Dressed casually and appearing relaxed, Prince Chatri Chalerm Yukol and his wife Kamla welcomed me to their hotel suite. He is the writer and director of the epic film, The Legend of Suriyothai, and Kamla is the producer. Unlike The King and I and its pale remake Anna and the King, Suriyothai gets its drama from a core of historical facts, rather than a Hollywood script of forbidden love between a Siamese Royal and a visiting widowed British schoolteacher. This undoubtedly was one reason Anna and the King was shot in Malaysia, because the government of Thailand would not allow it to be filmed in their homeland.

The Legend of Suriyothai takes place in 16th century Thailand and tells the story of a beautiful young princess turned warrior, who must choose the path her life will take. The characterizations of the women in the film are intelligent and provocative.

Chatri Chalerm Yukol, a Prince in the royal family of Thailand, is an acclaimed director in that country and with the film The Legend of Suriyothai he will enter the world stage in a major way. The film's romance, political intrigue and battle scenes are on par with those in the audience pleasing films, Ben Hur, "Gladiator" and "LOTR: The Two Towers", providing a fresh, intriguing and enlightening story on something that is largely based in fact.

Chatri Chalerm is unknown in Internet Movie DataBase (IMDB), which makes it look like this is his debut film. It is not. A leader in the Thai film industry, Prince Chatri Chalerm's films are shown often at film festivals around the world.

Chatri said, "…the film was not made for people outside of Thailand. I wanted it to be controversial so that it would motivate people to talk about their history. People should know that Thailand has been a civilized country for a long, long time."

A long time associate of Coppola, Chatri showed the film to him and Coppola felt strongly that it was a story that would be of universal interest because of the epic tale of love, political intrigue and, of course, the battle scenes.

Chatri said that he was very nervous at the Sundance Film Festival this year, because the age of the audience was so young, and he felt the film might have been so deep into another culture and time that it would not connect on the "do I care?" level. Even with the audience providing a standing ovation, Chatri felt it was more because it was presented by Francis Ford Coppola, who was in the house, than for the film itself. Only after a vigorous Q&A session did he feel that the film was embraced for its own qualities.

When it opened in Thailand, The Legend of Suriyothai was such a hit it caused the opening of Jurassic Park III to delay its debut. Much more than just a summer or holiday blockbuster action film, Suriyothai is targeted toward stimulating the intellectual side of our brain. While the US version has subtitles and some characters are referred to in the Thailand release by different names, the Thailand audience was asked to literally sit up and pay attention to different dialects that are now extinct. This was exactly what happened with Daughters of the Dust (Julie Dash), a film celebrating turn of the 20th century life on the outer islands of South Carolina, where the black islanders spoke in Gullah (a mix of English and African dialects).

Chatri's wife Kamla designed the costumes. All props were made from scratch, including authentic reproductions of 16th century European, Thai and Burmese weapons. The film was largely funded and supported by Queen Sirikit of Thailand, so thousands of Thai army and navy soldiers and sailors help make up the 5,000 extras that appear in the film.

Without the benefit of CGI, as in LOTR: The Two Towers, the battle action here is just as good, perhaps better because it seems more real…in fact, it is. But then with 5,000 extras and 200 elephants, shot in true historical locales, with a well written script, and characters you care about, it's no wonder many people have seen the film two or three times. This is a must see for those that like action films, are history buffs or are thrilled with wonderful period costumes. The spirit of the classic film Seven Samurai is invoked here, though on a much grander scale.

The version to be shown in theaters in the US is an outstanding film; the DVD version will have more than an extra hour that was edited from the Thailand release. I do see this film as a masterpiece of storytelling and spectacle.

Coppola still has his magic touch, as he has been involved in this film and Assassination Tango. He may have mellowed out a little at his winery, but supporting these types of films shows that his passion for fine movies has aged much like the wine at his vineyards.