Skin of Youth - VIFF Canadian Premier
SKIN OF YOUTH - CANADIAN PREMIER
The latest from Ash Mayfair (The Third Wife, VIFF 2018) tells the story of San (Trân Quân) and Nam (Võ Diên Gia Huy), two lovers in a dangerous situation. San is a nightclub dancer saving up for gender-affirming surgery and Nam is her macho boyfriend, a professional fighter with a quick temper. Financial need brings them both into the orbit of Mr. Vuong (Hajime Inoue), a powerful gangster who wants to exploit them both — San for sex, Nam for his fighting skills. Things get even more complicated when Nam’s side lover Mimi (Phan Thi Kim Ngân) finds herself pregnant with his child…
Skin of Youth features intense, deeply committed performances from its leads, and their portrayal of passion is elevated further by Mayfair’s direction and the vivid cinematography of Chananun Chotrungroj. This is a work that succeeds on multiple levels: as a social protest film, it’s forthright and fiercely moral; as a romance, it’s simmering, sexy, and poignant.
VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
October 10 & 11