''Adrift'' () is a 2009 Vietnamese film directed by Bui Thac Chuyen and stars

Đỗ Thị Hải Yến Do Thi Hai Yen (born 1 October 1982) is a Vietnamese actress. She rose to international fame for her role in Academy Award-nominated film '' The Quiet American'' (2002) by Phillip Noyce, which made her the first Asian actress to be nominated f ...

, Linh Dan Pham, Johnny Tri Nguyen and Nguyen Duy Khoa. Hai Yen plays Duyen, a young tourist guide who marries Hai (Duy Khoa), a taxi driver, but her friend and writer Cam (Linh Dan) still has feelings for her. The film deals with issues in modern Vietnam such as

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

and loneliness of the young generation. The film is a co-production between Feature Film Studio n°1 (

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

) and Acrobates Films (

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

). ''Adrift'' was selected to participate in the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

and

Bangkok International Film Festival The Bangkok International Film Festival (BKKIFF) () is an international film festival held annually in Bangkok, Thailand, since 2003. In addition to film screenings, seminars, gala events and the Golden Kinnaree Awards. History First years The ...

. At the 66th Venice International Film Festival,

FIPRESCI The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for ''Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique'') is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the wor ...

awarded ''Adrift'' with its prize for young directors and cinemas. At the

Cines del Sur Cines del Sur is an international film festival in Granada, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost ...

Festival 2010, the film won the NETPAC award. The film earned three nominations at the 4th Asian Film Awards, including Best Screenwriter, Best Cinematographer, Best Composer.

Plot

Set in modern

Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...

, ''Adrift'' begins with the wedding of Duyen and Hai. Duyen is a beautiful tourist guide and translator who marries Hai, a taxi driver who is two years her junior. Duyen thinks the marriage will make her happy but it turns out more difficult, especially since her childlike husband is uninterested in her efforts of intimacy and the marriage remains unconsummated. Cam, secretly in love with Duyen, is bitter about the marriage. Cam has Duyen deliver a letter to Tho, a handsome lothario and tourist guide who physically hurls himself on Duyen when she visits his home to deliver the letter. After Tho reports back to Cam that Duyen is sexually inexperienced, Cam diabolically persuades Duyen to take a temporary job as a translator on one of Tho's beach tours, knowing what will happen. Duyen's time at the beach with Tho results in an affair leading to Duyen's sexual awakening but continued uncertainty about herself, marriage, and life.

Cast

* Do Thi Hai Yen as Duyen (Duyên) * Linh Dan Pham as Cam (Cầm) * Johnny Tri Nguyen as Tho (Thổ) * Nguyen Duy Khoa as Hai (Hải)

Plot

Cast

References

External links