VietNamNet Bridge – “Huang Feihong”, “De Mai Tinh 2” and “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” are the most awaited films in the last month of the year.
1. Huang Feihong (China)
Release date: 5/12
Genre: Action – Martial Art
Cast: Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Eddie Peng, Luodan Wang
Director: Roy Chow, Chow Hin Yeung Roy
Time: 90 minutes
Language: Vietnamese dubbing only
In the late Qing Dynasty of the mid-19th century Guangzhou is mired in corruption, poverty and crime. The Black Tiger gang, run by the ruthless Master Lei (veteran Sammo Hung), and the North Sea gang are pitted in a war for the control of the lucrative port. Wong Fei Hung (Peng, Cold War, Doze Niu’s Love) breaks into the Black Tiger gang and his skilled fighting quickly earns the confidence of Lei and he becomes his fourth “son.” Naturally, Wong has ulterior motives: similar thugs murdered Wong’s teacher/doctor father (Tony Leung Ka-fai) when he was nine. On top of that, Wong and his childhood friends Fiery (Jing Boran, The Guillotines) and Chun (Wang Luodan) are out to destroy the gangs completely as yet another gang, the Orphans, and bring justice back to the Guangzhou.
2. The Pyramid (USA)
Release date: 5/12
Genre: Horror
Cast: Garsha Arristos, Joseph Beddelem, Omar Benbrahim
Director: Grégory Levasseur
Duration: 89 mins
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
A team of U.S. archaeologists unearths an ancient pyramid buried deep beneath the Egyptian desert. As they search the pyramid’s depths, they become hopelessly lost in its dark and endless catacombs. Searching for a way out, they become desperate to seek daylight again. They come to realize they aren’t just trapped, they are being hunted.
3. O.T. Ghost Overtime (Thailand)
Release date: 5/12
Genre: Horror, thriller
Actors: Chakrit Yamnam , Ananda Everingham , Ray MacDonald
Director: Isara Nadee
Duration: 106 minutes
Language: Vietnamese with English subtitle
Three partners (played by Ananda Everingham, Chakrit Yamnam and Ray MacDonald) run an odd company and are one day hired to do a wedding party at an old hotel. It is a luxurious old hotel, but unbeknownst to them it is haunted by ghosts.
4. Horrible Bosses 2 (USA)
Release date: 5/12
Genre: Comedy, Action
Cast: Charlie Day, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Aniston
Director: Sean Anders
Duration: 108 minutes
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
Fed up with answering to higher-ups, Nick, Dale and Kurt decide to become their own bosses by launching their own business in “Horrible Bosses 2.” But a slick investor soon pulls the rug out from under them. Outplayed and desperate, and with no legal recourse, the three would-be entrepreneurs hatch a misguided plan to kidnap the investor’s adult son and ransom him to regain control of their company.
5. De Mai Tinh 2 (Vietnam)
Release date: 12/12
Genre: Comedy
Cast: Thai Hoa, Quang Su, Diem My, Huy Khanh
Director: Charlie Nguyen
Language: Vietnamese with English subtitle
After 4 years saying goodbye to Dung and Mai, Pham Huong Hoi has changed into a new person. Becoming a successful business woman, Hoi decides to go back to Vietnam for her enormous Mega Malls project. Destiny has brought Hoi to a dream man that she has been dreaming for so long. Yet, this is also the time Hoi has to decide which to stay with: her dream love or her life time career.
6. Doraemon: Stand by Me (Japan)
Release date: 12/12
Genre: Animation, Drama, Family
Director: Ryuichi Yagi, Takashi Yamazaki
Cast: Satoshi Tsumabuki
Language: Vietnamese dubbing
In the suburbs of Tokyo some time ago, there lived a clumsy boy about 10 years old. There appeared in front of him named Sewashi, Nobita’s descendant of four generations later from the 22nd century, and Doraemon, a 22nd century cat-type caretaker robot who helps people with its secret gadgets. Sewashi claims that his family is suffering from the debts Nobita made even to his generation, so in order to change this disastrous future, he brought along Doraemon as Nobita’s caretaker to bring happiness to his future, although Doraemon is not happy about this. And so Sewashi installed an accomplishment program into Doraemon forcing him to take care of Nobita. Unless he makes Nobita happy, Doraemon can no longer go back to the 22nd century.
7. The Taking of Deborah Logan (USA)
Release date: 12/12
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Stars: Jill Larson, Anne Ramsay, Michelle Ang
Duration: 90 minutes
English with Vietnamese subtitle
What starts as a poignant medical documentary about Deborah Logan’s descent into Alzheimer’s disease and her daughter’s struggles as caregiver degenerates into a maddening portrayal of dementia at its most frightening, as hair-raising events begin to plague the family and crew and an unspeakable malevolence threatens to tear the very fabric of sanity from them all.
