A violent scene in the film “Race” 

Director Nguyen Khac Huy said film ‘Race’ was refused a license because the film focused on violent scenes featuring the life of gangs.

Trinh Thanh Nha, a member from the Central Council for Film Appraisal, said the use of violence was becoming increasingly common in films produced in Vietnam.

“Private film producers want to explore audience tastes. Meanwhile, young people, who are the majority audiences, often like shocking scenes. So film producers are obviously trying to appeal to this market,” she added.

However, violence is not the only factor to attract audiences. Many films which have violent scenes such as “In the Name of Love” and “House in the Alley” have lower revenues to other films which explore other topics.

According to Nha, action films usually have simple messages, so it is understandable for young directors to make these kinds of films.

“The second-generation overseas Vietnamese directors that followed Ho Quang Minh and Tran Anh Hung seem to be less interested in finding a foothold for Vietnamese films in the world cinema map. Therefore, many of them opt to make films with shocking scenes to attract young people. This can bring them easier financial returns than other kinds of film initially. I think this makes sense for them,” shed noted.

Nha continued, “After the “The Rebel”, I hoped that Vietnamese action films would develop.” She cited “Mandate of Heaven” as a good example. “The number of violent scenes wasn’t important, but it’s what they show or the messages behind these actions.”

Ly Thai Dung, Deputy Director of Vietnam Feature Film Studio, said that Vietnam should introduce a film classification system based on age which is commonly applied in many countries.