Ky Nam Inn

Official Selection, 2025 Toronto International Film Festival

Approvoise: a process where two strangers gradually become familiar, understand one another, and become intimate.

In a post-war Saigon, Khang (Lien Binh Phat of Song Lang), a young Northern translator, moves into a new apartment and meets Ky Nam, a private widow who oversees an inn. When an accident forces Ky Nam to rely on Khang’s help, her inn begins to hum in shredded pork, literary references, and whispered romantic yearning.

It’s 1985 and Vietnam’s post-war politics perfume this star-crossed love story. Banned music wafts through each floor, scheduled power outages reveal new secrets, and evening television shows nonchalantly announce the war’s effect on everyday life. Neighbors fill the screen with gossip and stories as these forbidden lovers creep around community spaces.

For fans of In the Mood for Love, Director Leon Le (Song Lang, SDAFF Spring Showcase ‘19) adds to his repertoire of desire with his sophomore film. Reveling in a nostalgic Vietnam with vinyl, sizzling cooking moments, decadent colors in dreamy 35mm film, and soft-spoken dialogue, KY NAM INN wafts in intimacy as it echoes a sonorous and capricious Vietnam.

– Alissa Tu