Cards on the Table (Vietnamese telefilm)
Cards on the Table (, ) is a 1980s Vietnamese 35mm black and white film directed by Lê Hoàng Hoa in his art name Khôi Nguyên. Plot. A story based on the life of sleeper agent Albert Phạm Ngọc Thảo with character Robert Nguyễn Thành Luân (Nguyễn Chánh Tín) during 1956–63. Release. Nguyễn Chánh Tín is a popular actor and singer in Saigon since prior to 1975. Born in Bạc Liêu, he was the youngest of five children. He is the uncle of Vietnamese-American actors, Dustin Nguyen and Johnny Tri Nguyen, and famous comedian  Vân Sơn, who is also the owner of Van Son Entertainment. During the early 1970s, Nguyễn Chánh Tín's good looks earned him a status of being somewhat of a cinema heartthrob. He portrayed the lead character, Robert Nguyễn Thành Luân, in "Cards on the Table" which has been considered by many as his signature film role. Actress Thúy An starred as his leading lady for the first three out of the series of 8 episodes altogether. Although Thúy An's portrayal of the female lead character in "Cards on the Table" had been well received, in 1984 her pregnancy  would cause her to be replaced by Thanh Lan for parts 4, 5 and 6, as shooting had been scheduled for all three parts in that year. The chemistry between Nguyễn Chánh Tín and Thanh Lan on screen gained even wider reception from movie audiences, which prompted the film's producers' decision to also cast Thanh Lan in the remaining last two sequels of the series.