Top 12 Must-Watch Films to Understand Hanoi Better

Chancellor Tran Thu Do is a project commissioned by the Hanoi People's Committee to the Truyen Film Company on the occasion of the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long, with an investment of over 57 billion dong for 34 episodes. The main content revolves around the turmoil in Thang Long in 1210 and the period of the Tran Ly family (including Tran Thua, Tran Tu Khanh, and their grandson Tran Thu Do) along with To Trung Tu assisting Prince Sam in recapturing Thang Long, helping Prince Sam ascend the throne, becoming King Ly Hue Tong. The film features 120 actors from both the North and the South, along with thousands of extras. The three main roles are played by Thien Bao (as Tran Thu Do), La Thanh Huyen (as Tran Thi Dung), and Hua Vi Van (as Prince Sam).

Compared to previous historical films, Chancellor Tran Thu Do is quite impressive, meticulously crafted with serious historical research and investment. The script by writer Nguyen Manh Tuan is tight and convincing, presenting situations logically and persuasively.

DETAILS:
Release Year: 2013
Genre: Historical Fiction
Director: Dao Duy Phuc
Cast: La Thanh Huyen, Hua Vi Van, Chi Trung

The masterpiece Hanoi 12 Days and Nights by director Bui Dinh Hac was produced in 2002, nearly 30 years after the great victory of the Dien Bien Phu air battle. Hanoi 12 Days and Nights was produced in color film material and for the first time used modern computer effects to recreate the aerial combat. However, the film not only portrays fierce war but also a painful love story, full of romance and depth, between missile squadron leader Dang Nhan and teacher Hien.

The plastic film Hanoi 12 Days and Nights by People's Artist Bui Dinh Hac is considered a film full of portraits of simple but extremely resilient, determined people with the beloved capital in heroic historical moments. The film is very elaborately expressed with the purpose of recreating a part of the Dien Bien Phu air battle - a fierce fight of the Hanoi people against the strategic bombing campaign by B-52 aircraft of the US empire in late December 1972, forcing the US government to sign the Paris Agreement, bringing peace to North Vietnam. The film Hanoi - 12 Days and Nights won the Silver Lotus Award at the 14th Vietnam Film Festival. The film also participated in 10 international film festivals: In 2003, the film attended the Cairo Film Festival (Egypt), Fukuoka Film Festival (Japan), New Delhi Film Festival (India); In 2004, the film attended the Locarno Film Festival (Switzerland), Vesoul Film Festival (France), Pyongyang Film Festival (North Korea); In 2005, the film attended the Fajr Film Festival (Tehran- Iran) and the Laguna Tenerife Film Festival (Spain).

DETAILS:

Release Year: 2002

Genre: Revolutionary War, Historical Drama

Director: Bui Dinh Hac

Cast: Mia Thu Huyen, Chieu Xuan, Quoc Tuan

IMDb Rating: 7.6

Long Thanh Cam Gia Ca is one of the plastic films built on the occasion of commemorating the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long - Hanoi. The film is based on the idea of the poem Long Thanh Cam Gia Ca by poet Nguyen Du. The script of the film by Van Le won first prize in the writing competition about a thousand years of Thang Long.

Long Thanh Cam Gia Ca also incorporates beautiful images imbued with the ancient culture of Vietnam. Audiences are like reliving the ancient atmosphere with familiar folk games such as shuttlecock kicking, ô ăn quan (a traditional board game), or chess on stone slabs... Poetic verses or folk songs, ceremonial songs, bai đồng dao (a type of Vietnamese folk song) are embellished in the film, evoking the familiar space of ancient Northern land. Images of village wells, old banyan trees on sloping paths, or coy girls sitting by the moon guitar are maximally utilized. It can be said that Long Thanh Cam Gia Ca has taken a correct direction compared to many other historical films in the past.

DETAILS:
Release Year: 2010
Genre: Drama
Director: Dao Ba Son
Cast: Nhat Kim Anh, Tran Luc, Quach Ngoc Ngoan
IMDb Rating: 7.7

Hanoians debuted in 1996 depicting the lives in the military housing area in the early years of renovation, around the late 1980s and early 1990s, revolving around the daily lives of soldiers returning after the war with the tragedies of different people, seeming to bear many marks of real life.

Especially, Hanoians evokes nostalgia for Hanoi among those far from home as it also addresses those who leave the city to seek a living elsewhere. Although premiered over 20 years ago, Hanoians remains a television series about Hanoi imprinted in the hearts of many generations of audiences. The series was adapted by directors Hoang Tich Chi, Doan Le, Dang Khoa, Hoang Thang from the novel Street by writer Chu Lai. With only 8 episodes, the series still manages to portray the various genuine thoughts and emotions of people always looking towards Hanoi, no matter where they are.

