Title: Bamboo Promise

Author: Vicheara Houn

Genre: Historical Drama

 

 

Setting: Cambodia

Pages:   412

Period: 1960s - 1985

 

Best Medium for Adaptation:  Feature Film  Documentary  Animation – TV Series (Adult)

                                             X Independent Feature Film  Reality TV Series  Drama/Comedy TV Series  Animation – Feature Film

                                                Webseries  Children’s TV Series

 

 

Logline:  

 

 After the Khmer Rouge takes over Cambodia and most of her family dies, Vicheara fights to survive and eventually makes her                       way to the United States.

 

Brief Summary:

 

 Vicheara grows up in a wealthy Cambodian family. Wehn the Khmer Rouge takes over Cambodia, her family and other elitist families are herded into fields. Many people are slaughtered merely for being educated. Vicheara's father makes sure their family hides its wealth. During of the reign of KR, Vicheara and her people are enslaved; almost all of her family dies from the brutality of the KR, from  sickness or from  starvation. She learns to survive and dodges the brutal of KR soldiers. Losing her pride, she begs for food. When the Vietnamese defeats the KR, Vicheara is liberated. However, she still lives under communist rule and has barely enough food to live. She escapes to Thailand, where she spends time recuperating. Vicheara's final stop is the US., where she tries to find God';s purpose for the strife and  loss she has  experienced.

 

Synopsis:

The day after New Year’s in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, VICHEARA senses something ominous. Shortly afterward, the Khmer Rouge takes over the country. The soldiers in black remind her of the dangerous day her father KIM HOUN, then a government minister, invited the soldiers to negotiate. Kim Houn pushes Vicheara, her husband LEANG, her stepmother EEH, her GRANDPARENTS, GRANDAUNT, UNCLE SUNTHARY, their servant Kilen and Kilen’s toddler KOY into the family’s living room. They are horrified to learn that the KR has taken over the government and it has no desire to negotiate.

 

A TEN-YEAR-OLD BOY wearing the uniform of the KR and carrying a gun orders them to leave while the soldiers search for enemy Americans. Kim Houn’s sister SICHOEUR brings her entire family to the house. PHAN, Sichoeur’s husband, advises them to hide their wealth. When Vicheara is born, her family is not yet wealthy. Her cousin PHACH helps babysit. Vicheara’a maternal grandmother SEM, whom Vicheara calls LOK YEY, gives them a large home. Her paternal grandparents’ house is also in her father’s care. Vicheara sees her father’s authority the day he takes her to see the house. She learns the purpose of the trip is to dig up his mother’s bones to honor the remains, a lesson she carries with her still.

 

During school, Kim Houn beats Vicheara to make her learn, but her mother MAK is gentle and counsels Kim Houn to have patience. One day, their cousin THOR operates on Mak’s tumor. He accidentally gives her the wrong dosage of anesthesia. Lok Yey and GRANDAUNT HIENG try to help Mak, but she eventually passes away. Kim Houn remarries very quickly. Lok Yey and Phach move out because of Kim Houn’s disrespect. Vicheara’s grandparents LOK TAH and YEY KONG move in with them. Neither of her grandparents likes Kim Houn because he wouldn’t take care of their children; they were Kim Houn’s half brothers and sisters. Before the war, Kim Houn is in the Cambodian Congress; coupled with his pharmaceutical company, the family is in the upper class. One day, they take a vacation to see the pyramid Angor Wat. Vicheara acts very much like a spoiled princess during this trip. When they return, they find that Lok Yey has died.

 

After college, Vicheara wants to go to school in Paris. However, her father makes her go to one year of pharmacy school. During her time there, she has surgery for appendicitis; Eeh deliberately disobeys the doctor’s orders, and Kim Houn doesn’t do anything about it. Vicheara learns that Kim Houn cheats on Eeh so he can have more children. Eeh knows about Kim’s cheating and wants Vicheara to be happy with a man she loves and who loves her back. Vicheara decides to go out with Leang, a lower-class classmate from pharmacy school. Kim Houn finds out that they are dating and he is furious. Thor convinces Kim Houn to let Vicheara have a boyfriend. Kim Houn says they must marry, and LEANG’S MOTHER visits to plan the engagement. Kim Houn still isn’t happy because he believes the Leang’s family is only after his money.  

