Mai, a Vietnamese drama and romance movie by film producer and director Trấn Thành, is now available in international markets. Photo courtesy of the producer

HCM CITY — Vietnamese drama and romance movie Mai has been released in international markets since March 22.

The production by film producer and director Trấn Thành is currently available in theatres in the US.

The film will be later screened in Canada, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, and the UK.

Mai features a story about a massage therapist named Mai, who faces misfortunes in life. After moving into an old apartment, she meets Dương, a rich young man who wants to experience a normal life. Both quickly fall in love.

The work features Phương Anh Đào, Tuấn Trần, Uyển Ân, and veteran actors People’s Artists Việt Anh and Ngọc Giàu.

It was released in Việt Nam on February 10, or Lunar New Year’s Day.

After 41 days in theatres, Mai raked in VNĐ520 billion (US$20.9 million) and sold around 6.5 million tickets, becoming the highest-grossing Vietnamese film of all time.

Thành is known for producing the high-grossing movies in Việt Nam.

He rose to fame as a producer with his debut movie and smash hit Bố Già (Dad, I’m Sorry) in 2021, directed by Vũ Ngọc Đãng, which broke box-office records for a Vietnamese film by earning VNĐ400 billion ($16.1 million).

The film was also sold to Malaysia, Singapore, the US, and Australia.

It won the Silver Lotus Award for Best Feature Film and for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Screenplay at the annual Việt Nam Film Festival.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism chose the film as the Vietnamese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Category at the 2022 Oscar Awards.

Following the success of Bố Già, Thành released his directorial debut Nhà Bà Nữ (The House of No Man) in 2023.

The film broke his own record by earning VNĐ475 billion ($19.2 million), selling 5.8 million tickets.

It was screened in the US, Singapore, Canada and New Zealand. — VNS