On February 7, the horror film Ghost Lantern was released nationwide. Immediately upon its premiere, the film by director Hoàng Nam surprised audiences by overtaking The Billion Dollar Kiss to lead box office revenues.
Film “Ghost Lantern” drew attention right after its release (Photo: Provided by the production team).
By 9 AM on February 7, the film had sold 31,000 tickets from 1,400 screenings, generating 3.4 billion Vietnamese Dong. At the same time, The Billion Dollar Kiss earned 2.8 billion Vietnamese Dong, while Four Furious Warriors brought in 2 billion Vietnamese Dong. A few hours later, The Billion Dollar Kiss reclaimed the top spot, but Ghost Lantern still outperformed Four Furious Warriors to secure second place on the chart.
As of 5 PM today, Ghost Lantern had earned 7.6 billion Vietnamese Dong, surpassing Four Furious Warriors by 1.8 billion Vietnamese Dong and trailing behind The Billion Dollar Kiss by about 400 million Vietnamese Dong in daily earnings.
Many screenings of “Ghost Lantern” in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi were fully booked (Screenshot).
Prior to its release, Ghost Lantern also garnered over 40,000 pre-sale tickets, placing it among the highest pre-sale figures in Vietnamese cinema this year.
The close competition between Ghost Lantern and the films of Thu Trang and Trấn Thành has made the Vietnamese film race more exciting and unpredictable.
Without star power, the film relies on its supernatural horror theme to stand out as a unique and appealing alternative to the currently popular romantic and comedy films at the box office.
Actress Hoàng Kim Ngọc plays the role of an exorcist (Screenshot).
Ghost Lantern is director Hoàng Nam’s debut film, a supernatural horror movie inspired by the legend “The Tale of the Girl from Nam Xương.”
The film revolves around Thương (played by SyNi Trang), a woman whose husband is away at war, living with her son Lĩnh (played by An Bình). One day, Lĩnh accidentally finds a mysterious lantern that brings fear and unsolved mysteries to their village.
The film explores supernatural elements without relying solely on scares, delivering humanistic messages about family, ancestors, and northern Vietnamese customs. It incorporates numerous details about ancestor worship, karma, and the connection between the living and the dead.
Ghost Lantern features actors SyNi Trang, Hoàng Kim Ngọc, Phú Thịnh, Đình Khang, Kiều Trinh, Hạo Khang, NSƯT Chiều Xuân, and NSƯT Quang Tèo.
