Halong Bay on silver-screen
The recent Hollywood blockbuster Kong: Skull island has brought Vietnam’s beauty to millions of audience all over the world. The scenery is “gorgeous and otherworldly” according to Vogt-Roberts, the talented director of Kong. But this spectacular beauty of Halong Bay has been featured in other famous films before that many moviegoers might not know.
Pan (2015)
Directed by Joe Wright – successful director of Pride and Prejudice, Atonement và Anna Karenina- the movie depicts the fairytale land of Neverland and the residents there. The real location used to create the magical world is attractions in Vietnam. The footage for Pan was shot in world-renowned Halong Bay, Ninh Binh and Quang Binh.
A scene from the movie that features Halong Bay
Hang En in Quang Binh
Kong: Skull Island (2017)
New released movie Kong has been shot mainly in Halong Bay, Ninh Binh, Quang Binh. Halong Bay this time is depicted as Skull Island – Home to the giant Kong. The surreal landscape has inspired many tourists to visit this attraction.
Bhaya Legend had the honor to host the director and some crew for a private 7-day cruise trip in Halong Bay for them to shoot the scenery for the movie.
James Bond: Tomorrow never dies (1997)
James Bond: Tomorrow never dies is the eighth spy movie in the famous James Bond series. Filmed in 1997, the production crew had chosen Halong Bay and Ho Chi Minh city as the shooting scenes. Long before Hollywood, Vietnam unique beauty has drew attention of foreign filmmakers.
Unfortunately, the film was never shot in Vietnam due to government permission problem. The Halong scene was shot in Phang Nga Bay, Thailand instead.
Indochine (1992)
Indochine is a French movie which told the story of French plantation owner, and of her adopted Vietnamese daughter. The film was shot mainly in Imperial City, Hue, Ha Long (Ha Long Bay) and Ninh Binh (Phát Diệm Cathedral) in Vietnam. The movie was appreciated by critics and audiences which won Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
In the future, let’s hope that there will be more hit movies shot in Halong Bay. More and more audiences can experience the stunning view of this World Heritage’s site.