 

Soon Vicheara learns that it’s her own household that is after her and her father’s wealth. Kilen has an illegitimate boy, Koy who is rumored to be Kim Houn’s son. The child takes Kim Houn’s last name. Eeh doesn’t resent this; in fact, she encourages it. She knows a boy with her husband’s last name will have to take care of her the rest of her life. One night, Eeh loses a bag of precious stones, and Vicheara discovers that Kilen stole them. However, Eeh refuses the evidence of Kilen’s guilt. Several possessions belonging to Vicheara and Kim Houn disappear, and they realize that Eeh and Kilen are in on the thievery. Kim Houn doesn’t want the information to get out of the household because it will tarnish the family’s reputation.

 

In 1968, Kim Houn is elected to the Constitutional Council of Cambodia. Kim Houn doesn’t believe that Cambodia will fall to the Khmer Rouge, and he thinks the negotiation dinner held at his house will go well. Vicheara asks him to go to Paris with her cousins, but he won’t leave Cambodia. Vicheara and her family are subjected to bombings and terrible violence, which causes Kim Houn to set the wedding between Vicheara and Leang for January 1. Eeh is so jealous that she has a physical fight with Vicheara. Vicheara tells Kim Houn, who realizes how terrible his wife has been. When Eeh asks him to choose between his wife and his daughter, he chooses Vicheara.

 

Kim Houn promises to send Vicheara to Paris for her doctorate, and afterward she will take over his plant. Vicheara’s father reveals how rich he is. He has ten properties and multiple bank accounts. He doesn’t tell Eeh about his wealth because he knows she would take it all, and he loves Vicheara too much to allow that to happen. On Vicheara’s wedding day, there is chaos caused by the Khmer Rouge. However, Leang and Vicheara find love and comfort in each other. They move in with Kim Houn, but Eeh makes them miserable. They also have to deal with the constant bombing and fighting. Kim Houn plans for them to fly to Paris for safety with Thor, but he waits too long. The only thing they can do is hope for safety.

 

Once the KR arrives, Vicheara’s family finds that the Americans have left and that the upper class is considered the enemy. The family settles in with SRENG, Leang’s family friend. They only have sweet potatoes and corn to eat and very little clean water; they can’t even get sugar cane. After a few months, Vicheara thinks she may be pregnant, but her symptoms turn out to be caused by stress. They must pretend to be busy because the KR kills lazy people, and some soldiers eat the livers of their victims. Over time, it becomes clear that Vicheara’s in-laws hate Kim Houn. Soon, because they’re used to manual labor, Leang’s family has more than Vicheara’s family, and the hard labor kills both of Kim Houn’s parents.

 

The family is relocated again. Kim Houn always hopes they will return home, but they never do. During their journey they have no food or water and must stay in flooded houses; then they go to labor camp. Vicheara lives in a house with Leang, Sunthary and another family. She has to lie about her life and education to avoid death. She digs a canal, labor to which she is hardly accustomed. She visits Kim Houn frequently. Her father, Eeh, Kilen, Koy and Hieng share an outdoor room covered by a palm leaf roof. Within months, Eeh dies. Vicheara gets malaria, but Kim Houn finds medicine for her. Hieng dies, too.

 

Kilen and Kim Houn appear to have a relationship until he chooses Vicheara. Koy becomes sick, Kilen neglects him and he dies. Vicheara moves in with Kim Houn after Leang is sent away. Sunthary dies in a revolutionary hospital. Vicheara blames Kim Houn for everything, and he doesn’t argue with her about it. Her mother-in-law, NEAK, treats Kim Houn like he treated her before the revolution. He decides to get necessities by trading things he has kept hidden, but many times he feigns sickness to keep from working. In exchange for food, Vicheara trades cosmetics, cuts hair and sews with Neak. They only get one can of rice and sometimes none. Neak’s disdain for Kim Houn grows and Leang holds a small grudge against him, too.

 

Kim Houn’s health takes a bad turn. He has hidden cans of food and vegetables, but he doesn’t have enough and Vicheara works in the fields to get more. While she’s gone, jewelry is taken from Kim Houn leaving them with less to use for bartering. Kim Houn and Vicheara get malaria, and she has to beg for help. They nurse each other back to health, but Kim Houn’s face and feet become swollen, which is a bad sign. Vicheara asks the KR leader for coconut juice for her father and he surprises her by saying yes. Several people help, but Kim Houn dies in Vicheara’s arms. She’s only twenty-six years old.

 

BARBARIANS with the eyes of cannibals replace the leader. They are cruel and inflict harsh punishment. A SOLDIER promises to help Vicheara, but the next day VICHEARA’S NEIGHBOR tells her to run before he kills her.

 

Afterward, Vicheara moves in with her in-laws and they mistreat her. She overhears Neak say her jewelry wasn’t taken, even though she had said it was missing. They make her steal food when she’s put in the kitchen. During this time, Vicheara fears Leang is dead. She’s sent to water vegetables, but she fakes a stomachache. She’s then sent to build a dam. She gets no rest until she almost cuts off her toe. Vicheara is given noodle soup for her health; it’s a delicacy compared to the canned rice. She’s made to work again but she keeps faking an appendix injury. When she returns to the house, it is empty except for one sister-in-law.

 

Vicheara returns to the fields and plants rice until she gets severe pink eye and must hide while it heals. She finds her aunt, whose family is gone. Vicheara’s aunt gives her food that gives her enough strength to harvest rice. One day, her in-laws return so they will all be together in case of a civil war. They continue to abuse her. To get some reprieve, she begins sewing. However, she’s fired because she’s too young and healthy. Vicheara has diarrhea constantly due to the brutal work in the field and the poor food and water. She feigns sickness so she can sleep and get healthier.

 

One day, a Malaysian woman takes her to steal rice from the KR. The Malaysian also has crabs but won’t trade them. Vicheara steals some and the Malaysian woman tell the KR LEADER. The leader threatens to beat Vicheara, but she is saved when he is removed permanently. Neak finds beef, which Vicheara hopes she can share. However, the family doesn’t want Vicheara to eat. Depressed, she nearly starves herself, but her FRIENDS nurse her back to health. She moves back into the fields, where she’s almost raped. She can’t report the assault because it could lead to her being executed. Neak also steals Kim Houn’s sarong for sugar for her husband, which infuriates Vicheara. When her father-in-law is better, he kicks Vicheara out.

 

Vicheara goes to the hospital, but there are no medical professionals because they were killed. She makes friends with AMY and moves in with her. However, AMY’S NEPHEW mistreats Vicheara. Amy tries to kill her nephew and Vicheara when the nephew steals food. During this time, North Vietnam defeats the Khmer Rouge and the Cambodian slaves are freed. However, even though they are liberated there is still fighting, danger and hunger. Amy and Vicheara get settled and the nephew leaves. Vicheara meets AUNTIE PRINCESS and PHEUN. At first, Princess is good to Vicheara but soon she treats Vicheara like a servant. A WOMAN and her son CHROCH join them. A market is set up in village, and Auntie makes Vicheara sell desserts during the blistering heat. However, Vicheara refuses to give up. Tired of still being a slave, Vicheara waits for the chance to leave.

 

One day, Princess makes Vicheara go to Angkor Wat for the merchants. She remembers the hotel from her vacation fourteen years earlier; like her, the city is faded. During the trip, Chroch and his mother finally treat her with respect. Vicheara’s AUNT PHON finds her there and invites her to stay with her in-laws. Not wanting their abuse, Vicheara says no and stays with her old neighbor SIEN. Sien teaches her Vietnamese, cooking and other skills. Vicheara’s father-in-law shows up. He says that he misses Vicheara and tells her Neak is dead. She doesn’t feel sorry for him and dismisses him. Shortly afterward, a Vietnamese soldier takes Vicheara and Sien to their home town. She sees DR. MEY and his wife, who were good friends of the family. She finds out that Thor was murdered and his family is dead. Dr. Mey tells her about a Thai camp where she can go to arrange an escape, but Vicheara isn’t able to afford it.

 

Sien and Vicheara visit their old houses, which have been ransacked. They also visit the pharmacy building and eat. The pharmacists implore Vicheara to join the team and she does. She finds her UNCLE CHHUN, who is kind to her. Vicheara stays with Dr. Mey until Mey’s wife thinks she’s stealing. Vicheara then goes to live in an apartment. She also finds Pou Phan, who is no longer respectful. Vicheara realizes that she’s no longer elitist. She must take “Political Morality” training with LOK KROU. The Vietnamese teach that the Cambodian leader betrayed his people, which supposedly destroyed the relationship between Vietnam and Cambodia. Vietnam sells the propaganda that Vietnam is Cambodia’s savior. During training, DARARAN shows interest in Vicheara. Surprisingly, DARA proposes to Vicheara, but she loves Dararan. They are terrified when they discover that a FORMER KR COMMANDER is now a Vietnamese leader. Vicheara realizes that PRINCE SIHANOOK cares more about being a ruler than the Cambodians, so they are still in danger.

