The Scent of Green Papaya [DVD]

 

 

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It seems impossible how a plot so simple, how the day to day experience of a young Vietnamese servant as she learns her work, observing the very ordinary uneventful life of the family she serves, can be so exquisitely beautiful.

But every second is a fresh wonder to savour and sense, but the wonders are everyday things and happenings.

I only found an explanation by reading another review, this is a film based on a Buddhist view of life, so we share with the servant Mui her living absolutely for the present moment, observing everything afresh, being enriched by her silent presence as the family are in the film. This is made possible by the combination of superb photography and minimal dialogue riveting our attention on Mui.

The Buddhist culture of the film explains why when Mui is grown up and working for a young musician he recognises Mui in a bust of Buddha.

Mui is played by two actresses, Man San Lu as a child of 10 and Tran Nu Yen-Khe age twenty, and fortunately both actresses are able to portray the extraordinary personality of Mui.

This master work is probably unique in the power of its simplicity.

This film captures beautiful images as seen by the naked eye when the camera hones in on such natural wonders as a frog on a large green leaf, an ant carrrying a crumb or a papaya tree with green ripening fruit located outside one's window. Or when the camera scans the the interior of the home and captures oriental lattice work on a porch railing or a screen wall divider or porcelain vases on a credence. These images are impressed both on the viewer and on the mind of Mui, a nine year old Vietnamese girl from a small village who gets a job as servant in the household of shopkeepers. The artistic use of cinematography leaves the viewer with a sense of wonder and anticipation, expecting to be spellbound by even more mysterious oriental imagery - the viewer will not be disappointed! This feeling and tone is mesmerizing as so much beauty and such a wonderful love story unfolds ... with a minimum of dialogue.

Mui learns the household routine from an older servant ... She awakens early to make breakfast, cleans the floors on her hands and knees, and learns to prepare delicious and colorful meals using a wok....The family has three sons, one is older, almost an adult, two are younger - the middle son is about 11 or 12 years old, the youngest is about 5 or 6 years and very mischevious. The family business is selling textiles. Mui is treated kindly and later learns the family had a daughter who would be exactly Mui's age. She died of a mysterious disease. There is slight tension within the family regarding the business. The wife runs the business impeccably. She keeps accounts accurately and locks up the cash in a safe. Her husband often spends his time daydreaming and playing an oriental stringed instrument, sometimes accompaned on a flute by the eldest son. In the past, the husband had abruptly left the household, taking all the cash and likely gambling away their savings. After one such episode, his baby daughter became ill and died exactly the day before he returned. This event haunts him ...

One day, the servants were awaiting his return for dinner but he does not show up. The wife was notified. She checked his room and then went to the safe only to discover all the household cash and savings were gone. He did not break his gambling habit. His wife gave some gold earrings to pawn to have enough money to buy rice for the meals. She sold some of her antique vases to make ends meet. Eventually, he returned but was ill. Despite the best Oriental medicine, including acupuncture and moxibustion, his health deteriorated and he died. Ten years passed and the textile business was waning. Mui was still employed by the same family who were contemplating sending her to work for a wealthier family since they could not afford to keep her any longer.

Mui accepted the news sadly and received a pearl necklace and gold bracelet as parting gifts from her former mistress. The mistress tearfully bid her good-bye, telling Mui how much she appreciated having her live in their home, feeling Mui was like her own daughter. Mui became the only servant to a bachelor musician/composer who was engaged to be married. His fiance becomes jealous of the young pretty servant. Although at that point there was no relationship other than master and servant ... the fiance's instincts are not wrong ... Mui and her master play a game of hide-and-seek, cat-and-mouse until their energies and bodies physically unite. The film delicately portrays the growing love between the musician and his servant. All of it is shown naturally yet ... without explicit scenes. By far, this is among the best oriental love stories shown on film. Erika Borsos (pepper flower)

An allegory of Vietnam: a young girl from the country becomes maid in a wealthy Vietnamese house. While she grows to maturity the war for possession is in the background but is present only as the siren for curfew and as planes overhead. The film is visually exquisite, the action subtle and fascinating as the old world vanishes and she emerges a beautiful adult. Watch out for her pet cricket, the frog in the courtyard and the green papaya she prepares each day for her mistress. A film that rewards repeated and close viewing.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Scent of Green Papaya
It doesn't matter if you don't know what exactly a papaya, its tree or fruit is. The film is sensuous, organic and develops along suggestion and hint rather than explanation,... Read more

Published 2 months ago by Anne Lucey

4.0 out of 5 stars The Scent Of Green Papaya [DVD] [1993] by Tran Nu Yên-Khê
I am currently working my way through a number of films from China having recently returned from a trip to this beautiful country. Read more

Published 13 months ago by John Lambert

5.0 out of 5 stars Silent masterpiece
Calling it silent may in many ways be wrong - but there certainly isn't a lot of dialogue in this movie, but a demanding score and the natural sounds of the surroundings plays a... Read more

Published 18 months ago by JFC

3.0 out of 5 stars A small picture of Vietnamese life
The photography is exquisite throughout the film. The film itself moves at a slow pace, but gives one an idea of life in Vietnam before the Revolution. Read more

Published on 31 Jan 2009 by Margaret

2.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as i expected it would be.
This is a nicely made film with some lovely visual imagery, particularly the mesmerizing cooking scenes which the director seems to have a fascination with. Read more

Published on 13 Jan 2009 by M. Telford

4.0 out of 5 stars Captivating
Saigon, Vietnam 1951.Ten year old Mui(Lu Man San) arrives from the country to take up her position as servant girl to a sporadically wealthy family. Read more

Published on 14 Mar 2007 by Mark Pearce

5.0 out of 5 stars feel the calm
the film slowly builds it's layers describing a 10/12 year period in a Vietnamese family who are enjoying mixed fortunes. Read more

Published on 19 Dec 2004 by Red Nemesis Dog

5.0 out of 5 stars The Fruits of Kindness
This lovely and subtle film washes over you like a gentle tropical rain. The dialog is sparse and the beauty dense in director Anh Hung Tran's portrait of a young servant girl in... Read more

Published on 11 Jan 2003

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