Word: anna
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...love to take home. A gilded barge gliding through the waters of an enchanted jungle. Well-behaved elephants. All of this headed by the regal, charming, sexy Chow Yun-Fat. Sounds better than the Greatest Show on Earth. However, the shaky basis, unnecessary length and wobbly storyline of Anna and the King denies it a place amongst epic love stories like Ben-Hur and The English Patient...
...story of King Mongkut and Anna Leonowens is known to most, having been visited in the 1946 movie Anna and the King of Siam as well as the catchy and charming Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I (starring the unforgettable Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr). The story is simple: the king of Siam hires a foreign schoolteacher to teach his court (including his 58 children) English and give insight into the ways of the West. A clash of traditions and customs ensue, but so does a growing relationship between the stern ruler and the headstrong schoolteacher...
...case, the East-meets-West dynamic that emerges is forced. Anna's character, though played well by a strong and elegant Jodie Foster, is flat. She enters the film a fearless Amazon who shows so little fear that a scene in which she picks up a lantern and scurries to investigate strange howling noises in the dark of the night causes one to laugh at the incongruity of the situation. Her characteristics are anachronistic; the film blunders and attributes to Anna the characteristics of a steely Scully-like character instead of a confused widow desperately trying remain brave...
...film's start, Anna tells her son outright that the ways of the English are the ways of the world--and if they aren't, then they should be. With statements like that, the film doesn't allow for anyone's actions to speak; somewhat like a dimestore romance novel, it hits its audience over the head declaring the different sensibilities of Anna and the king loud and clear. These sentiments are bannered across the screen, although in the two hour, 40 minute movie, there is plenty of time to allow them to unfold naturally...
...However, this is not to say that the sappy amongst us won't sigh and smile at the love between the king and Anna, for Chow Yun-Fat as King Mongkut provides much to sigh and smile at. While the film's message may not be clear, what is obvious is the talent of Chow Yun-Fat and his ability to carry a film. He perfectly complements and is at home amongst the rich sets and lush landscapes. Despite that neither English or the Siamese he speaks in the film are well-known languages to him, his words are infused...