The Legend of Suriyothai

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The Legend of Suriyothai
Richard Harvey
Michael Pärt (music editing)
Distributed bySahamongkol Film International (Thailand)
Sony Pictures Classics and American Zoetrope[1] (US)
Release date
  • August 17, 2001 (2001-08-17) (Thailand)
Running time
185 minutes (Thailand)
142 minutes (US)
LanguageThai
Budget$11 million[2]
Box office$14 million[2]

The Legend of Suriyothai (Thai: สุริโยไท) is a 2001 Thai film written and directed by Chatrichalerm Yukol, which portrays the life of Queen Suriyothai, who is regarded by Thai people as the "great feminist".[3] It records the climax when she takes her battle elephant in front of the Burmese army and sacrifices herself to save the life of her King Maha Chakkraphat and his kingdom. It was Thailand's most expensive film and the highest-grossing,[2] until it was surpassed by Pee Mak.[4]

Plot

The story follows the course of the life of

Prince Pirenthorathep
, who in turn pledges that he will come to her aid whenever she wants.

Her father insists that she must marry Prince Thienraja, the son of the second king of the realm. In an attempt to escape a marriage she does not want, she runs away and is captured by the principal king who explains the possible problems her marriage to Piren might cause to Siam. For the good of the kingdom, she marries Prince Tien to keep peace in the royal families. From this point on she remains loyal to the man she likes but does not love and remains strongly independent.

The principal king dies, and Tien's father inherits the throne. A few years later,

Burma
invades in the north and Chai Raja assumes the throne to protect Siam. He executes the child king, which Tien protests but on Suriyothai's advice accepts Chai Raja as his ruler.

Chai Raja's wife,

U-Tong dynasty
, takes Boonsri Worawongsa, another U-Tong descendant, as a lover and starts plotting to take over the throne.

The king is wounded in battle and comes back to the capital to recuperate, where Srisudachan poisons him and attempts to blame the deed on Tien. Tien saves his own life by becoming a

Sri Sudachan
, and Tien accepts the throne despite his monkhood.

Upon hearing this, Burmese King Hongsa invades again and lays siege to Ayutthaya. In a dramatic finale, however, the Burmese invade the new kingdom, and Queen Suriyothai heroically rides into battle with her husband and her unrequited childhood love at her side.[6] The queen is slain, falling in slow motion from the elephant in full uniform with her throat cut. The ending scene reveals a traditional funeral for royals.

Cast

The film stars another

Mom Luang
.

Thai pop star

Sarunyu Wongkrachang as Prince Thien, Chatchai Plengpanich as Lord Piren and Johnny Anfone as Lord Worawongsa
.

Other actors and actresses from Thai film history appear, including action-movie veteran Sombat Metanee and Sorapong Chatree, who appeared in many of Chatrichalerm's films in the 1970s and 1980s.

Production

Background

The film was financed by

Queen Sirikit, who appointed royal family members to the directorial position (Chatrichalerm) and to the role of the lead actress. Chatrichalerm wrote the screenplay and directed. Kamla, his wife, designed the costumes and served as a producer. Because of Queen Sirikit's backing, when the script called for a large number of men in the battle scenes, Royal Thai Army and Royal Thai Navy
personnel were called upon to help make up the thousands of extras required.

Chatrichalerm states that The Legend of Suriyothai was originally the idea of Queen Sirikit. According to Chatrichalerm, the Queen wanted the Thai people to have a better understanding of their history and felt that a motion picture would be a good way to accomplish this. Chatrichalerm and Queen Sirikit mutually agreed to use Suriyothai as their first subject.

Documents sent to

Early Modern warfare, but the only one with a speaking part was a physician called to the deathbed of the poisoned king. A follow-up film on King Naresuan, King Naresuan
was released in 2007.

Amporn Jirattikorn argues that other motivations for the film included a fear of foreign influence after the 1997 Asian financial crisis and competition from another historical figure, the sister to King Naresuan.[5] According to Jirattikorn, the film attempts to provide a national hero connected to the current monarchical dynasty, in contrast to other Thai films presenting events of the same era (e.g., Bang Rajan).

The movie uses many locations and sites in

Thai Royal Family
, any figure is hard to substantiate. Additionally, the royal family’s association with this motion picture allowed filming in locations that would have been difficult or even impossible for any other director to access.

Alternative versions

When the film was released on August 12, 2001 in Thailand, it was simply titled Suriyothai and had a running time of 185 minutes. This is pared down quite a bit from its intended eight-hour length. A five-hour version exists in a DVD box-set released in Thailand.

In 2003, it was released in the United States, with a running time of 142 minutes. This version was edited by Francis Ford Coppola. The US release by Sony Pictures Classics in association with Coppola's company American Zoetrope[1] was entitled Francis Ford Coppola Presents: The Legend of Suriyothai. Some critics argue that the original Thai release was the better presentation of the film, with others even preferring the five-hour DVD set, which does have English subtitles.

Reception

Critical reception

In his review of The Legend of Suriyothai in technohistory.com, Steve Sanderson states "The film's celebration of female power is initially refreshing, suggesting some nascent feminist impulse."[8]

When she marries Prince Tien to keep peace she remains loyal to the man she likes but does not love and remains independent. According to The New York Times' review, this sacrifice is act of placing patriotic duty and family loyalty over her own feelings.[9]

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 51% based on reviews from 61 critics.[10] On Metacritic the film has a score of 58% based on reviews from 21 critics.[11]

Box office

The film was the highest-grossing film of all-time in Thailand with a reported gross of $14 million, three-times as much as Titanic.[2] It was number one at the Thai box office for five weeks.[12] The film grossed $458,564 in the United States and Canada.[13]

See also

  • List of historical drama films of Asia

References

  1. ^ a b American Zoetrope [us] Archived November 10, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b c d Elley, Derek (December 14, 2001). "Film Reviews: Suriyothai". Variety. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  3. ^ Simon Winchester, The Sun Never Sets: Travels To The Remaining Outposts Of The British Empire (Prentice Hall/Simon &.) "Exploring Ayutthaya by Canal Boat." The New York Times. 7 June 1987. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.
  4. ^ "Give it up for the ghost". Bangkok Post. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  5. ^
    S2CID 145109859
    .
  6. ^ MovieGuide. "THE LEGEND OF SURIYOTHAI." Rev. of The Legend of Suriyothai. n.d.: n. pag. Movieguide. 20 June 2003. Web.
  7. ^ Chatrichalerm Yukol (July 14, 2010). "SURIYOTHAI". Review. AsiaticaFilmMediale. Archived from the original on May 14, 2006. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
  8. ^ Anderson, Steve. "Review of the Legend of Suriyothai." Rev. of Legend of Suriyothai Movie. Web log post. Technohistory. N.p., 30 June 2009. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.
  9. ^ Scott, A. O. "Film in Review: 'The Legend of Suriyothai'" n.d.: n. pag. New York Times. 20 June 2003. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.
  10. ^ "Suriyothai (2003)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  11. ^ "Francis Ford Coppola Presents: The Legend of Suriyothai". Metacritic. Archived from the original on October 29, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  12. ^ Groves, Don (October 1, 2001). "H'wood makes 'Rush' into Japan". Variety. p. 16.
  13. ^ "The Legend of Suriyothai".

External links

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