Review: Thi Mai (Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam)

Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam comes from Spain. It’s a lighthearted story about an trip to Vietnam for an adoption.

Carmen (Carmen Machi) gets news early in the film that her daughter Maria is killed in a car accident. Maria was in the process of adopting a young girl named Thi Mai from Vietnam.

Carmen talks to her husband Javier (Pedro Casablanc) about adopting what should have been their granddaughter themselves. He’s against the idea.

Carmen takes off for Vietnam anyway, determined to get her grandchild. Rosa (Adriana Ozores), a silly woman who needs to grow a spine, and Elvira (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón) who just lost her job at a bank, go with her.

At the Hanoi airport, they meet Andrés (Dani Rovira) who speaks a bit of Vietnamese and has traveled there to marry his boyfriend.

A representative of the adoption agency named Dan (Eric Nguyen) meets a group of them who all came from Spain at the airport. He will take them to the orphanage. But when he learns that Carmen is not Maria, he refuses to take her along.

There are paperwork issues, bureaucratic problems, lots of people telling Carmen no and that she should forget the adoption and go back to Spain.

While these struggles are ongoing, the viewers get a beautifully filmed tour of Hanoi and surrounding parts of Vietnam. It’s a gorgeous look at that lovely country.

The film is in Spanish, English, and Vietnamese. The Spanish gets English subtitles, but the Vietnamese does not. We are as confused as our Spanish main characters by the Vietnamese.

Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam is a funny film with silly escapades. It’s full of heart and love. Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam was written by Marta Sánchez and directed by Patricia Ferreira. The 2017 film is currently streaming on Netflix.

If you’re in the mood for a heartwarming adventure with a happy ending, Thi Mai, rumbo a Vietnam should fit the bill.

Sorry, but the trailer isn’t subtitled. Enjoy it anyway.