With the buzz surrounding Les Miserables and the anticipated release on Christmas Day… Musical and Film insiders have their sets on another Cameron Mackintosh production that has potential for the big screen: Miss Saigon.

When reading my RSS feed earlier, Playbill goes into detail of the various parties that have been rumored to be involved with the potential production.

Even Cameron Mackintosh tossed this little nugget to the feeders:

If Les Mis is a success then Miss Saigon will be made into a film. It isn’t confirmed at this point but there are many people sniffing around and offers coming in.

There were reports going on for the past few years that working on Miss Saigon was on “Precious” director Lee Daniels’ wish list. There were also rumors circulating that film producer Paula Wagner was working on a deal with Mackintosh for a spell.

According to Broadway.com recent American Idol contestant Jessica Sanchez has been floating around as a possible star.

Schönberg and Boublil collaborated with Richard Maltby, Jr. on the 1989 musical Miss Saigon, which took inspiration from the Puccini opera Madama Butterfly. Set during the fall of Vietnam, the musical centers on an American G.I. and a young Vietnamese prostitute who fall in love against the backdrop of the war. When Saigon falls and the Americans pull out, the young woman is left behind.

But… for someone like myself who is Vietnamese-American, I will be watching and scrutinizing every piece of news of this potential production with bated breath (ok… maybe not that extreme).

Why? Simple, because I want this to be done right, and not just via the eyes of the Americans (or other foreigners) but I would love to see this done right via the eyes of the Vietnamese that have actually lived through the war. This is afterall as much as Kim’s journey as it is Chris’ journey.

So as a Vietnamese-American I have a very specific wishlist of what I would love to see happen in any potential film production of Miss Saigon… ideas and wishes that I believe would not only enhance the film as a whole, but would bring the struggles of the Vietnamese to light. Afterall who better to describe what caused unease for the Vietnamese-Americans and the Vietnamese refugees when the production of Miss Saigon came to light?

THE ULTIMATE MISS SAIGON WISH LIST FOR THE FILM ADAPTATION
1: Potential Actors / Actresses
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