Anna and the King of Siam (1946)

In 1862, a young Englishwoman becomes royal tutor in Siam and befriends the King.

Director:

John Cromwell

Writers:

Talbot Jennings (screenplay), Sally Benson (screenplay)

Stars:

Irene Dunne, Rex Harrison, Linda Darnell

Won 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Irene Dunne	...	Anna Owens
Rex Harrison	...	King Mongkut
Linda Darnell	...	Tuptim
Lee J. Cobb	...	Kralahome
Gale Sondergaard	...	Lady Thiang
Mikhail Rasumny	...	Alak
Dennis Hoey	...	Sir Edward
Tito Renaldo	...	Prince Chulalongkorn - as a Boy
Richard Lyon	...	Louis Owens

Storyline

In 1862, young English widow Anna Owens (Irene Dunne) accepts the job of teaching the royal children of Siam. On her arrival in Bangkok, culture clash is immediate. King Mongkut (Sir Rex Harrison) respects Anna for standing up to him, though this appalls his courtiers. In due course, she becomes the King's confidant and diplomatic advisor. Their relationship endures through many trials.

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Plot Keywords:

king | siam | royal tutor | thailand | 19th century | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 August 1946 (UK)

Also Known As:

Ana y el rey de Siam

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden - 301 N. Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filming was delayed two months because Irene Dunne's husband was recovering from a heart attack. Twentieth Century Fox almost considered replacing her with Myrna Loy or Jean Arthur.

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Goofs

As the various Consulates are being established, there are several errors involving the national flags; the British Union Jack is shown upside down, the French flag is replaced by that of The Netherlands, and the US flag is shown with 48 stars (correct for 1946, but in 1870 there were only 37 states).

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Quotes

Anna Owens: [Anna, thinking the king is a barbarian, is about to leave. The Kralahome has had her brought to his office at night to reason with her. She is outraged] How dare you treat me in this manner. I demand an explanation, and I warn you...
Kralahome: [Calmly] Be quiet, sir.
Anna Owens: ...that I'm a British subject.
Kralahome: That is nor reason you are safe. I could have you killed if that would serve my purpose. Such things are simple here.
[Walks across room]
Kralahome: Sir, did you enjoy your triumph about your house? Because you shall now ...
[...]

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Alternate Versions

The 2006 UK DVD was cut by 2 secs by the BBFC to remove a horse-trip.

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Connections

Version of The King and I (1999)

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Soundtracks

Home Sweet Home
(1823) (uncredited)
from "Clari, The Maid of Milan"
Music by H.R. Bishop
Lyrics by John Howard Payne
Sung by the King's children and played often in the score
Sung a cappella a bit by Mikhail Rasumny

User Reviews

A very fine movie

Like other reviewers on here, I knew the musical The King and I, which I have always enjoyed, before I finally saw this movie. And, as others have said, they are two different things, each with their own merits.

What I enjoyed most about this very fine movie was the particularly fine performance of Irene Dunne. I've seen her in other movies where she delivers a nuanced and understated performance, which is true of this movie as well, and in spades. There are times when just watching how she plays various emotions across her face is fascinating by itself. Other times she lets us see hints of emotions that her character then suppresses. Harrison is good as the King, though he plays him with broader strokes, as the script calls him to do. Anna is a complex individual, however, and Dunne does full justice to all its complexity.

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I just watched this movie again tonight, and I was struck, again, by Dunne's fine, understated performance, but also by the intelligence of the script and the pacing. The main characters are all three-dimensional, in an era when it would have been easy to do caricatures of the Siamese characters. Things move along at an unhurried pace, but it is never too slow.

It's really one very fine movie.

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And now I've watched it yet again on TCM, and my admiration for this movie only grows. I still stick by everything I've written in the past. Another thing that struck me on this latest watching was the very intelligent discussion of the importance of the rule of law. I have no idea if that exists in the book on which this movie was based. But this movie makes repeated and intelligent argument emphasizing that arbitrary rule by personal whim is not acceptable in the modern world. It must have struck particular chords in the immediate post-World War II world into which it was released.