Fans of Asian cinema have been noting the opening of the biggest movie in the history of Thailand. Part I of Chatricharlerm Yukol’s trilogy King Naresuan is playing in most of the theaters in Thailand. A typical example of just how big this film is: at one multiplex near me, the film is playing on six out of seven screens.

Naresuan was a 16th century King credited for freeing Thailand from Burmese rule. It is not unusual for Thais to have shrines devoted to the warrior king. The first film is about the nine year old Naresuan as prisoner and protege of the Burmese king.

While small by Hollywood standards, the $20 million (and still rising) budget for the trilogy is way more than Chatricharlerm’s last film, the five hour Legend of Suriyothai (edited to about half it’s length by Chatricharlerm’s former UCLA classmate Francis Ford Coppola). It opened on January 18th, King Naresuan’s dominance is such that no new films will open until February 1st when Pursuit of Happyness premieres in the major cities.

One report was that on opening day, the lab had only fifty prints ready when they needed 270. Reviews ranged from respectful to gushing, not surprising when one considers that the director is a member of the Thai royal family. In spite of the mis-steps, King Naresuan made approximately three million dollars during its first four days, a record for Thailand.

In order to avoid repeating any mistakes, Part II has been postponed from February 1 to the 15th. This gives Chatricharlerm more time to work on his final cut (as well as giving Will Smith a shot at some Thai box office) and keeps the two episodes from competing against each other.

Part III is scheduled to open on December 5th, with the first two episodes probably available on DVD by April. At this time there is no information regarding the release of King Naresuan outside of Thailand.

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