyên. It is an adaptation of two short stories, "Glorious Ashes" and "Drifting Firewood" ("Củi mục trôi về"), taken from the Đảo (Island) short story collection by Vietnamese writer Nguyễn Ngọc Tư.[2] The film has an ensemble cast including Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling, Phương Anh Đào, Hạnh Thúy, Lê Công Hoàng, Quang Tuấn, Thạch Kim Long, Mai Thế Hiệp and Ngọc Hiệp. Set in Thom Rom village of Cà Mau, the story revolves around three women, their journey of love and their efforts to keep their men. The imagery of fire and ashes appears throughout as a metaphor for the passion and longing of these women.[3]

Glorious Ashes
Theatrical release poster
VietnameseTro tàn rực rỡ
Directed byBùi Thạc Chuyên
Screenplay byBùi Thạc Chuyên
Based onGlorious Ashes
by Nguyễn Ngọc Tư
Drifting Firewood
by Nguyễn Ngọc Tư
Produced byTrần Thị Bích Ngọc
Starring
  • Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling
  • Phương Anh Đào
  • Hạnh Thúy
  • Lê Công Hoàng
  • Quang Tuấn
  • Thạch Kim Long
  • Mai Thế Hiệp
  • Ngọc Hiệp
CinematographyNguyễn K'Linh
Edited byJulie Béziau
Music byTôn Thất An
Production
company
An Nam Productions
Distributed byCGV
Release dates
  • 24 October 2022 (2022-10-24) (Tokyo)
  • 22 November 2022 (2022-11-22) (Nantes, France)
  • 2 December 2022 (2022-12-02) (Vietnam)
Running time
117 minutes
Countries
  • Vietnam
  • Singapore
  • France
LanguageVietnamese
Box office4,135 billion VND[1]

Glorious Ashes surpassed 27 other projects to win the top prize of $15,000 at the Asian Project Market, a division of the Busan International Film Festival, in 2017.[4] The film also won the Inaugural Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant by the Singapore Film Commission in November 2019.[5] It was then premiered at the 35th Tokyo International Film Festival and became the first Vietnamese film to compete for the festival's top prize, the Tokyo Grand Prix, in October 2022.[6] The film won the Montgolfière d'or at the 2022 Three Continents Festival[7] and won four awards at the 2023 Kite Awards. In Vietnam, Glorious Ashes opened in theaters nationwide on December 2, 2022.[8] The film was chosen as the Vietnamese entry for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.[9]

Plot

Set in the poor Mekong Delta coastal village of Thom Rom, the film follows the lives of three women, whose love lives are unusual and unique to their nature. The film is narrated from Hau's perspective, as she experiences life with a husband who only has eyes for another woman, and develops her growing friendship with her rival.

Cast
  • Lê Công Hoàng as Duong
  • Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling as Hau
  • Phương Anh Đào as Nhan
  • Ngô Quang Tuấn as Tam
  • Ngô Phạm Hạnh Thuý as Loan
  • Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hiệp as Duong's mother
  • Mai Thế Hiệp as Monk

Nguyễn Văn Thạch and Hoàng Thị Thuý appear as neighbors; Phạm Thị Hoa Lan appears as charcoal factory boss; Lê Ánh Hồng appears as Loan's aunty; Huỳnh Ngọc Tâm appears as old man in charcoal; Trương Vũ Phước appears as Hau's father; Phạm Văn Cường, Lý Văn Tiễn and Nguyễn Chí Hữu appear as workers in charcoal factory; Lê Phương Anh Dũng appears as boat captain; Kha Ngọc Hồng Hạnh appears as Nhan's daughter; Trần Minh Chi Nhân appears as singing man on boat; Uyên Nhi appears as Hau's daughter.

Themes

Set in the poor Mekong Delta, the film portrays the love and pain of three women with their men. The imagery of fire and ashes appears throughout as a metaphor for the passion and longing to be "seen" of these women. Bùi Thạc Chuyên said he was fascinated by the power of love of women in the original story by Nguyễn Ngọc Tư.

Production

The film is produced by An Nam Productions and distributed by CGV. It began principal photography in 2021.

Release

Glorious Ashes was selected to compete for the Tokyo Grand Prix at the 35th Tokyo International Film Festival to be held from 24 October to 2 November 2022. It screened for the first time in Tokyo and subsequently had its French premiere at the Three Continents Festival in November 2022.

On 10 November 2022, Glorious Ashes had its premiere in Ho Chi Minh City before being released in Vietnam theatrically on 2 December.

