The new Netflix film "A Tourist's Guide to Love" takes a fresh look at Vietnam that is not generally shown in mainstream Hollywood movies, enchanting global viewers.
The movie became the most-watched film in the world on the Netflix platform for the week of April 24-30, with a total of 20.9 million hours of watching, according to Netflix.
Directed by Steven Tsuchida and penned by Vietnamese-American screenwriter Eirene Tran Donohue, the film is about an American travel executive who takes on a new mission to investigate the tourism industry in Vietnam. On her journey, she begins a romantic and adventurous relationship with her Vietnamese ex-pat tour guide after an unforeseen breakup.
The film urges audiences to explore beyond the usual tourist spots. Depicting adventure and romance, it is expected to help foreign tourists learn more about Vietnam and its culture. "A Tourist's Guide to Love" shows the beauty of various towns and landscapes.
It was filmed in Ho Chi Minh City in the south – Vietnam’s largest city which is a vibrant and dynamic hub of modern skyscrapers and historic landmarks; Danang and Hoi An in the central region; Hanoi and the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang. Hoi An, just a 30-minute drive south of Danang, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
“Too much happens in the first few minutes of the film, but then, once we reach Vietnam, "A Tourist’s Guide to Love" becomes a supremely delightful, albeit generic exploration of romance with a side order of soul-searching,” cinemaexpress.com wrote on Sunday. “A Tourist’s Guide to Love" manages to charm our socks off courtesy of performances… and the innate beauty of Vietnam itself.”
"The new romantic comedy is reigniting interest in traveling to the country, long a beloved destination of foodies and nature lovers,” hollywoodreporter.com commented.
“Hoi An is just the most charming city on planet Earth. It has this Venetian-style canal going through it, and at night, when the sun goes down, they light all these beautiful lanterns and make wishes on them and set them off into the water. I would go back to Hoi An in a second,” star Ben Feldman, who played as the travel executive’s ex-boyfriend in the film, told the movie magazine.
While the gorgeous scenery and bustling city scenes are the big draw for the film, a further standout is the soundtrack, which is packed with Vietnamese and Vietnamese-American artists, said salon.com, an American news and opinion website.
Screenwriter Donohue’s recommendation for the soundtrack "Changes," by rising Vietnamese-American pop singer Emily Vu, provides a suitably wistful soundtrack for Amanda to come to an epiphany about her life.
In a post on her Instagram, Donohue said the song "feels like it was written exactly for the movie," alongside a photo of her and Vu. "So excited that I got to meet her and that I could be a part of introducing the world to her spectacular talent," Donohue wrote.