Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam

It's not annover her top comedy but it has its funny moments. It's a sweet movie that tugs at your heartstrings and leaves you feeling good.

A heartwarming story about a Spanish woman determined to complete the adoption of a Vietnamese child following her daughters death. Filmed beautifully in Viet Nam. Full of love and humor.

Heartfelt and funny at the same time. What's interesting is the encounter of two distinct cultures with comedic outcomes. The other interesting aspect is the linguistic skill of a Vietnamese actor who appears to speak fluent Spanish. Or is it considering that Vietnam was once under a European colonial power?

The actors portraying the characters of Carmen, Rosa and Elvira are engaging, and the viewer feels he/she is part of the conversation.

They project true friendship.

The added bonus is you get to see some of the scenic spots of this fast-growing country like Ha Long Bay and Ho Hoan Kiem, one of several charming lakes in Hanoi.

I watched this because I'd seen Dani Rovira and Carmen Machi in Spanish Affair (1 & 2), and I had high expectations that Thi Mai might blend this slightly more serious plot with just the right amount of heartwarming humor. I wasn't disappointed!

When her daughter dies just as she's been approved to adopt a young orphaned Vietnamese girl, Carmen travels there with friends hoping to adopt the child herself. Battling bureaucracy and lack of a common language, Carmen won't give up, determined to coax some ray of goodness from a sad beginning.

A lot of light films resolve big problems in ways that are ridiculous. Thi Mai does better than many, with a solution that mixes the unlikely with the credible. The scenery, both rural and urban, is fascinating to those of us who haven't been there. My only gripe is that Vietnamese dialog wasn't subtitled. Perhaps the director wanted us to feel the protagonists' limitations?

If you're ready for a gentle tug on your heartstrings, this is a movie well worth seeing.

As soon to be adoptive parents, this movie is completely unrealistic. The movie portrays adoption in ways that I found difficult to stomach, in particular because adoption in the movie was all about the parents (grandparents) while the needs of the child was played down. If you were looking for a movie about adoption to gain a deeper understanding of it as we were, stay away. If looking for a fun movie, it has its moments, but not massively so.