The Scent of Green Papaya (1993)

A Vietnamese servant girl, Mui, observes lives within two different Saigon families: the first, a woman textile seller with three boys and a frequently absent husband; the second, a handsome young pianist with his fiancée.

Director:

Anh Hung Tran (as Tran Anh Hung)

Writer:

Anh Hung Tran (as Tran Anh Hung)

Stars:

Nu Yên-Khê Tran, Man San Lu, Thi Loc Truong

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nu Yên-Khê Tran	...	Mui Age 20 (as Trân Nu Yên-Khê)
Man San Lu	...	Mui Age 10 #orphan # a little girl
Thi Loc Truong	...	La mère (as Truong Thi Lôc)
Anh Hoa Nguyen	...	La vieille Ti (as Nguyên 'Anh Hoa)
Hoa Hoi Vuong	...	Khuyen (as Vuong Hòa Hôi)
Ngoc Trung Tran	...	Le père
Vantha Talisman	...	Thu
Keo Souvannavong	...	Trung
Van Oanh Nguyen	...	Mr. Thuan
Gerard Neth	...	Tin
Nhat Do	...	Lam
Thi Hai Vo	...	La grand-mère
Thi Thanh Tra Nguyen	...	Mai
Lam Huy Bui	...	Le médecin
Xuan Thu Nguyen	...	L'antiquaire

Storyline

A little girl, Mui, went to a house as a new servant. The mother still mourns the death of her daughter, who would have been Mui's age. In her mind she treated Mui as her daughter. 10 years later Mui (now a young woman) was sent to another family, a young pianist and his fiancee. The musician fell in love with the peasant, he taught her literacy and they eventually married. A movie about a girl's life.

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Plot Keywords:

animal abuse | insect cage | polishing a shoe | sadness | talking in one's sleep | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the first Vietnamese film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It lost to Belle Epoque (1992) from Spain. It was also the first film to be submitted by Vietnam for the award and as of 2017, it is still the only Vietnamese movie ever to be nominated.

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Goofs

There's no ring on Mui's finger towards the end of the movie even though they are married.

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Connections

Referenced in 500 Days of Summer (2009)

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Soundtracks

Prélude no 24
Music by Frédéric Chopin (as Chopin)
Performed by Geneviève Ibanez

User Reviews

Beautiful to look at, although slightly too subdued

"Cyclo", the film Tran Ahn Hung made following this, his debut, is one of my all-time favorite films. This film isn't bad at all, but nowhere close to that masterpiece. No question Tran Ahn Hung is a very good filmmaker, but this wasn't quite compelling enough. Pretty to look at, but not a whole lot else. Ultimately I think the film is just slightly too subdued for it's own good, and threatens to disappear into it's own poetic reverie. Also, at times the film was distractingly stagey, not surprising considering that it was shot entirely on a set. Particularly problematic were the outdoor scenes, although there weren't very many of them.

Details

Country:

Vietnam France

Language:

Vietnamese

Release Date:

28 January 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Scent of Green Papaya

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,700,992

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,700,992

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Productions Lazennec, SFP Cinema, La, La Sept Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1