A wonderful true-to-life coming-of-age movie
When the first poster of this movie was published by 2B Entertainment (Vietnam), it raised expectations of a BL movie with a lot of NC content, and there are actually some scenes just as explicit as Vietnamese and youtube censorship would let pass, but in fact this is a true-to-life movie about Phong, a boy who knows and has accepted that he is gay, and his longtime friend Nhat, who is trying to find his sexual identity.
Phong (Vuong Huy) has had a crush on Nhat (Tran Vu Duc Duy) for a long time, but has never confessed to him as he doesn't want to destroy their friendship. He is all the more surprised when Nhat tells him that he has feelings for him. In quite a weird move, Nhat asks Phong to have sex with him as he wants to find out about his true self.
Phong is reluctant at first, because he does not want to have sex with someone who he thinks doesn't really love him. But then he agrees, which results in a shower scene which is more awkward than inspiring. Although Nhat has always protested this would only happen once, he starts chasing after Phong, making him feel uncomfortable. The second time the boys have sex in Nhat's house looks like rape at first, as Phong tries to resist Nhat, but he finally consents.
Phong still feels uncomfortable about the situation as he thinks that Nhat, who has a girlfriend called Thuy, doesn't really love him, and just as he thinks that love without sex is just friendship, he also doesn't want sex without love. Everything changes when Nhat and Phong's friend Trac introduces Phong to his cousin Tri who teaches Phong taking photos. Nhat becomes jealous, which comes across as possessiveness rather than protection or even love.
Phong's strong character shows when he reveals his problem, i.e. that he does not want to have sex with someone who doesn't love him, to Tri, who becomes his love doctor by suggesting to act as his boyfriend so that Nhat stops harrassing Phong. It is clear to the viewer, though not to Phong, that Tri has feelings for him, and of course things turn out as expected: Tri confesses to Phong and even tries to kiss him, but this is the moment when Phong realizes that he loves Nhat and nobody else.
At the same time Nhat is confronted by his girlfriend Thuy who he has been neglecting for a while, and again it is Trac who clears the air by telling her that Nhat isn't interested in her any more. Thuy is upset and runs away after yelling at him what she thinks of him, and the writer of the story gives us a hilarious scene when Trac slaps Nhat's face as a punishment for the way he has treated both Thuy and Phong.
Phong runs away from Tri after the kiss and reunites with Nhat, who finally confesses to him. Instead of romantically riding into the sunset together, Nhat and Phong romantically stroll through the Christmas decorations of the city – the perfect happy ending after the ups and downs of their relationship, and again some beautiful shots of the urban landscape.
I haven't yet mentioned the underwater scenes which are probably the reason why the movie got 100,000 views within 24 hours. These scenes, voiced over by Phong, are actually a wonderful, metaphorical way of illustrating Phong's feelings, and instead of being a cheap way of grabbing views, they add to the serious, and at the same time serene atmosphere of the movie, to which the sensitive soundtrack contributes its part as well.
The writing succeeds in displaying the emotions – doubts as well as more or less secret longing – of two boys coming of age, and like in the musical series ”Under the Oak Tree”, Oril Nguyen proves that he is able to transfer his script into approrpiate as well as beautiful pictures.
I need to say something about using the vertical mode, which has become popular in short Tiktok clips, for a full movie. I usually don't like vertical mode, but I must admit that it has been perfected in this movie. Vertical mode requires different shots and angles than usual movie formats – it is certainly not good in scenes with a lot of persons. However, it does allow interesting shots like a view into the urban gorge between skyscrapers, but this movie proves that it can also be reasonable in scenes focusing on one or two characters, provided the actors are able to fill the complete screen.
This brings me to the acting in this movie. Vuong Huy and Tran Vu Duc Duy have already proven their talent and skills in ”Under the Oak Tree”, so it was no surprise for me that they both personify their characters convincingly.
Tran Vu Duc Duy credibly displays Nhat's doubts about his identity which lead to actions the viewer tends to despise, e.g. when he almost rapes Phong. But his intricate acting helps viewers to understand the reasons of Nhat's doubts, inhibitions and consequently his weird actions.
Vuong Huy is perfectly able to display the boy who seems weak on the surface, but in reality is so much stronger than Nhat. He is a gifted actor, who has an admirable timing which is often found in actors who are good musicians as well, which he is.
Unfortunately, the credits only give us the names of the supporting actors, but not their roles, so I can only say that both the actors who play Tri and Trac are good, whereas the actress playing Thuy comes across a little OTT, as it is often the case in BL movies and series, and it probably isn't the actress's fault, but intended by the director.
All in all, ”KHÁT” wasn't the movie I expected after seeing the poster. It was something a lot better – a true-to-life coming-of-age movie with excellent acting, set in beautiful pictures. Kudos to cast and crew!
