Anna et le roi

Let the magic of romance and the beauty of Siam sweep and take you away to a world where the king rules the land and a teacher rules the king's heart. "Anna and The King" is a true masterpiece that is filled with heart & soul, a beautiful setting and superb performances.

I was very impressed with the performance of Chow-Yun Fat because he made the transition from action star to dramatic actor flawlessly. Fat showed his versatility in playing a king. Fat pulled off this role with perfection. He made it so easy for me to enjoy this movie because of his screen presence and believability of the performance as well as the chemistry between Anna and the King of Siam.

This masterpiece can not be complete without the performance Jodie Foster gave as Anna Leonowens. Foster delivered the type of performance worthy of an Oscar. She once again has established herself among the elite that have the special gift of natural talent.

Foster and Fat come together beautifully to bring the true story of the romance of Anna Leonowens and King Momokut. The chemistry can be felt from a distance and it works from the first minute they come together.

"Anna and The King" is visually stunning in so many ways with beautiful settings such as the palace. Also, the costumes are well-made and suited the movie perfectly. "Anna & The King" will take you on a journey that will touch, warm and fill your heart with spirit only a motion picture masterpiece can bring.

This is the second film of the year (the other being "The Green Mile") that I have seen that I believe will recieve Oscar nominations in several categories, of which, best film, best male and femal actor and best cinematography will be definitely considered.

"Anna and the King" is an epic film about a British woman who accepts an offer to go to Siam (Thailand) to teach western education to the King of Siam's 58 children. Upon reaching Siam, Ms. Leonowens (Jodie Foster) is made to find her way to the King's palace by herself and subsequently made to wait weeks before she is allowed to meet him. Coming from a British background she is appalled by this treatment and decides to take matters into her own hands by bursting into the King's court, breaking every protocol on the way, and boldly confronting King Mongkut (Chow Yun-Fat) about her situation. This obviously does not sit well with the King but at the same time he is intrigued by this woman's boldness and so the story begins about cultural education (both British and Siamese) and a blossoming romance that has you yearning for a happy ending.

Foster plays Anna Leonowens very well and at times makes you hate her for her narrow minded view of the world as she portrays a woman who truely believes that "British teachings are the ways of the world." Her comments about British rule and colonization makes you cringe at times as she comes across as this arrogant, cold woman who believes that she is in Siam to bring culture and wisdom to a backwards country. Foster manages to portray every aspect of this character flawlessly and takes the audience for an emotional rollercoaster from, hate to love to compassion and every emotion in between.

The most notable difference in character development is the portrayal of King Mongkut. Chow Yun-Fat brings a quiet strength and sophistication that was never present in Yul Brynner's portrayal of the King. In this film we are shown a very intelligent man that understands more than he lets on. In fact, he seems to lead Ms. Leonowens around without her really knowing it and in some cases teaches her lessons about the world and how it really is. As the saying goes, "actions speak louder than words" and this is definitely the case for King Mongkut. Fat does not have as many lines as Foster does but he is in as many scenes and in most cases commands more of a presence.

The rest of the cast was excellent as well and there were very few slow points in the film. The colors used were very vibrant and creates a feel of exoticness. As well, the cinematography was incredible. Sweeping shots of the landscape showing the green carpets of the land and the incredible shots of the elaborate palace create an atmosphere of an epic film. Subtitles are used quite a bit but it only adds to the authenticity of the film.

The one thing that I was disappointed in was the fact this movie was based on Ms. Leonowens' diary which may be subject to biased occurances of certain situations or historical inaccuracies.

Overall though, I was thoroughly impressed and entertained with this film. Although Jodie Foster is the top billing name, this film definitely belongs to Chow Yun-Fat and it would be ashame not to see him get an oscar consideration for his performance. He is an accomplished international actor and it seems that Hollywood has finally discovered that. My recommendation, go see this film. You will not be disappointed.

A

This is a good movie, and it's very much worth seeing. Visually it is stunning-- the fake palace they built, and the geography is well worth the price. There are some complications that make it less than great, however. These problems might be inherent in the material-- adapting an actual English lady's actual diary. Should one poke fun at the colonializing 19th century British? The various "local" political rivals who evidently were more than willing to accept British trade and other "help" in exchange for fulfillment of personal ambitions? Or does one go entirely modern and politically correct, and pretend that the entire planet was a Berkeley coffee house just waiting for a chance to express neo-Marxist thought?

This movie tried really hard to appear "p.c." and historical at the same time. There were some glaring inconsistencies, however-- e.g., the British woman was evidently "shocked" by the death penalty being applied for what amounted to treason against the king, and yet in her own country, just 15 years before, the death penalty was routinely applied to shoplifters, petty thieves, vagrants, and anyone else the English nobility found inconvenient, annoying, or simply yucky.

The domestic montages were at times awkward and fakey. E.g., when the camera tried to build a sense of "Hey, we're getting along now!" by roaming around the palace grounds, showing the king, his kids, his old ladies and Anna all noticing birds and smiling at each other; noticing ducks and smiling at each other; noticing cutesy-poo antics of the young ones and smiling at each other. That was very stilted and phony feeling.

But this movie was much better than the critics mostly said. For example, for me, the relationship between the king and the teacher was actually very realistic, quite believable, and powerful. So maybe it's just that many professional critics don't like to see what real humans might do in a love situation with complications-- after all, they do go apoplectic whenever a movie wants you to feel something deep and real. So ignore them, and enjoy it for what it is-- a valiant and earnest effort to tell a complicated and difficult story. I gave it an "8."

Let the magic of romance and the beauty of Siam sweep and take you away to a world where the king rules the land and a teacher rules the king's heart. There are only two other movies I would consider to be worthy of masterpiece status: "Saving Private Ryan" and "Titanic." Now a third can be added to this list: "Anna And The King." "Anna and The King" is a true masterpiece that is filled with heart & soul, a beautful setting and superb performances.

I was very impressed with the performance of Chow-Yun Fat because he made the transition from action star to dramatic actor flawlessly. Fat showed his versatility in playing a king. Fat pulled off this role with perfection. He made it so easy for me to enjoy this movie because of his screen presence and believability of the performance as well as the chemistry between Anna and the King.

This masterpiece can not be completed without the performance Jodie Foster turned in. Foster delivers the type of performance worthy of an oscar. She once again has established herself among the elite that have the special gift of natural talent.

Foster and Fat come together beautifully to bring the true story of the romance of Anna Leonowens and King Momokut. The chemistry can be felt from a distance and it works from the first minute they come together. I knew Foster and Fat were compatible; however, I failed to realize how much until I viewed the movie.

"Anna and The King" is visually stunning in so many ways with beautiful settings such as the palace. Also, the costumes are well-made and suited the movie perfectly. "Anna & The King" will take you on a journey that will touch, warm and fill your heart with spirit only a motion picture masterpiece can bring.

I saw this in the theater way back in 99' and really was touched by this, in a way I had no idea that I would be. This was well made and visually wondrous, the two(Chow and Jody) were almost magical in their roles I was amazed at how incredibly well they brought the characters in a remake to be more beautiful than the original. Even though they didn't have the chemistry of other on screen romance-couples, it still makes you feel things about the couple and that time in history. I am not used to seeing Chow in this kind of character either.

My heart was definitely taken by this wonderful film, what a surprise! The director performed a brilliant job in creating this modern day work of excellence. Not many can stand the test of time effectively, like I think this is.

Bravo I recommend this to all. It is a lasting family feature that I believe will endure for a long time. (*****)