Que Huong Tinh Yeu va Tuoi Tre 12

Tinh Music are having a tough time moving forward with their 12th video even though they had spent a year in production. The success of their previous video (Tinh 11) has raised the bar in creating Vietnamese MTV. They have move beyond pasting performers on the scenes, which no one cares to watch. I have seen many of these boring karaoke-like videos in the past and recently from Blue Ocean Music.

Tinh Production have improved their cinematography with beautiful settings and computer generated effects. With the opening “Lien Khuc Cha Cha Cha,” the beats are fresh; the chics are hot (especially Minh Tuyet and Ha Vy); and the special effects are edgy. Minh Tuyet did it again with an emotional performance on “Dau Co Muon Mang.” Phi Nhung’s “Ao Xanh” is the best video on the entire DVD. Her singing is good but the little girl’s performance is exceptional. The story behind “Ao Xanh” based on Phi Nhung’s childhood drama when a car accident killed her mother. The little girl is so convincing and she has some characteristics that resembling Phi Nhung. Props to the director for casting a perfect character. Truong Vu’s “Lien Khuc Con Nho Nguoi Yeu” is another well-crafted video with a plot. We all know about the trend of marrying the girls in Vietnam and the divorcing 3 years later after she gets her Green card. It’s the kind of story that we can relate to. Beside the performances mentioned, the rest are from average to straight boring.

Even though the cinematography has improved tremendously (the gorgeous filming on Diem Lien’s “Vang Toc Roi”), the lacking of storyline behind the video is a major drawback on Tinh 12. The filming is beautiful but viewers will get tired of it if there is nothing to draw them in. The music arrangements are fresh but Tinh productions are still recycling too many old songs. The comedy skits are tedious and the hosts (Minh Nhi and Phi Nhung) are hideous. What were they thinking? Putting Phi Nhung on the hosting spot? She is cute and all but doesn’t have the talking skill. Que Huong Tinh Yeu va Tuoi Tre 12 is a huge disappointment.