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Anna and the King

Play trailer 2:32 Poster for Anna and the King PG-13 Released Dec 17, 1999 2h 27m History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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52% Tomatometer 100 Reviews 64% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Anna (Jodie Foster) has been employed to educate the king's (Chow Yun-Fat) 58 children. She knows very little of King Mongkut, apart from the fact that his people revere him as a god. She brings with her an East vs. West prejudice against the king, considering him to be uncivilized. She soon realizes that her views are more than matched by the rulers own preconceptions about the West and particularly this impertinent English woman.
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Anna and the King

Anna and the King

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Critics Consensus

Beautiful cinematography can't prevent Anna and the King from being boring and overly lengthy.

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Critics Reviews

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Bob Thomas Associated Press Anna and the King is a remarkable achievement for Andy Tennant... He has made full use of the magnificent sets, costumes and spectacle while never neglecting the human relationship that makes the Anna-King saga so enduring. Jan 17, 2018 Full Review Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly Rated: C+ Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Nell Minow Common Sense Media Intense, mature version of The King and I. Rated: 3/5 Dec 21, 2010 Full Review Chuck Klosterman Akron Beacon Journal Perhaps the true problem with Anna and the King is its medium; this probably should have been a TV miniseries... It has all the problems of an overlong art piece, but it still feels incomplete. Rated: 2.5/4 Oct 30, 2023 Full Review Peggy Fernandez Santa Cruz Sentinel Filmed in Malaysia, with an elaborate reconstruction of the original royal palace, it's gorgeous enough to make you want to visit your travel agent right after closing credits. