“Based
on the true story of a Siamese
queen who set out to murder her
husband in order to put her lover on
the throne, The King Maker is a
colourful, fantastic swashbuckling
historical adventure with a dash
of romance...”
SHIPWRECKED AND CAPTURED BY ARABS to be sold as a slave, Portuguese Fernando
De Gama (Gary Stretch: World Trade Center; Alexander) finds himself in
Ayutthaya in Siam in 1547. He is surprised to be bought by a mysterious and
beautiful woman named Maria de Torres (former Miss Thailand Cindy Burbridge:
A House Of Mad Souls).
Maria's father Phillippe (John Rhys-Davies: Lord Of The Rings; Indiana Jones
And The Last Crusade) is building a fort on the river to protect the city,
and Fernando recognises him, believing that he was the man who betrayed and
killed his own father when Fernando was a boy. Fernando still suffers nightmares
from the incident.
King Chairacha (Nirht Sirichanya) is at war with the King of Burma and asks
the Portuguese community, led by de Torres, to join his army. Fernando also
volunteers; but he cannot shake off his suspicions of de Torres' loyalties.
Things become even more difficult when he realises he is in love with Maria.
While the king is away, his wife Queen Sudachan (Yoe Yossawadee) is secretly
spending time with her lover, the Court Administrator Phan (Akara Amarttayakul),
and she has already made arrangements with conspirators for the king to be assassinated.
Fernando, meanwhile, returns from the war a hero and with a new friend, Tong
(Dom Hetrakul), and both are rewarded for their bravery in battle by being given
the prestigious honour of becoming royal bodyguards. But when they foil an attempt
on the king's life by Japanese ninjas, Fernando has reason to believe that de
Torres has been bribed by the queen, desperate as he is to become rich and return
to Portugal with his daughter.
Before Fernando can prove his suspicions the queen kills her husband with a
poison she has procured from the witch Yai Jun (Amora Asawanond) and, with her
lover at her side on the throne, has Fernando, Maria, Tong and Tong's family
arrested. Nobody can hide from the queen's evil intent, not even her own son.
Pitted against each other, Fernando and Tong are forced to fight to the death;
their loved ones are in terrible danger and nothing short of a miracle will
save them all.
The King Maker is a colourful, exciting, action-packd and superbly-told
historical drama of 16th Century Siam with the poignancy of being based on a
true story. It follows Fernando De Gama on his journey along a warrior's path,
entwined with the king's destiny. Although it does not always match the film's
content, the soundtrack is fabulous.
The King Maker also features: Oliver Rupart as Lord Chakkraphat; Chalee
Trirut as Prince Yodfa, Queen's son; Uraiwan Patthanasilp as Tong's Wife; Mark
Sobels as Father Pedro and Shaun Delaney as Fernando's Father. Original Score
is by Ian Livingstone and features St Nikolai Choir of the State, Moscow; Director
of Photography is Jiradet Samneangsanor; Action Director is Ming Jian Huang;
Executive Producer is Andre Bachtiari; Screenplay is by Sean J Casey; Produced
by David Winters and Directed by Lek Kitiparaporn.
•
A
swashbuckling, martial arts adventure packed with sword-weilding warriors, ninja
assassins, heroic battles and political intrigue, the action epic The King
Maker comes to DVD courtesy of Anchor Bay Entertainment on 21 March 2011.
Certificate: 15 | Running time: 88 Minutes | RRP: £15.99.
"The King Maker is a colourful, exciting, action-packed and superbly-told
historical drama of 16th Century Siam"
— Maggie Woods, MotorBar
“Based
on the true story of a Siamese