The most popular movies are the ones with two hours of non-stop action. But some of the best movies are the ones with almost negligible action. Witness the temperate calm and tempered passion of "The Vertical Ray of the Sun," directed by Tran Anh Hung.

For nearly two hours, viewers are treated to what amounts to a visual massage that releases tension and woos us. But, appearances are deceiving. Behind the sweet, simple life of three sisters and a brother in contemporary Vietnam is an undercurrent of unhappiness, fear and sorrow.

Lien (Tran Nu Yen Khe), a waitress, lives with her brother Hai (Ngo Quang Hai), a film actor who can't get anything more than bit parts in movies. Their relationship is an odd one, with Lien forever flirting and Hai keeping her at arm's length.

Their older sister Suong Nguyen Nhu Quynh) owns the cafe where Lien works. Suong is married to Quoc (Chu Hung), a photographer who shows only his photos of plants and flowers. The portraits he takes are kept hidden away.

Middle sister Khanh (Le Khanh) is married to Kien (Tran Manh Cuong), a writer attempting to finish his first novel.

As the film opens the sisters are preparing a memorial meal on the anniversary of their mother's death. While discussing their parents, the women return to the subject of Toan, a mysterious man from their mother's past and they consider trying to unravel the story. It is this enigmatic story that underpins "The Vertical Ray of the Sun." Was it a schoolgirl crush? An extra-marital affair?

When the husbands leave the city -- Quoc to photograph nature in the countryside and Kien to Saigon to search for the elusive Toan and hopefully shatter his writer's block in the process -- the family's secrets begin to emerge.

Quoc has a second wife and family, which he is visiting on his trip. Meanwhile, back at home Suong rekindles a long-standing affair. Khan announced her pregnancy to Kien before his departure but it doesn't stop him pursuing an affair with a woman he meets on the plane. Lien wants her boyfriend to be more like her brother and dreams of having a baby and has convinced herself that she is.

With stunning cinematography shot with luscious, tropical palette, "The Vertical Ray of the Sun" is a joy to behold. Its soft pace and the sweet, playful and often humorous relationship between Lien and Hai are charming.

Although the twists and turns of the plot and the fairly complex relationships are sometimes confusing, Tran Anh Hung has crafted a film with the hand of a novelist and a painter.

Grade: A-

"The Vertical Ray of the Sun" opened Fri, Sept. 28 and plays for one week only at Landmark's Downer Theatre. Click here for showtimes