DETAILS:

Release Year: 1996

Genre: Social drama, romance

Directors: Hoang Tich Chi, Doan Le

Cast: Le Khanh, Hong Son

Ahead Lies the Sky portrays the lives of students in Hanoi during the 2000s. The film revolves around a dormitory in the late 1990s with struggling students facing academic pressures, debts, and job hunting upon graduation. Beyond the monthly debt repayment anxiety, the job hunting process of the 3 recent graduates is filled with tears, humiliation, and heart-wrenching compromises. Within that dormitory, the audience can imagine a microcosm society with individuals of different personalities and professions. Prominent among them are three close friends sharing a room: Thuong (Thu Nga), Nhung (Kieu Anh), and Nguyet (Ha Huong), each with concerns about career and future. Additionally, the fleeting romance between Trà (Kieu Thanh) and Nam (Van Thanh) is equally beloved by the audience.

The film Ahead Lies the Sky successfully depicts the real-life struggles of young people eager to make it in the big city but must endure countless challenges.

DETAILS:
Release Year: 2001

Genre: Social drama, comedy, romance
Director: Do Thanh Hai
Cast: Ha Huong, Thu Nga, Kieu Anh

This film was produced by director Trần Đắc immediately after the country's unification. Up to the present time, August Stars is almost the only Vietnamese film successfully reflecting the glorious August revolution of the nation. After 36 years, the film still demonstrates its vitality alongside history. The backdrop of the film is the fervent atmosphere before the August revolution in 1945 and the horrifying famine of that year. When watching the movie, we will be deeply impressed by the emotionally charged eyes, which excellently convey the humanitarian message of the film.

Up to the present time, perhaps no film has successfully reflected the fervent days before the August revolution in 1945 and the horrifying famine of that year like August Stars. The film helps the audience understand the miserable life of our people like no other written document can. The film was shot at the time when our country was newly unified in 1975-1976, so the film's setting is very authentic. The film has succeeded in creating details, social settings, conflicts in situations pushing the resistance to its climax, the solidarity among the people, affirming an independent, self-reliant nation.

DETAILS:

Release year: 1977

Genre: Revolutionary war, historical drama

Director: Trần Đắc

Cast: Thanh Tú, Đức Hoàn, Thu An

IMDb Rating: 5.9

Based on the novels 'Living Forever with the Capital' and 'Luy Hoa' by writer Nguyễn Huy Tưởng, the film Living Forever with the Capital portrays the 1946 Hanoi battle directed by Lê Đức Tiến, first released in 1996. The heroic and resilient fighting spirit of our people against the cruelty of French colonialism will surely make you proud of the Vietnamese nation.

The months of defending the capital are vividly depicted in the 12 episodes of Living Forever with the Capital, bringing to life the heroic and romantic atmosphere of those fiery years while also portraying the image of the courageous capital soldiers ready to sacrifice everything to defend the fatherland. They are just ordinary people who love this land and steadfastly cling to it to protect it from the enemy's encirclement. Throughout the work, we see the conflicting thoughts of the petite bourgeoisie when faced with two choices, standing up against the enemy or remaining neutral.

DETAILS:

Release year: 1996

Genre: Revolutionary war, historical drama

Director: Lê Đức Tiến

Cast: Trung Hiếu, Phạm Cường, Khánh Huyền

IMDb Rating: 6.9

Hanoi's Little Child produced by the Hanoi Film Studio in 1974, directed by Hai Ninh, is a successful work that leaves a profound impression on viewers by depicting the war through the perspective of 12-year-old Ngọc Hà (Lan Hương). When watching Hanoi's Little Child, you'll feel like watching an adventure film, the adventure of a girl searching for her parents and lost sister in the desolation of the city after the B52 bombing raids by the US military.

Set against the backdrop of post-B52 bombing raids in Hanoi, the film Hanoi's Little Child is a touching and compassionate story about life in the capital during the destructive war waged by the US empire. The film follows the evacuation and search for the father of the two sisters Ngọc Hà and Thùy Dương after their mother sacrificed herself, and their house on Khâm Thiên Street was destroyed after the B52 raid. On the journey to find their father, Ngọc Hà witnesses the cruelty of war, and the two sisters also encounter warm-hearted people along the way.

