Director Tran Anh Hung's film surprised everyone when it was selected by France to compete in the 2024 Oscars.

On the night of September 21, Vietnam time, international press simultaneously reported that the film The Pot au Feu by director Tran Anh Hung was selected by France to submit to the 96th Oscars, in the international film category.

Sites such as Variety, Indie Wire and several French film forums also expressed surprise when The Pot au Feu was chosen, instead of the film that won the highest prize at the recent Cannes Film Festival, Anatomy of Fall , directed by Justine Triet.

Actors Juliette Binoche and Benoit Magimel in a scene from the film. (Photo provided by the film crew)

There are many reasons for this surprise. Anatomy of Fall is released by Neon, the famous film studio that released Parasite by Korean director Bong Joon-ho.

The film then won a resounding victory at the 2019 Oscars, causing a global buzz with its quality and list of winners of a series of prestigious awards.

In addition, at the French box office, Anatomy of Fall grossed 8 million euros from nearly 1 million tickets sold. Variety reported: This achievement makes the film one of the highest-grossing Palme d'Or-winning academic films in recent years.

The Pot au Feu by Vietnamese-born director Tran Anh Hung is a French-language film, formerly known as La Passion de Dodin Bouffant . The film's current English title is The Taste of Thing.

The film premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival and received a 7-minute standing ovation. It competed directly for the Palme d'Or but lost to Anatomy of Fall . Director Tran Anh Hung later won the individual award for Best Director.

The Pot au Feu is adapted from the French novel “La vie et la Passion de Dodin-Bouffant, Gourmet”.

The film is set in 19th century France, telling the story of Dodin (Benoit Magimel) - a culinary expert, a gourmet and Eugenie (Juliette Binoche) - a respected chef.

After 20 years of knowing each other, the two characters develop a romantic relationship. However, when the female chef proposes marriage, Dodin only responds by cooking for her.

Like Tran Anh Hung’s familiar filmmaking style, the film does not invest in developments, drama and climax. Critics once commented that The Pot au Feu was “unseasoned”, but it is undeniable that the film’s subtlety and subtlety in its presentation as well as the actors’ performances.

Juliette Binoche and Benoit Magimel dated in the past. They acted together in films and had a child together, but never married. The two actors split in 2003 after more than half a decade together. Many writers have commented that perhaps this is why their acting has such a surprising chemistry, evoking so much emotion.

1993 was the last time a French film won an Oscar for best international film, Indochine (Indochina, released in 1992). The film was set in Vietnam during the French colonial period and was famous internationally in general and in the art-loving community in Vietnam in particular.

This is also the year that Vietnam has the first film competing officially in the same category, also a film by Tran Anh Hung called The Scent of Green Papaya. The film was originally invested and made in France, but the director requested that Vietnam be the representative country.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/phim-cua-dao-dien-tran-anh-hung-gay-ngac-nhien-khi-duoc-nuoc-phap-chon-gui-du-thi-oscar-2024-243178.html