Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Jakoba True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

spectralmoon I had no idea what this movie was but had seen it on the satellite schedule several times before the occasion on which I finally watched it. This is definitely another on the list of foreign-language films that are much better than most of Hollywood's output.If you can appreciate movies that are filmed in a language you don't understand, I'd highly recommend this. As with films like Queen Margot and the recent Chinese movies from Crouching Tiger to Hero and House of Flying Daggers, I felt like I understood directly most of the time. The acting, direction, and pace of the subtitles were so well done that I was pretty much completely drawn into the movie and oblivious to the fact that I was reading anything.Being completely uneducated on Thai history, it was difficult the first time I was watching to keep track of who was who. I felt like this added to the experience of watching this movie rather than detract from it, however, because the viewer is meant to feel conflicted sympathies.Suriyothai is just a gorgeous movie. Everything about it is so artful that you want to dive into it down to tasting the foods. I totally recommend it if you want an epic movie you've never heard of that is easily on top of Hollywood standards for quality. If this were an American movie, the budget probably would have been at least 200 million or so. It's just fantastic.

birck I was not impressed. Whether because of FFC's re-editing, or because of the basic film, I can't tell. The acting is flat, which may be a peculiarity of Thai drama and/or film-making, but the flatness makes the emotional dynamics hard to pick up on. The characters are difficult to keep straight; and the main point of the story-the self-sacrifice of the main character-is there, but not emphasized enough to give the film any real narrative drive. Perhaps it was done that way because the principal audience-Thais at home in Thailand-was assumed to know all the characters and be familiar with the story?I have seen and appreciated films dealing with essential historical legends of Asian countries, so I know that it can be done effectively, and in such a way that non-asians can "get" the story. I know I'm supposed to be impressed by the money spent on it, the great costumes, the majesty of the story, and-yes-the elephants! But, at bottom, the story simply isn't told here in a way that delivers much of a punch for me.

fastmike If you don't mind stepping out of the Hollywood made-for-the-average-audience recipe, and if you are curious about things and places, whose ruins you've see in exotic travel programs then by all means see this.Glimpse the culture and mind-set of 16th century South East Asia, through the looking glass crafted director Tan Mui, extraordinary costume and set design and beautiful cinematography.A complex plot and subtitles make this a little difficult to follow, and it is a little long, but if you like a change of pace, then see what it was like a long time ago, in this palace, far, far away.

ggrihn This is a beautiful epic film set in historical Thailand during a turbulent period about 1526AD into the 1530's. There is an interesting story behind the making of this film. Apparently, Chatrichalerm Yukol, the writer and director is a member of the sprawling Thai royal family (as is SF/Horror writer S.P. Somtow). The Thais have never been happy with films about Thailand, so much so that neither the Yul Brenner film "The King and I," or the more recent "Anna and the King" have ever been legally exhibited there. Yukol had made several well-respected "art" films. He was attending a family function when the Queen of Thailand asked him why he couldn't make a good film about Thai history. Taking this as a royal command, he spent three years researching and writing this story about a famous past queen. Evidently, going from directing small, intimate, modern films to a full-blown historical epic with thousands of extras, cannon, and elephants was quite a transition. However, the result is lovely.The story commences as Suriyothai, a young princess, is betrothed to Prince Thienraja, who is virtuous but rather dull. She prefers her childhood friend, Lord Srithep, but agrees to "sacrifice" her own desires for the good of the Kingdom, which is the first of a series of difficult decisions she is called upon to make. We see Thailand as a country with a beautiful and sophisticated culture, every bit the equal of the Japan of the era, but under stress from rebellious provinces and foreign invaders. A series of royal deaths from disease, disaster, and assassination brings about a dynastic struggle in which Suriyothai organizes a rebellion against a usurper that brings her husband to the throne. (As King Mahachakrepat--the way in which people take new names as they gain rank can be confusing.) She then has to don armor and mount an elephant to aid her husband in defending the country from the Burmese invaders seeking to exploit the general disorder.The film was cut from a four-hour Thai original to 185 minutes for Western release, and is consequently somewhat choppy, but still easy to follow if you are attentive. I was fascinated by this bit of history in a region of the world where I had known nothing. English subtitles were easy to follow, because, unlike some French or Japanese films, we've seen lately, it takes longer to say the same things in Thai than English, so the titles stay on the screen long enough to follow. Cinematography and settings were beautiful, and gave opportunity for some unique battle scenes, including one between river galleys, and the climactic fight which involves jousting from elephant back.I've seen criticisms from other viewers that essentially echoed critiques of films like "Gods and Generals,"--that it lacked plot. Get with it people--history doesn't need a plot, history IS the plot.