According to data from Box Office Vietnam, the number of tickets sold for Dat Rung Phuong Nam shows signs of a sharp decline even though the number of daily screenings is still very high (about more than 4,000). As of noon on October 26, the work earned 108 billion VND after nearly 2 weeks of release, reaching a milestone that helped the producer break even but was considered low compared to previous expectations.
Southern Forest Land revenue continues to show signs of a deep decline after nearly 2 weeks of release
The noise and controversy affect the audience’s psychology
One unfortunate thing for the crew of Dat Phuong Nam is that the film has been involved in a series of controversies over the past time. In the movie version, director Nguyen Quang Dung made many modifications compared to the original. As soon as the project revealed its first images, many comments commented that the film’s setting was strange and did not evoke the old West. At the same time, many people also compare the film to the 1997 television version that was very successful. Some criticized new characters such as Uncle Ba Phi (played by Tran Thanh) and Vo Tong (played by Mai Tai Phien). They believe that the new actors’ appearance does not match the prototype.
After the early screenings, the biggest controversy that broke out was the crew’s use of group names such as Thien Dia Hoi and Nghia Hoa Doan in the film. In the movie, these are the main forces carrying out anti-invasion activities. Some people commented that the work partly emphasized the position of these secret groups in the patriotic movement against the French in the ancient South.
Director Nguyen Quang Dung then proactively proposed plans to edit and replace some lines in the film. Specifically, the names Nghia Hoa Doan and Thien Dia Hoi have been changed to Nam Hoa Doan and Chinh Nghia Hoi respectively.
Southern Forest Land was entangled in a series of controversies immediately after its release in theaters
These noises greatly affected the performance of Southern Forest Dat at the box office. Having an expected opening with more than 43 billion after three days, the film quickly cooled down in the theater system even though it still accounted for the majority of screenings on the day. After reaching the sales milestone of 100 billion VND on October 23, in the following days, the revenue of the movie Southern Forest Land only reached about 3 billion VND per day, down 5 times compared to the first premiere days.
Recently, director Nguyen Quang Dung expressed his opinion that there are many people who do not watch the film but slander and trash the work. He wrote: “There are a lot of people attacking the movie Southern Forest Land in recent days, they even insult… I read it all and I see a lot, it can be said that most of those extremists are Haven’t seen the movie yet. Because there are many incorrect arguments in the movie that take place. They listen to this side, listen to that place and further develop the direction they want to slander.”.
”I went to sites that were sympathetic to the movie, and many people used harsh words to try to find ways to discourage anyone from coming to see the movie. They promote patriotism while insulting others. With such cynical and cynical language, such a nature, and such a culture of behavior, the ideals you believe in are questionable,” Nguyen Quang Dung continued.
Movie quality is not as expected
Another equally important reason why Southern Forest Land lost its appeal comes from the quality of the film itself. Immediately after its release, in addition to positive compliments, the work received many criticisms for its content, dialogue, techniques as well as the overuse of inappropriate action and humor elements.
Producer Tran Thanh and director Nguyen Quang Dung
One element that netizens criticize badly is the special effects part. In the movie, many scenes using special effects look no different from animation, and cannot be more “fake”. The scenes of storks flying at the beginning of the film or the scene where An – Co – Xinh group shoots beehives do not create a visual impression. Many details and characters in the movie, such as Ut Luc Lam and Uncle Ba Phi, were changed rather forcefully and inappropriately. Letting the main character An (played by Hao Khang) be overshadowed among the supporting characters also made many viewers unhappy.
Overall, director Nguyen Quang Dung has the ambition to create a new work to go beyond the shadow of the already famous 1997 version. However, he did not understand the spirit of both the book and the television series, leading to half-hearted adaptations that only aimed at entertainment and ignored the core elements.
Released during the off-peak period of the Vietnamese box office
Another disadvantage of Southern Forest Land is that it opens in theaters during the low box office period. A series of previous Vietnamese film projects continuously failed and lost money. In September, there were 3 Vietnamese films released but all of them achieved unsatisfactory sales. They are: Zombie Ferry, Touching Happiness and Live: Live Stream. According to data from Box Office Vietnam (an independent box office monitoring unit), these works only earned less than 5 billion VND.
According to some people in the industry, the reason for this partly comes from the fact that the global film market is also in recession. In Hollywood, consecutive and prolonged strikes have caused many blockbusters to be rescheduled or production stalled. Many cinemas in North America or Korea are also in decline, not just Vietnam.
In November, the Vietnamese box office is expected to be hotter with many other works released. Director Victor Vu returns to the silver screen with the much-awaited historical drama The Last Wife, starring actress Kaity Nguyen. Some notable international blockbusters such as The Marvels, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, Trolls Band Together… are also present, making it very difficult for Dat Phuong Nam to continue. continues to dominate the number of screenings today.
With the current situation, Phuong Nam Forest Land is unlikely to reach the 150 billion VND mark after leaving theaters. Previously, many people in the industry predicted that the work could surpass the 200 billion VND mark thanks to the name of the original work and the experienced crew.
