The romantic comedy and musical, Cảm Ơn Người Đã Thức Cùng Tôi (A Little Dream of Me; literal translation, Thank You for Staying Up with Me), directed by Chung Chí Công, makes its US debut at this year’s Viet Film Fest opening night. A Little Dream of Me opened in Vietnam this February and has been commended for bringing the song and dance of the musical genre to the Vietnamese big screen. Director Chung Chí Công’s debut musical was Trời sáng rồi, ta ngủ đi thôi (2019) (Good Morning and Good Night), and his two projects thus far center the coming-of-age of Vietnamese young adults, conveying its innocence and angst through musical numbers. The songs, from “A Little Dream of Me” to “Mộng Mơ Là Chuyện Trẻ Con,” bring a similar energy to High School Musical, La La Land, Hairspray, and Singin’ in the Rain. With humor, plot twists, a heartachingly sweet childhood friends-to-lovers romance, and colorful musical numbers, A Little Dream of Me delivers an inspiring story of how a girl named Mộng Hoài (Võ Phan Kim Khánh) can keep on dreaming despite many obstacles in her acting journey–it is only possible through the unconditional support of her closest family and friends.
Hoài’s story begins with her father (Hữu Châu), a deaf lantern maker from Hội An. Her mother was a janitor at the local theater, but passed away when she gave birth to Hoài. Thus, Ba raised her alone, and she is a child of a deaf adult (CODA). From an early age, the young Hoài pragmatically recognized the importance of making money to sell lanterns so that she can get an education, and then return home to help her dad. Of course, with a charming name like Mộng Hoài (which translates to “always dreaming”), she is reminded to dream and imagine new possibilities, despite it all. In the 2010s, she leaves for college in Saigon: the reminders they give each other on the day of her departure and their subsequent video calls are part of this heartwarming father-daughter story. Her father’s support and her dream to use her English communication skills for the family business are the steady foundations of the musical.
With energetic songs like “Mộng Mơ Là Chuyện Trẻ Con” featuring multiple singers (including a rapper) and a large group dance routine, Hoài begins her college adventure. Even when her father recedes into the background to make room for the new characters in the next chapter of Hoài’s life, sign language remains prominent throughout the musical, a part of Hoài’s CODA experience that she expresses in her films, dance, and songs. A Little Dream of Me balances the youthful spirit of pursuing dreams with an homage to the family members who inspire and tirelessly support us. The film’s Vietnamese title reflects this gratitude.
These emotions are best encapsulated in a short film within the musical that brings to life a creative story about an astronaut and a rose that Hoài and her childhood friend Hiếu (Trần Doãn Hoàng) co-created as kids. Hoài’s university film club enters a film competition where, by random draw, their genre is the silent film. While Hoài’s new friends are initially intimidated by the challenge, their first project together ends up being personally meaningful for every team member. Against overly dramatic background music (adding to the hype and humor), Chung cuts from scenes of the comical short film to behind-the-scenes moments of the team putting frantic final touches on props, costuming, and makeup. Everything comes together on the film screening night with a packed auditorium, when the friends swell with pride to see both their silly selves and their hard work.
The young team also makes the silent genre their own by adding a tender speech in sign language. In the final scene with the Dragon King, Hiếu, playing the astronaut, makes a wish to be able to tell his grandfather, who passed away a year ago from cancer, that he is doing well. One imagines that adding sign language to the scene was Hoài’s idea, a way for her to dedicate her first acting role to her deaf father. A Little Dream of Me is all about the journey and not the destination, so it is bittersweet when they finish filming and realize that they missed the submission deadline. The ever-wise student director and second lead Khang (Nguyễn Hùng) says he knew that he couldn’t rush this important scene, and the group shares a stronger emotional bond for it. After making their short film, Hoài and Hiếu begin pursuing their childhood dreams together–Hoài of being an actor, and Hiếu of being a comic book artist.
A Little Dream of Me shows the journey of Hoài and Hiếu’s artistic careers against life’s hardships. The film draws a connection between itself and an older Vietnamese film about pursuing a career in the tough entertainment industry, Những cô gái chân dài (Long Legged Girls, 2004), which the two kids had snuck into a theater to see at the film’s beginning. Long Legged Girls depicts the heartbreaks that Thủy experiences in her dream to be a model, while her male co-star Hoàng pursues photography. Chung’s film tells a happier story, but Hoài and Hiếu’s relationship is still full of ups and downs. At their best, Hoài and Hiếu live life to the fullest, relishing the most mundane parts of their domestic life (like using toothpaste to its very last drop) and celebrating every step toward their dream. But they are soon forced to face the limits of what they are willing to sacrifice for their dreams. When the dreams of our loved ones diverge from what we once hoped for together, does supporting them mean telling them to stay the course, or embracing this new version of their dream?
There is always something healing about watching Chung’s musicals. A Little Dream of Me wishes to encounter the viewer’s inner child and shower them with vivid colors and movement, the stuff of dreams. The poetic lyrics of “Biết Thương Mình Hơn,” also conveyed in sign language, summarize the film’s message to love yourself during life’s hardships, just as our main character does:
Ngoài kia mưa giông nhiều khi vùi giấc mơ
There will be rainstorms to trouble your heart
Gió mưa ướt nhòe trên mi
They may leave you with tears
Nhưng mà con phải hết lòng cho mộng mơ
Through the fears you’ll hold onto your dreams
Ngày sẽ xanh hơn và trời sẽ nắng
For the sun rises after dark
Bước chân lên đất mềm
You’ll be standing tall
Thơm ngát cỏ hoa
One shining bloom
Và con ơi
Remember
Hãy biết thương mình hơn
To love yourself more
Hoài goes far and wide to follow her dreams–from Hội An to Saigon, and even outside of Vietnam, to South Korea and New York City. She’s happy to be pursuing her life’s passion, but there is also an inevitable guilt that comes from not being around to help her family. It almost feels selfish to choose oneself in these circumstances. But Hoai’s father responds with grace, not expectation or resentment. He signs the last line of Hoài’s song to her again: “Remember to love yourself more.” Her friends and family keep her grounded from afar until the day she returns home. A Little Dream of Me keeps the magic of the musical alive: you will leave the theater with a full heart and the renewed spirit to dream with others.
Cathy Duong co-hosts cà phê book club, a monthly book club that meets in coffee shops across north Orange County, CA (IG: @caphebookclub). She enjoys traveling to Little Saigons, playing V-pop on her ukulele, and analyzing diasporic Viet literature.