Reception

Critical response

Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter, wrote "Premiering in competition at Tokyo, the film provides an intriguing look at a part of the world where the old ways, whether in farming, fishing or wives being completely subjected to their husbands’ every last whim, still dominate daily life. But the two-hour drama never quite rises above its earnest and weighty message, which makes it more of a thoughtful pedagogical item than a movie with serious market potential."[10]

Wendy Ide of Screen Daily, describing it as "a thoughtful piece which is elevated by strong performances."[11]

Accolades
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Tokyo International Film Festival November 2, 2022 Tokyo Grand Prix Glorious Ashes Nominated [12]
Three Continents Festival November 27, 2022 Montgolfière d'or Won [13]
Danang Asian Film Festival May 13, 2023 Best Film - Asian Film Competition Nominated [14]
Best Director - Asian Film Competition Bùi Thạc Chuyên Nominated
Best Actress - Asian Film Competition Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling Won
Kite Awards September 9, 2023 Movies Glorious Ashes Golden Kite [15][16]
Best Director - Movies Bùi Thạc Chuyên Won
Best Leading Actress - Movies Phương Anh Đào Nominated
Best Supporting Actress - Movies Ngô Phạm Hạnh Thuý Won
Best Cinematography - Movies Nguyễn K'Linh Won
  • Cast & crew of Glorious Ashes at the 2022 Tokyo International Film Festival
  • Director Bùi Thạc Chuyên
    Director Bùi Thạc Chuyên
  • Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling
    Juliet Bảo Ngọc Doling
  • Ngô Quang Tuấn
    Ngô Quang Tuấn
  • Phương Anh Đào
    Phương Anh Đào
  • Lê Công Hoàng
    Lê Công Hoàng
  • Producer Trần Thị Bích Ngọc
    Producer Trần Thị Bích Ngọc

See also

References
  1. "Doanh số phòng vé phim Tro tàn rực rỡ" [Glorious Ashes Box Office Gross] (in Vietnamese). Box Office Vietnam. Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  2. Lo Mo (27 October 2022). "'Tro tàn rực rỡ' - Điểm sáng của điện ảnh Việt cuối năm?" ['Glorious Ashes' - The highlight of Vietnamese cinema at the end of the year?]. L'Officiel Vietnam (in Vietnamese). Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  3. Phan, Cao Tùng (25 October 2022). "Phim 'Tro tàn rực rỡ' từ truyện Nguyễn Ngọc Tư được chào đón tại LHP quốc tế Tokyo" ['Glorious Ashes' from Nguyen Ngoc Tu's story was welcomed at the Tokyo International Film Festival]. Thanh Niên (in Vietnamese). Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  4. Wong, Silvia (18 October 2017). "Busan 2017 Asian Project Market winners announced". Screendaily. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  5. "Eight projects awarded the Inaugural Southeast Asia Co-Production Grant by Singapore Film Commission" (Press release). Infocomm Media Development Authority. 25 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  6. "First Vietnamese film to compete at Tokyo International Film Festival". Việt Nam News. Hanoi. 10 October 2022. Archived from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  7. "Glorious Ashes wins top prize at Three Continents Film Festival". Voice of Vietnam. 28 November 2022. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  8. Bảo Anh (11 November 2022). "'Tro tàn rực rỡ' hé lộ trailer chính thức, ấn định lịch chiếu rạp Việt" ['Glorious Ashes' revealed the official trailer, setting the release date for Vietnamese theaters]. Thể Thao & Văn Hóa (in Vietnamese). Vietnam News Agency. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  9. "Vietnamese film 'Glorious Ashes' to compete at 2024 Oscars". Voice of Vietnam. 27 September 2023. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  10. Mintzer, Jordan (2022-10-24). "'Glorious Ashes' Review: Compassionate Portrait of Three Vietnamese Women Never Quite Ignites". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  11. Ide2022-10-26T09:09:00+01:00, Wendy. "'Glorious Ashes': Tokyo Review". Screen. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  12. Bual, Hiezle (2022-09-28). "Vietnamese Film 'Glorious Ashes' Premieres At Tokyo International Film Festival". Vietcetera. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  13. "'Tro Tàn Rực Rỡ' Wins Top Prize at Film Festival in France | Saigoneer". saigoneer.com. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  14. ""Children in the Mist" wins big at the XNUMXst Danang Asian Film Festival - Vietnam.vn". 2023-05-13. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  15. "Winners of Golden Kite Awards 2023 announced". en.sggp.org.vn. 2023-09-10. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  16. "Raising the "cinematic kite" to reach higher". en.nhandan.vn. 2023-09-26. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
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