Box office boost
In the picture of the second half of 2025, the most prominent is the group of "guest- catering" films that bring good revenue to the producer. A typical example is "Bringing My Mother Out", a psychological and family drama that attracted attention right from the time the script was released. Thanks to the factor of closeness and the ability to arouse empathy, the work quickly surpassed the revenue mark of nearly 170 billion VND after the official screening time.
At the same time, "Red Rain" exploiting the theme of history - war has created a fever. With an elaborate reconstruction and dramatic storytelling, the film proves that Vietnamese cinema can completely create quality war films, not inferior to other film genres.
Red Rain not only scored points for its grand scale but also aroused national pride, causing many screenings to continuously lose tickets and currently, the project is approaching the 700 billion VND mark and is the highest-grossing Vietnamese film of all time.
In the pure entertainment film category, "Getting Rich with Ghosts 2" starring Hoai Linh, Diep Bao Ngoc... is currently reaching the 100 billion VND mark and becoming the next Vietnamese film to achieve a revenue of hundreds of billions in the second half of 2025.
Meanwhile, The War in the Air - the most notable action film outside of Vietnamese theaters at the moment. The film not only features quality stars such as Thai Hoa, Kaity Nguyen, Xuan Phuc... but is also carefully made and has many beautiful action scenes. The project is moving towards the 100 billion VND mark in the coming time.
There are still many "low notes"
In contrast to the above success, many other films have failed heavily, even being called a " box office disaster". Typically, "Co luong co chiu", the work is expected to thank actors such as Cat Phuong, My Duyen... but the content lacks highlights, the character building is shallow and the script conflicts are unreasonable. The film only stayed in theaters for more than a week and was forced to withdraw early because the revenue only reached more than 100 million VND.
With the same fate as the film "Co choi co chiu", the film "Doi gi mo di" also left theaters with a revenue of more than 300 million VND.Despite huge promotions and a series of trailers, when it was released, the film was criticized for " saying more than doing", the pace of the film waspar real, lacking climax.
The common point of this failed film group is the lack of investment in scripts, focusing on media forms or tricks, while the core element is the story that is taken lightly.
At the same time, a notable paradox in the second half of 2025 is the presence of quality films that are highly appreciated by experts but do not achieve the expected revenue, let alone "The treatise of selling mulberry".
"The treatment of selling mulberry" conquered critics thanks to its subtle exploitation of a thorny social problem mixed with horror and spiritual elements: Arranged marriage and the identity of women in the old society. The film was praised for its tight script and convincing acting of stars such as Lam Thanh My, Lanh Thanh...
However, the general audience is not very interested, partly because of the heavy theme, the film was released in theaters at a time when there were many domestic and foreign blockbusters. Currently, the project has only earned more than 16 billion VND.
Can't just follow the trend
The second half of 2025 ended with two clear extreme points: One group of films won big at the box office, the other group "falled off the horse" miserably. This painting not only reflects the differentiation in the audience's tastes but also sets requirements for producers: It is impossible to just follow the trend or expect "a lucky draw".
Vietnamese audiences are increasingly strict, willing to spend money on both quality and entertaining works, and at the same time do not hesitate to "let go" with superficial products. Therefore, to conquer the market, filmmakers are forced to invest comprehensively: From scripts, techniques, actors to communication strategies.
Vietnamese cinema still has a lot of potential, and the success of the "blockbusters" in the second half of 2025 is a clear proof. However, in the context of fierce competition with foreign films and rapid changes in audience tastes, only works that truly harmonize art and the market can last.
