JavaScript is off. Please enable to view full site.

When Christmas bombed in Hanoi

When Christmas bombed in Hanoi

Tuesday, December 18, 2012, 10:59 GMT+7

Our first Christmas season in Hanoi, two years ago, surprised me. It was more festive, more Christmas-y than I had expected.

But what was I thinking? Vietnam is now in a globalized age of new-school "market-oriented socialism," of course, and the reigning ism is consumerism. This is the ism that venerates not the baby Jesus but Santa Claus, because nobody moves merchandise like the jolly old fat man in the red costume.

Anyway, for this holiday season, I decided to get a glimpse of a Vietnamese Christmas season of yesteryear – of 1972, to be precise, when my country, the USA, sent waves of B-52s to bring destruction and carnage to swathes of the northern capital and Hai Phong. I was a young teenager then, and don't remember what was under the Christmas tree – but that probably mattered more to me than the war news at the time.

The "Christmas bombings," as they came to be known, should never be forgotten. My understanding of the bombings, which began on December 18 and ended on December 29, is now enriched by "The Little Girl of Hanoi," director Hai Ninh's remarkable film shot in the aftermath of the attacks. Hanoi's Cinematheque, a popular institution for expatriate cinephiles, has made a screening of "The Little Girl of Hanoi" something of a seasonal tradition. Ninh was joined by cinematographer Tran The Dan and actor The Anh to answer questions after the screening.

Our young heroine, age 9 or 10, survives the attacks without knowing the fate of her mother and younger sister. She sets out in search of her father, a soldier serving in the anti-aircraft defense of Hanoi. On her way she relies on the kindness of strangers, including men and women queuing for rice rations, and a young anti-aircraft officer who offers to help.

"The Little Girl of Hanoi" is an extraordinary cultural and historical artifact. It deserves a larger audience in part because stories of war from a child's perspective are too rare. Shot in black-and-white and featuring English subtitles, the film's depiction of life during "the American War" is sometimes described as "propaganda" in the West but it rings true partly because of the way documentary footage is skillfully spliced into the tale. A scan of vast devastation – including many homes, a school and wing of Bach Mai hospital – ends with a glimpse of a white sheet being placed over a child's body.

For many scenes, Ninh placed his actors amid the uncleared rubble. Other scenes include residents ducking into small, streetside bomb shelters amid the wail of air raid sirens. The cast includes men of European and African ancestry depicting captured American flight crews; the staffs of diplomatic missions were enlisted for the roles, Ninh explained.

In flashbacks we sense the girl's happy childhood before the bombs fall. Along with familiar images of Hoan Kiem Lake, the film includes animation to go with the father's telling his daughters the legend of Hoan Kiem – about how a great turtle returned a magic sword to Vietnam's emperor, enabling him to defeat the invaders. It is a message of hope in wartime.

After the screening, Ninh and his comrades in film described their memories of that time. They spoke of the dead bodies pulled from the rubble and lined up on the street. At the hospital, Ninh said, the intertwining of the bodies and rubble made recovery difficult. When workers proposed cutting one young man's dead body in half to make removal easier, a father objected. But when the cries of a potential survivor were heard, the father relented.

Ninh explained he made the movie to honor the dignity, sacrifice and resilience of his countrymen. Dan, the cinematographer, talked glumly about how some of those qualities have eroded with time. Their bad old days were horrible, he suggested, but the Vietnamese people were better.

As I watched the film, I found myself wondering why I hadn't seen this before in America, perhaps on a public TV station. Ninh explained that he traveled to America twice to screen "The Little Girl of Hanoi" at film festivals. One time, he recalled, a protest was waged by Vietnamese there; another time, he recalled a supportive meeting with Ron Kovic, whose journey from soldier to paraplegic anti-war activist inspired the film "Born on the Fourth of July."

Back home, this is the season when millions of Americans will gather round TV sets for the traditional viewing of the classic "It's a Wonderful Life," starring Jimmy Stewart as the small-town banker who is shown how a life he considered humdrum made a big difference for the better. With the Second World War in the background, the ending never fails to inspire tears of joy.

So here's hoping that "The Little Girl of Hanoi" gets a wider viewing – among foreigners and young Vietnamese as well. The story will evoke more complicated emotions, especially for Americans. The ending is bittersweet, but hopeful.

Scott Harris

More

Read more

;

Photos

VIDEOS

‘Taste of Australia’ gala dinner held in Ho Chi Minh City after 2-year hiatus

Taste of Australia Gala Reception has returned to the Park Hyatt Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City's District 1 after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Vietnamese woman gives unconditional love to hundreds of adopted children

Despite her own immense hardship, she has taken in and cared for hundreds of orphans over the past three decades.

Vietnam’s Mekong Delta celebrates spring with ‘hat boi’ performances

The art form is so popular that it attracts people from all ages in the Mekong Delta

Vietnamese youngster travels back in time with clay miniatures

Each work is a scene caught by Dung and kept in his memories through his journeys across Vietnam

Latest news