8. In the Dark (Malaysia)
Release date: 12/12
Genre: Horror, thriller
Director: Yeo Joon Han
Cast: Wang Po-Chieh, Candy Lee
Duration: 99 minutes
Language: Mandarin with Vietnamese subtitle
The story sees an estate agent attempt to summon up the spirit of his girlfriend who is killed in a car crash. But he inadvertently brings to life a host of other spirits including the mysterious man who lies in a coma after the accident.
9. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (USA)
Release date: 19/12
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Family
Director: Shawn Levy
Stars: Robin Williams, Dan Stevens, Ben Stiller
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
Larry spans the globe, uniting favorite and new characters while embarking on an epic quest to save the magic before it is gone forever.
10. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Release date: 19/12
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy
Director: Peter Jackson
Stars: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage
Duration: 90 minutes
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
“The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” brings to an epic conclusion the adventures of Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and the Company of Dwarves. The Dwarves of Erebor have reclaimed the vast wealth of their homeland, but now must face the consequences of having unleashed the terrifying Dragon, Smaug, upon the defenseless men, women and children of Lake-town.
As he succumbs to dragon-sickness, the King Under the Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield, sacrifices friendship and honor in his search for the legendary Arkenstone. Unable to help Thorin see reason, Bilbo is driven to make a desperate and dangerous choice, not knowing that even greater perils lie ahead. An ancient enemy has returned to Middle-earth. Sauron, the Dark Lord, has sent forth legions of Orcs in a stealth attack upon the Lonely Mountain. As darkness converges on their escalating conflict, the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must decide—unite or be destroyed. Bilbo finds himself fighting for his life and the lives of his friends as five great armies go to war.
11. The Crossing
Release date: 19/12
Genre: Drama
Director: John Woo
Stars: Zhang Ziyi, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Song Hye-kyo, Huang Xiaoming, Tong Dawei, Masami Nagasawa
Duration: 90 minutes
Language: Mandarin with Vietnamese subtitle
The film is based on the sinking of the steamer “Taiping” in 1949. The incident led to the deaths of over 1,500 passengers and crew. The film’s first part was released in China on December 2, 2014. Part two will be released in May 2015.
12. Hush
Release date: 24/12
Genre: Horror
Director: Van Pham
Stars: Phuong Mai, Quang Su, Chi Pu
Duration: 90 minutes
Language: Vietnamese with English subtitle
Lan, a detective writer and her 5 year-old son move to an old apartment after her husband’s betrayal. From the day she received a music box from the apartment manager, nightmares seemed to mysteriously visit her more often.
13. Toc Do va Duong Cong
Release date: 24/12
Genre: Action, Drama
Director: Phan Minh
Stars: Le Khanh, Khuong Ngoc, Quy Binh, Diem My
Duration: 90 minutes
Language: Vietnamese with English subtitle
The movie is considered the Fast and Furious of Vietnam. It tells a story about the race between Viet (starring Khuong Ngoc) and Nin (starring Quy Binh) on the street and in real life. Viet is a well-known car guy in Saigon who owns a premium car salon. One day, his life is changed when Nin, a mechanic who also has a strong passion for speed and car facelift, comes to work at Viet’s salon and makes him feel as if he were challenged by the newcomer. And so the race begins between two people with different backgrounds but the same fiery passion for speed.
14. The Hundred-Foot Journey
Release date: 25/12
Genre: Drama
Director: Lasse Hallström
Stars: Helen Mirren, Om Puri, Manish Dayal
Duration: 122 minutes
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
In “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) is a culinary ingénue with the gastronomic equivalent of perfect pitch. Displaced from their native India, the Kadam family, led by Papa (Om Puri), settles in the quaint village of Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val in the south of France. Filled with charm, it is both picturesque and elegant – the ideal place to settle down and open an Indian restaurant, the Maison Mumbai.
That is, until the chilly chef proprietress of Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin starred, classical French restaurant run by Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren), gets wind of it. Her icy protests against the new Indian restaurant a hundred feet from her own escalate to all out war between the two establishments until Hassan’s passion for French haute cuisine and for Madame Mallory’s enchanting sous chef, Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon), combine with his mysteriously delicious talent to weave magic between their two cultures and imbue Saint-Antonin with the flavors of life that even Mme. Mallory cannot ignore.
Madame Mallory eventually recognizes Hassan’s gift as a chef and takes him under her wing. “The Hundred-Foot Journey” abounds with flavors that burst across the tongue. A stimulating triumph over exile, blossoming with passion and heart, with marjoram and madras, it is a portrayal of two worlds colliding and one boy’s drive to find the comfort of home, in every pot, wherever he may be.
15. Exodus: Gods and Kings
Release date: 25/12
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
Director: Ridley Scott
Stars: Helen Mirren, Om Puri, Manish Dayal
Duration: 142 minutes
Language: English with Vietnamese subtitle
The defiant leader Moses rises up against the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses, setting 600,000 slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues.
T. Van