Paul Christiansen in Literature
Meet Dạ Ngân, the Author of the Most Important Vietnamese Novel You've Never Read
When the wind strafes Dạ Ngân’s window, seedpods shake and rattle like spent bullet casings in the tamarind tree that Americans planted decades ago. They also built the large apartment complex where she now lives. It’s an ironic place to call home, considering Dạ Ngân was a resistance fighter in the south during the American War.
Khôi Phạm in Culture
What Can Vietnamese License Plates Tell You About the Vehicles and Who Drives Them?
There was a game I used to play with my dad whenever we would stop at a traffic light. He would point to a random license plate in front of us and quiz me on where it came from.
Mũi Né Among Top 10 Trending Travel Destinations Globally in 2026, Booking Says
Travel site Booking.com dubbed Mũi Né “one of 2026’s trending travel spots,” reflective of the international attention and domestic emphasis the beach city is currently receiving.
Euphoria, Ruin, Nostalgia: Tracing Hanoi's Changing Skyline by Its Soundtrack
From loudspeakers broadcasting construction anthems during wartime to melancholic ballads mourning vanished street corners, Hanoi's soundtrack reveals a city that has never quite learned to live in its present tense.
Paul Christiansen in Rewind
In 'Cú Và Chim Se Sẻ,' a Director's Radical Empathy for Saigon's Less Fortunate
“They can do what they want. The city owns the zoo. They could sell all the animals here. They could turn it into a golf course. We’re just little people — you and me.”
In 'No Man River,' Dương Hướng Highlights the Raw Pain of Postwar Survival
Dương Hướng’s No Man River (Bến không chồng) was first published in 1991 and won the Vietnam Writers' Association Prize for Fiction. Translated into English by Quan Manh Ha and Charles Waugh, it captures the brutal reality of conflict in Vietnam from 1945 to 1979.
Nguyễn Đức Tín Weaves Spirituality, Faith, Everyday Life Altogether in His Paintings
Can a painting reflect who we are, even if we can’t see ourselves thoroughly? And how does faith guide us forward in life?
Liên Bỉnh Phát Makes History as 1st Vietnamese to Win Best Male Lead in Taiwan
Vietnamese actor Liên Bỉnh Phát recently made history at one of Taiwan’s most prestigious national award ceremonies.
In Quện's Live Sets, Đà Lạt's Everyday Corners Turn Spontaneous Stages
All attention was aimed towards the same direction, the one where an accident had just taken place. Near 24C, Hoàng Diệu Street in the city of Đà Lạt, two vehicles collided. The shock and chaos attrac...
On 'Past Lives,' Duyên, and the Complexities of Vietnamese Diasporic Identities
Past Lives left me bereft, much like how the reunion of main characters Hae-sung and Nora concluded at the end of the film — that is, without much conclusion at all.
Elise Luong in Music & Arts
Bodies of Work Shred, Re-Shaped at 'White Noise' Exhibition
A dystopian setting where the human body appears scattered, its parts eerily dismembered, its desires and beliefs examined by the hands of a machine is fictionalized in the “White Noise” exhibition, n...
Paul Christiansen in Loạt Soạt
Khải Đơn's Poetry Debut Won't Shy Away From the Mekong Delta's Untold Complexities
Environmental devastation, irresponsible development, economic imperilment, social ills, war legacies and the abandonment of cultural traditions and connections: these multifaceted, interconnected rea...
Paul Christiansen in Film & TV
Meet DeeDee, the Studio Behind Netflix Docuseries 'How to Become a Cult Leader'
With a frantic, rabid fury flickering in his eyes, Charles Manson swerves through technicolor 1960s Hollywood streets, the passengers in his convertible terrified by the crazed maneuvering of a man wh...
Local Illustrator Recreates Saigon's Convenience Stores as Adorable Cartoon Houses
In the early 2010s, convenience stores emerged as an affordable alternative for Vietnamese youths, especially those with limited disposable income, to chill. A decade later, the widespread mushrooming...
Viet Thanh Nguyen Memoir 'A Man of Two Faces' Releases Today
A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, a History, a Memorial, the new book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Viet Thanh Nguyen arrives from Grove City Press on October 3.
How Richie Fawcett's Saigon Sketches Illuminate a Decade of Change
It’s been hidden right there in the heart of Saigon for over half a decade.
Xuân Phương in Culture
Phan Thiết's Vibrant Whale Worship Festival Reflects Vietnam's Rich Animist Traditions
Whale worship started from a folk belief harbored by fishermen seeking help from the gods to endure the arduous days spent at sea, but over time, it grew to become one of the most prominent spiritual ...
Paul Christiansen in In Plain Sight
Shrimp Fishing in Thanh Đa Is Fun Even When You Don't Catch Anything
If it weren’t for shrimps, developing taste buds would have been an outrageous waste of evolutionary time and resources. Truly, without the potential for boiled, grilled, fried, baked or even raw shri...
Khôi Phạm in Film & TV
Review: 'Bến Phà Xác Sống' Is the 2nd-Worst Movie I've Ever Watched. I'm Sad It's Over.
The day when the Saigoneer team organized a little get-together to watch Bến Phà Xác Sống in the cinema, I was running seriously late.
On the Hunt for One-of-a-Kind Treasures in Saigon's Thriving Thrift Shops
In the summer of 2021, Hương Nguyễn decided to pivot away from her office job and launch an online thrift store called Vintage Hearts. She was motivated by how difficult it was to find clothing in Sai...
Ocean Vuong Brings Vietnamese Text, Original Photos to Helmut Lang Collection
Peter Do, the recently named Creative Director of the storied fashion brand Helmut Lang, enlisted writer Ocean Vuong to provide text and photos for his debut collection.
Paul Christiansen in Music & Arts
In Huế, an Interdisciplinary Exhibition Opens Literal and Metaphorical Doors
“I cannot stop opening doors,” Phan Lê Hà said in regard to the physical objects that reappear throughout her creative works.
The Artist Preserving Saigon's Cultural Tapestry Through Hand-Painted Signs
"In the early 2000s, the market experienced an exodus of painters due to the shift to digital; it was difficult to retain customers otherwise. I didn't want my craft to be forgotten, so I started ever...
Review: ‘Bên Trong Vỏ Kén Vàng’ Is a Soul-Searching Mission in the Lâm Đồng Mist
On the pastures of slow cinema where Andrei Tarkovsky, Tsai Ming-liang and Theo Angelopoulos reside, Phạm Thiên Ân's debut feature, Bên Trong Vỏ Kén Vàng (Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell), has made its...
Khôi Phạm in Rewind
1735 Km, the 2005 Road Trip Romcom That Could Have Been
In 2005, I was in middle school. I had never had a cellphone nor known what the internet was — our home didn’t have ADSL until ninth grade. Life as a fledgling pupil in Saigon revolved around homework...
Paul Christiansen in Literature
In Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai's New Novel, Saigon's Rhythms Hum in the Background
“I’m always homesick for Vietnam. To write is to return home. That's why I had to bring Vietnam alive onto the pages. I had to hear the people speak, I had to listen to the music, to the language; I h...
An Homage to Rastaclat, the Coolest Bracelets of Our High School Years
During my teenage years when a lot of us were trying new things, I can remember certain trending items affected our lifestyle. For me, amongst the most memorable was the Hypebeast culture that ca...
Cannes Caméra D'or Winner 'Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell' to Hit Vietnam Theaters in August
Following its win at the latest Cannes Film Festival, Bên Trong Vỏ Kén Vàng (Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell) will officially premiere in theaters across Vietnam next month.
