CONSTRUCTING THE FEMALE IMAGE AND REDEMPTIVE BEAUTY IN GENTLE (2014, LÊ VĂN KIỆT) AND INSIDE THE YELLOW COCOON SHELL (2023, PHẠM THIÊN ÂN)

Abstract

contemporary
Vietnamese
cinema
through
two
films꞉
Gentle
(2014)
by
Lê
Văn
Kiệt
and
Inside
the
Yellow

Cocoon
Shell
(2023)
by
Phạm
Thiên
Ân.
Employing
the
key
concept
of
the
feminine/femininity,
the
study

interprets
the
manifestation
of
femininity
as
a
redemptive
force
essential
to
the
male
protagonist's
journey

toward
self‑discovery
and
spiritual
awakening.
While
both
directors
engage
with
a
religiously
inflected

model
of
femininity,
their
aesthetic
approaches
diverge꞉
Lê
Văn
Kiệt
adopts
a
raw,
unflinching
realism,

whereas
Phạm
Thiên
Ân
blends
realism,
surrealism,
and
dreamlike
imagery.
Keywords꞉
The
female,
femininity,
redemptive
Beauty,
faith,
revelation,
awakening