The producer of Heroes of the Sky has just released the first teaser, attracting attention when marking the reunion of Tuan Tran and Phuong Anh Dao - the duo who created a strong box office effect with the movie Mai. However, besides the positive signals from the teaser, the film's continued exploitation of the familiar character motif also raises many questions about the level of novelty in the two actors' acting.
The teaser opens with a view of Yen Hoa fishing village and immediately impresses with Ngoc's decisive line (Phuong Anh Dao). The way he expressed his cold but hurtful color shows that this character has many layers of emotions - a role that requires inner depth. The image of her carrying her child in the middle of the embankment or her despair in being tied up continues to promote Phuong Anh Dao's strengths in psychological films.
However, the actress's continued role as a single mother reminded the audience of her image in "Mai". In the role of Tran Thanh's Tet film, Phuong Anh Dao also plays a single mother, which makes it easy for the audience to compare.
In the opposite direction, Tuan Tran brought the image of Hong - a young man working in tourism optimistically, approachable but hiding many family conflicts. The scenes of him taking mother and child to walk on the sea, floating on a net to fish or visiting the fishing village show that this character has the "healing" properties typical of Tet films. More notably, the change of tone when the incident occurred: The red captain of a canoe through thunderstorms and confronted the villain Thien (Quach Ngoc Ngoan). The line "For the past 7 years, the boy has no father..." helps Tuan Tran clearly express the depth of emotions, from blame to pain. This is a challenge for the actor in shaking off his familiar youthful image to move into a more severe inner role.
The combination of the two actors is therefore both an advantage and a challenge. They have a good interaction thanks to each collaboration in a hit project, but the old success also creates new pressure: if the characters and emotional flow are not different, the film can easily be compared to Mai. Teaser shows that the crew is trying to separate the film from its pure tragic color by adding elements of river, chase, sea and island atmosphere and family nostalgia. This is a direction with the potential to expand the acting range of both actors.
From the initial signals, Heroes of the Sky possesses a strong emotional content, a seasoned cast and a new cinematic setting. However, the success level depends on whether the film is different enough to help Tuan Tran - Phuong Anh Dao step out of the "ball" of 520 billion VND of "Mai" or not.