FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Seventy of Thailand’s best films celebrate the life of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej

Seventy of Thailand’s best films celebrate the life of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej

The Culture Ministry honours the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej by selecting 70 of the 4,500 Thai movies made during his reign for an exhibition being held at Scala Theatre in Bangkok.

The films vary in genre and eras and include the epic “Tamnan Somdej Phra Naresuan Maharaj” (“The Legend of King Naresuan”) by MR Chatrichalerm Yukol, “Santi-Vina”, the 1954 film that was lost for 60 years then rediscovered, restored and shown at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2016 , Euthana Mukdaanit’s acclaimed teenage drama “Ruang Khong Nampu” (“The Story of Nampoo), Thailand’s all-time top-grossing horror comedy “Pee Mak Phra Khanong”, and Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s “Loong Boonmee Raluek Chat" (“Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives”), which won the Palme d’Or award at Cannes.
Members of the public were invited to submit the names of the films they would like to see again. The criteria included: the film being made during the reign of King Rama 9 (June 9, 1946 to October 15, 2016) and either the winner of an award, national or international or in the top five box office releases in each year.
Almost 30,000 film fans answered the call and submitted around 359 movies. These were then considered by a jury made up of 258 individuals from the private and public sectors as well as filmmakers and national artists, before being submitted to the national film board.
Other films that made the list include “Ruan Pae” (1961), “7 Yod Manut (1974)”, “Wai Onlawon” (1976), “Bang Rajan” (2004) and “Phleng Khong Khao” (“The Song of Rice”) (2015).
The ministry has also selected 10 of the movies to screen for free at theatres across the nation. They are running at Scala through Friday in parallel with the exhibition, with nine of the movies going on tour to major provinces from May 7 to May 23 stopping at Nakhon Ratchasima (at Major Cineplex), Chiang Mai (SFX Cinema Maya), Phuket (SFX Cinema at Central Festival Phuket) and Hua Hin (Major Cineplex).
Some of the movies will also be shown overseas. 
Admission for the nation showings is free but reservations must be made through the Content Thailand Facebook page.
 

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