The relationship between Nguyen Nhat Anh and cinema
Nguyen Nhat Anh, a name associated with the childhood of many generations of 7x, 8x, is a true "writer of childhood". With a long list of literary works on the subject of school, recreating the beautiful sky of youth, the author himself admitted that because he left his hometown, far from his childhood at an early age, he always thought about it. Perhaps that is why his works, whether for teenagers or even young adults, although pure and innocent, always contain a deep sadness, classical nostalgia, and above all, worship youthful emotions.
Nguyen Nhat Anh is truly a national literary brand in Vietnam.
Each book by Nguyen Nhat Anh, when released, creates a cultural and publishing phenomenon. Reading his writing, we always see a special, attractive writing style, coming from humor, clarity, full of kindness and love. Although the work is aimed at children, Nguyen Nhat Anh's short stories can touch the souls of adults.
National brand Nguyen Nhat Anh: From books to movies
Almost all the characters that writer Nguyen Nhat Anh writes about have an unfulfilled youthful dream with someone. The young man in "Passing Through the Chrysanthemums" fell in love with someone much older than him and had to sadly watch that person leave his life. Ngan loved Ha Lan from the time he did not know what love was until he was nearly forty, and did everything to make the person he loved happy. The high school boy in "Red Summer" had to run through a wide field full of memories in tears to escape from the person he loved, who would get married over the summer.
One of the important characteristics to suit cinema is that Nguyen Nhat Anh's stories always have a lot of dialogue, telling stories through dialogue.
Nguyen Nhat Anh's literature can be considered a "gold mine" to exploit, not only for the profitability of film projects but also for the writer's reputation.
Most of the films adapted from the works of writer Nguyen Nhat Anh have invested in the script, director, cast selection, and setting. Many people in the industry believe that this is an important factor contributing to the success, creating a good relationship between Nguyen Nhat Anh's works and cinema. The adaptation needs to maintain the "essence" of the writer's story but still have a moderate, balanced creativity of the screenwriter and director through conveying emotions through images to the audience.
Nguyen Nhat Anh is also good at telling dramatic stories in a gentle, haunting way.
Literature is an endless world of imagination, where each reader can freely draw their own images. Cinema, on the contrary, is a visual and concrete language. This difference creates a great challenge for filmmakers when adapting literary works. How to visualize soaring words while still retaining the spirit of the original is a difficult problem.
He is also very good at creating memorable images, from the blue eyes of the Netherlands to the yellow flowers and green grass of the poor countryside of Central Vietnam.
"Literary works in general and the works of writer Nguyen Nhat Anh in particular are a valuable treasure for filmmakers. Adapting these works has advantages in terms of brand, plot, and script, but there are also many challenges and difficulties to overcome. A good work that convinces the majority will be successful in terms of revenue," said screenwriter Dong Hoa.
The story of youth leaving the city to "find peace"
The novel "Once upon a time there was a love story" by writer Nguyen Nhat Anh was adapted to the big screen by Trinh Dinh Le Minh. The content of the work is about two boys named Phuc, Vinh and a girl named Mien. They have been together since childhood until adulthood, facing the challenges of fate. They start with friendship and gradually develop first love, hesitantly step into life, stumble and overcome. The story is gentle, romantic but full of thoughts about love, the journey of maturity once conquered readers.
The process of growing up and stumbling through life and being disillusioned in love is never easy for anyone.
Choosing a novel published in 2016, despite its rural setting, Nguyen Nhat Anh's simple, intimate, and concise writing style is still enough to conquer and make readers sob because of the pure emotions of young characters searching for their first love. Both "Mat Biec" and "Ngay Xua Co Mot Truyen Tinh" are love songs about youth, but each work has its own nuances. If "Mat Biec" is a sad love song, depicting regrets, then "Ngay Xua Co Mot Truyen Tinh" is a sweet love song, praising the beauty of sincere love.
There, is the beautiful presence of young people, loving in a very different way compared to the current telecommunications era: Vinh, Mien and Phuc... grew up together in the pure environment of the countryside, the sincerity is deeply ingrained in their conscience and makes them unable to do anything wrong to steal their own love. The love of Vinh, Mien and Phuc is a proof that true love does not need flowery words, does not need ostentatious actions, but only needs sincerity and trust.
"Once upon a time there was a love story with a very unique style by writer Nguyen Nhat Anh"
Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh once shared when he learned that Trinh Dinh Le Minh brought his work to the big screen: "I know that for the same novel character, one hundred readers will have one hundred different images depending on their personality and experience. The director is the same! Trinh Dinh Le Minh will imagine Vinh, Phuc, and Mien according to his feelings, imagination, personality, and creative tendencies. As a writer, I just hope that from literary materials, the director will create a successful film, especially one that touches the emotions of the audience, that's good enough!".
