'Blood Moon Party' breaks Vietnam box office record

The movie, directed by Nguyen Quang Dung, beaten the old record set by "Mat Biec" (Dreamy Eyes), a Lotte Cinema representative said.

"Blood Moon Party", a remake of South Korean "Intimate Strangers", is his highest-grossing movie. In 2018, "Go-Go Sisters", another remake of a South Korean movie, raked in VND84 billion in total.

Critics have said the movie's success is partially due to it not having to compete with foreign blockbusters. A solid, detailed story line and the entire cast acting well throughout the movie have helped, too.

At a September meeting that gathered reps of major cinema houses like CGV, Galaxy and BHD, participants hoped that "Blood Moon Party" would emulate the success of "Rom", a crime drama, during a trying period for the domestic movie industry.

"Movies during this period need to have really outstanding content to revive the cinema going habit," said Ngo Thi Bich Hien, director of domestic cinema chain BHD in HCMC.

"Blood Moon Party" revolves around four childhood friends growing up to work in different jobs, including journalism, plastic surgery and teaching. They reunite at a housewarming party and play a game of sharing texts and calls that spills a lot of secrets.

The plot sticks close to the South Korean movie, which is itself a remake of Italian movie "Perfect Strangers," released in 2016, and directed by Paolo Genovese. This movie is registered in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most remade movie in the history of cinema with a total of 18 remakes across the globe.