 

Vicheara tells legends to the people for entertainment and hope. When their return, they have to spread propaganda to poor villagers. The villagers accept the propaganda willingly after they share the horrors of the KR. They promise to return, but they can’t because Lok Krou suspects them of being spies. They return to camp and Vicheara’s relationship with Dararan grows. Unfortunately, she finds that Dararan is married and has a son. He convinces Vicheara that circumstances forced him to marry, but he doesn’t leave his wife. Vicheara returns home, and she and her pharmacist friends sell pharmaceuticals. After a few months, she knows she has to leave to get away from Dararan. She finds TY to take her to the Thai camp. On her journeys with him, she remembers visiting places as a young girl and is ashamed at the disregard she had for the people.

 

Before she leaves, Vicheara visits Sien again. They must wait for her daughter THOM to return. Vicheara gives Ty some silver to sell. He takes three months to return and tries to keep the money. She takes it and will return home, where the pharmacy school is open again. She visits Dararan where he works, but he’s not romantic and gets her to leave quickly. She’s accepted back, but everyone hates that she escaped and came back. She lives with Phach but is kicked out when she disciplines her daughter. Vicheara lives in a dirty, tiny apartment. Dararan tries to convince her to marry him as a second wife, but she refuses. She finishes pharmacy school. DR. SIENG wants to promote Vicheara to supervise the pharmacy when it’s merged with Pasteur Institute, but her co-worker PHEAR tries to get her fired. She is sent to Vietnam, where her trainer makes her forget Dararan, even though he’s married. Vicheara knows it’s time to move on with her life.

 

Vicheara’s cousin MANY agrees to take her and her friend SOPHAL to the Thai camp. Disguised as tobacco merchants, they leave in the middle of the night. Vicheara doesn’t fit in, so to be safer they split up when they come across patrols. She’s arrested because of her elitist looks. Many uses Vicheara’s only remaining gold to negotiate her freedom. One night, she writes a letter in French and, because of the group’s paranoia, they have to leave. They finally make it to the Thai camp in 1983. At last they are free from communists, free to start their lives again. She moves to the U.S. in 1985. Vicheara still struggles to find God’s purpose in all of her travails, but she is determined to figure it out.

 

 

Comments/Suggestions for Adaptation:

 

CONCEPT: BAMBOO PROMISE is historical fiction, but it is crafted almost like a piece of fiction. The book uses elements of drama – so often missing from historical accounts – to create a lilting and haunting narrative that draws the audience into the story. The gritty, true to life details found in the book tell a story that could do well as an independent film.

 

STORY and CHARACTERS: The story would need to be edited since it encompasses more history than could comfortably fit in a standard feature film. However, this would not be difficult to do. The underlying theme of family is present throughout the narrative and will supply a unified visual storyline. An edited version would still include the brutality and cruelty that the main character and her family experienced without diminishing Vicheara’s search for hope, love and safety.

 

An independent film would offer the best format for a potential adaptation. Taking this route would allow the filmmakers to deal with the content in an up-close and personal way. The narrative is dark yet hopeful and an independent filmmaker could craft a beautiful film from it. In addition, the film could contain close-up, less-than-perfect focus shots that would retain the gloomy, yet poignant feel of the original text. As a result, audience members would be able to empathize with Vicheara as she experiences the brutality of the revolution.  

 

An adaptation would also need to eliminate some of the book’s characters and focus on Vicheara and her immediate family. The narrative’s many characters are unique and easily distinguished from one another, but a two hour film wouldn’t have time to give each person the attention he/she deserves. It may also be wise for an adaptation to focus more on Vicheara’s life as a young woman than on her life as a child. Flashbacks or dreams could be used to give a glimpse of her childhood and the life of privilege she enjoyed before the revolution so drastically altered things. There are so many vividly portrayed scenes throughout the book, that a filmmaker would have lots of material from which to draw the best scenes and characters.

 

Many of the characters retain hope throughout their horrific experiences, which makes the story very moving. A few people give up on life, but the majority of them find a way to survive. They experience violence, torture, sexual abuse, starvation and enslavement; most people would be completely bereft of hope but Vicheara and those around her never give up. As a result, the story is an uplifting tribute to the human spirit. The narrative illustrates that even when people are treated like animals, there are still ways to find love and hope. These are the types of characters that filmmakers and actors want to work with and want to portray.

 

Vicheara could easily have remained stubborn and prideful. However, she chooses to grow and the arc her character takes is amazing. She faces enormous adversity, but retains her spirit and fights to survive. She’s multi-dimensional and has a depth that many people never find in themselves. Vicheara refuses to play meek, even when she’s begging. A character like Vicheara is worth watching, and the role could attract the attention of many talented actresses.  

 

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