Although the Vietnamese action movie “Bui Doi Cho Lon” (The gangsters in the melting pot of Lon Market) has been banned from screening, a draft version of the film was leaked and has spread at the speed light on the Internet on July 5.

On June 7, the National Cinema Department announced to ban the movie directed by Charlie Nguyen and starred by Johny Tri Nguyen for its violent content and gory scenes.

According to the authorities, the film wrongly reflects the Ho Chi Minh City’s security situation, as the film is set in Cho Lon in District 5, in that it depicts the city as a lawless area plagued by gangs, who perform relentless gory fights and killings with lethal weaponry, while the role law enforcers play is almost invisible. It also blemishes the country’s and city’s image and adversely impact viewers, particularly youths.

The officials thus requested Thien Ngan Co., the film producer, not to publicize or leak the film in any form.

However, the leak of the 1-hour-30-minute draft version on Friday has not only caused a stir among netizens but also shocked the movie’s producers.

Director Charlie Nguyen has expressed his feeling on his Facebook page, saying he’s absolutely shocked and painful.

“I’m feeling like somebody’s killing my child,” the director emotionally wrote. “This is a rough draft in which story, sound, light, color and special effects are not fully edited. It's a version that I never want anyone to see because it's like an uncooked dish. But now I have to sit here as people watch this very bad draft and judge the film on that.”

Dinh Thi Thanh Huong, general director of Thien Ngan Co., said the act of leaking the movie on the Internet is illegal, especially when “Bui Doi Cho Lon” is banned from screening. She added that company has contacted functional agencies like the Cinema Department, the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Central Propaganda Department and has asked the police to investigate to find the leaker.

So far, the National Cinema Department has not given any official announcement on the incident while the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the case should be handled by the Ministry of Information and Communications.