Plot: What’s it about?
King Bayinnaung of Burma desires to keep the province of Ayudhya under his rule, to the extent that he kidnaps their young prince, Naresuan. He knows that while the prince is in his hands, Ayudhya will have to remain peaceful toward him, since the prince’s life is potent collateral. While the prince is forced to stay within Bayinnaung’s grasp, he still makes the most of his time. He is trained by monks about leadership and also strikes up friendships with two other young people he meets. A young beggar and a temple girl become quite close with the prince, learning about life and getting into some mischief. Naresuan spends years honing his mind and he knows his destiny is to return freedom to Ayudhya. As he grows into an adult, he is forced to engage Burma’s new ruler and risk his life to defend his province. But can Naresuan put those years of training to good use and overcome the incredible odds, or will his people stay under Burmese control?
If you’re a fan of historical epics, but prefer strategy over brute force, then Kingdom of War is going to bowl you over. While billed as action oriented, there is a lot more focus on the gears behind the warfare. There are some great battle scenes, no doubt, but don’t expect six hours of nonstop battlefield violence. The pace is on the slow side, which can be rough given the duration. I was also not that taken in by the character development, as the filmmakers chose to spotlight the bigger picture, which leaves us with characters that aren’t well fleshed out. This is an issue of course, since we need to connect these folks in order to care, especially in the life and death situations of war. But while the film has a fair share of quibbles, it also gets a lot right. The production design is epic, with great attention to detail. All the production design touches really draw you in and help maintain atmosphere, which is crucial in any historical period piece.
While I wasn’t thrilled with the depth of the characters, Kingdom of War still boasts some great performances. In Part 1, I was quite surprised by how well the child actors performed. I figured they’d be passable, but all three turned in terrific efforts that really elevate the experience. Even their exploits are a touch dull at times, these nice performances keep you interested. The adult actors that continue the roles in Part 2 also continue that level of performance. One thing the writing does well is to carry over elements of the children to the adult versions, which should be expected, but is still well done here. The casting choices work well too, so the spirits of the characters remain intact. Kingdom of War is a flawed epic to be sure, not to mention the substantial time investment required, but it is worth a look for those who love historical epics.
Video: How does it look?
Kingdom of War is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen. These movies are loaded with great visuals, especially all of the production design elements, so it was crucial that this transfer deliver. As it turns out, all of that visual spark shines through here, in radiant fashion. I found detail to be excellent, as you can see the smallest touches on the costumes and props, which is impressive stuff. The depth isn’t as remarkable when the camera pans back from a distance, but overall, detail is great. The colors a little toned down, per the visual design, while black levels look good, though a little off in a few places. Even with these minor issues, Kingdom of War looks terrific.
Audio: How does it sound?
This is a historical epic, so it is only proper that it have an epic soundtrack, which this DTS HD 5.1 option proves to be. In the battle scenes, the surrounds roar into action, with deep bass and great presence. You’ll almost feel the arrows zing past your ears, but even the atmospheric background elements shine here. I do think the dialogue winds up drowned out at times, but it seems to have mixed in at a lower volume than usual throughout. This is never a major concern, but the vocals could benefit from a louder presence in the soundtrack. The original Thai language is the sole soundtrack choice, while subtitles in English and Spanish are also on deck.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The supplements are not so epic, with just a quarter of brief promotional featurettes, a music video, and the international trailer for Kingdom of War.