DETAILS:
Release year: 1974
Genre: War, documentary
Director: Hai Ninh
Cast: Lan Hương, Thế Anh, Trà Giang
IMDb Rating: 6.9

In the winter of 1946, the negotiations at the Fontainebleau Conference in France failed, President Ho Chi Minh signed a temporary agreement with France to buy time to prepare for the situation. This is the backdrop of the movie. When watching Hanoi Winter of 1946, you will have the opportunity to see more clearly the internal and external intelligence capabilities of Uncle Ho and the revolutionary government leaders in this extremely important moment.

Directed by Đặng Nhật Minh, Hanoi Winter of 1946 brings viewers the image of a Vietnam that loves peace, opposes war, and calls for the spirit of unity of all nations in the world to preserve peace. The love of peace is expressed in the way of fighting, behaving, and living of the Hanoi soldiers in particular and the Vietnamese soldiers in general in the winter of 1946, before President Ho Chi Minh called for national resistance to protect the capital during 60 days and nights of fire.

DETAILS:
Release year: 1977
Genre: Revolutionary war, historical drama
Director: Đặng Nhật Minh
Cast: Mia Thu Huyền, Tiến Lợi, Quách Thu Phương
IMDb Rating: 7.6

Hanoi Through Whose Eyes is a Vietnamese documentary film directed by Tran Van Thuy. The film was produced in 1982 but was banned until 1987 before being widely released. By using historical stories to talk about the present, Hanoi Through Whose Eyes uses stories and historical figures associated with the capital to reflect the thoughts of the people about the social situation.

In the film Hanoi Through Whose Eyes, director Tran Van Thuy mentioned many famous figures in Hanoi's history such as To Hien Thanh, Nguyen Trai, Ho Xuan Huong, to Bui Xuan Phai. Alongside scenes of Hanoi's activities during the subsidized period, many beautiful scenes of the city also appear in the film, including West Lake, Tran Quoc Pagoda, or Quan Thanh Temple. After screening, Hanoi Through Whose Eyes was immediately banned from being screened despite being praised by many for its content and artistic quality. It was not until 5 years after its release that the film was widely screened thanks to the intervention of Vietnamese leaders like Nguyen Van Linh, Pham Van Dong. In 1988, the film won the Golden Lotus Award for the best Vietnamese documentary film, and to this day, it is still considered one of the outstanding cinematic works on the topic of Hanoi.

DETAILS:
Release year: 1983
Genre: Documentary
Director: Tran Van Thuy
IMDb Rating: 7.7

Autumn Leaves is also a television series that was broadcasted on VTV1, VTV3, featuring the life and family of Hanoians, directed by Quoc Trong, based on the novel 'Autumn Leaves in the Garden' and some details from 'Paperless Marriage' by writer Ma Van Khang. The series tells the story of a family living in an old quarter in the capital. The father always wants to preserve the traditional family life of Hanoians, but the children have new, different views on lifestyle and money. Each person has a different way of living, different thoughts, but ultimately what they all desire is the inseparable bond between family members.

The series Autumn Leaves not only reminds viewers of familiar things associated with Hanoi but also serves as a reminder of the harmony between traditional values and modern values in life, about the significance of family in an increasingly changing society. Aired in 2001, Autumn Leaves was one of the series of that time that kept audiences 'on the edge of their seats'.

DETAILS:
Release year: 2001
Genre: Social drama, romance, drama
Director: Quoc Trong
Cast: Dung Nhi, Thanh Quy, Chu Van Thuc, Bach Dien

Aspirations of Thang Long is a film produced to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long - Hanoi. The setting of the film is Dai Co Viet in the late 10th century. It tells the story of the lives of Ly Cong Uan and Le Long Dinh from childhood to Ly Cong Uan's ascension to the throne and the establishment of the imperial capital. In the film, Ly Cong Uan once served in Hoa Lu under Le Hoan, then became the commander of the forbidden army and close friend of Le Long Dinh. The film also depicts a love triangle between Ly Cong Uan, Le Long Dinh, and the courtesan Da Huong.

The scenes in Aspirations of Thang Long were entirely shot in Vietnam, which is perhaps an advantage for the film. The images of villages, rivers, and countryside strongly evoke the character of the Red River Delta. The film also recreates scenes of rural markets, daily life by the village well, the Tich Dien festival, and the imperial court with picturesque and poetic landscapes... The filmmakers cleverly chose a predominantly brown color tone for the film, giving the scenery a nostalgic, intimate feel for the Vietnamese people.

DETAILS:
Release year: 2010

Genre: Revolutionary war, historical drama
Director: Luu Trong Ninh
Cast: Thach Kim Long, Quach Ngoc Ngoan, Dinh Toan
IMDb Rating: 7.2