Ky Nam Inn

After the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War, North and South Vietnam were reunified under Communist rule, and a single-party socialist regime was imposed. It is in the mid-1980s, in the period of recovery and change that followed this tumultuous time, that Khang (Lien Binh Phat) and Ky Nam (Do Thi Hai Yen) meet.

Khang is a young translator on his way to success thanks to his family connections. Tasked with working on a new translation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince, Khang moves to Saigon, grateful for the opportunity but wanting to shed the perception of nepotism. On the evening he arrives at his new abode, he meets Ky Nam, a widowed older woman from the South who makes a living by cooking. She keeps to herself and seems to have hardened as a form of defence, like her namesake agarwood, kynam, the rare resin produced by Aquilaria trees when they are injured. Although Khang and Ky Nam seem at first to be complete opposites, they soon find themselves emotionally entwined.

Copiously referencing great literature and music, the lyrical and gentle dialogue beautifully complements the visuals, compellingly captured on 35mm. During Khang’s search for the right words and, ultimately, direction in life, he becomes the starry night sky to Ky Nam’s “Adulterous Woman,” and is left with the long-lasting, subtle sweetness associated with the precious and rare resin.

JUNE KIM