A Tourist's Guide to Love and Adventure

A Tourist’s Guide to Love (2023) is a live-action movie centered around a travel executive named Amanda Riley.

Viewers see a strong representation of Vietnamese people in A Tourist’s Guide to Love, as most of the film’s setting takes place in Vietnam. Sinh Thach (Scott Ly) is played by Vietnamese-American actor Scott Ly, and serves as the main character. Thanh Truc is a Vietnamese woman who plays Anh, a supporting character.

Amanda Riley gets the opportunity of a lifetime to go on a guided tour of Vietnam with the help of Sinh Thach. She keeps in touch with Mona, her boss, through text messages. Texts are displayed on the screen in blue and white speech bubbles. Though she is only in Vietnam for an important assignment, she needs to learn how to have fun on her adventure. Viewers learn that visiting a foreign country is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that brings Americans out of their comfort zones.

The guidebook Amanda Riley brings with her on her travels not only symbolizes her research prepared ahead of time but also her reserved personality. Sinh Thach dislikes Amanda’s use of the guidebook because he believes that reading the guidebook doesn’t give Amanda the experience of being in Vietnam. Midway through the movie, Amanda decides that she no longer needs the guidebook, a change of heart she feels from inside after she wants to have the experience of a lifetime.

Vietnamese culture is the main topic and theme of A Tourist’s Guide to Love, as it emphasizes the importance of respecting Asian cultures. Viewers easily recognize popular tourist destinations in Vietnam from several clips in the movie. Amanda Riley finds happiness after being absorbed in the wonderful aspects Vietnam offers. The names of the cities in Vietnam are labeled in white, scripted subtitles.