For a story about sweethearts and heartache, it's a pity that you will likely forget Love In Vietnam in a heartbeat, notes Mayur Sanap.
What's worse than a bad film? It's the film that's going through an identity crisis.
Love in Vietnam, with its generic title, is a corny romantic saga set in Vietnam that's more of a tourism campaign for the country disguised as a film.
The actors seem to be on a working vacation and the flag carrier Vietnam Airlines gets more prominence than them.
The story, which is based on the Turkish novel Madonna In A Fur Coat, shuttles between Punjab and Vietnam.
The hero here is Manav, a young adult played by the eternally doe-eyed Shantanu Maheshwari. He is a mast maula lad from a pind living a richie rich life.
Manav is raised by his bade Papa (Raj Babbar) after his parents' untimely death.
His parents had arranged a match with Simmi (Avneet Kaur) at a young age.
Simmi is in unrequited love with Manav since their childhood, but he sees her only as a friend and often chides her for being too clingy.
Fed up of Manav's lack of seriousness, bade Papa sends him to Vietnam, hoping he will find a purpose in life.
'Bhejna hi hain toh Europe jaisi jagah bhejiye, yeh kaun sa desh hain?' the young lad scoffs, but reluctantly agrees.
As he begins to adjust in Vietnam, Manav comes across a painting of a beautiful Vietnamese girl.
'Are you for real?' he utters completely besotted, and spends the next few days searching for the artist who created the painting.
The artist turns out to be the girl in the painting whose name is Linh (Vietnamese actress Kha Ngan).
Manav meets Linh, and romance blossoms.
A couple of romantic songs later, Linh abruptly disappears from Manav's life leaving him heartbroken.
He falls into a self-destructive spiral, as he tries to find Linh.
And how he is going to find her? Tada! Executives at Vietnam Airlines, so moved by his story, personally offer him a free travel pass across the country (only to receive a rude shock later on: 'Sorry, the free pass was valid for only three months').
I cracked up!
The biggest problem with Love in Vietnam is that it neither commits to full-blown melodrama nor realism. Instead, it is stuck in an awkward limbo where characters act on a whim as the story moves along with silly plot developments.
Writer-Director Rahhat Shah Kazmi has ambitions of a searing love saga, especially with how the music is deployed in Saiyaara style and the way Shantanu's character goes through an emotional upheaval that's reminiscent of Avinash Tiwary's doomed lover in Laila Majnu.
But for a script as well as music that barely have any emotional resonance, the overall impact is more forceful than profound.
And the film's overarching message: 'What is love without pain' doesn't shake you up emotionally because the romance feels completely off.
It's a pity, because with better writing and little more craft, this would have been a decent watch.
Visually, Love In Vietnam is pretty to look at.
The cinematography by Dudley tastefully captures the beauty of Vietnam and its many iconic landmarks such as the Dragon Bridge of Da Nang, the French village of Bana Hills, the energetic atmosphere of Bui Vien Street in Ho Chi Minh City, and a numerous neon-lit streets.
The songs, not particularly earworm, have at least a pleasant feel because of the gorgeous Vietnam setting.
Shantanu Maheshwari brings the same sincerity as he did in Gangubai Kathiawadi and keeps it intact for most part. But the script doesn't allow his character to go beyond standard tropes of a lover boy.
Avneet Kaur looks cute, but her effervescent act can't energise this tired exercise in romance.
Kha Ngan's acting comes off stifled, either due to her thinly written character or the newness of a foreign production.
As the story progresses, the film veers towards excessive sappiness before leading up to a conveniently staged ending that's essentially Katti Batti meets Kabir Singh.
For a story about sweethearts and heartache, it's a pity that you will likely forget Love In Vietnam in a heartbeat.
Love in Vietnam Review Rediff Rating: 
© 2025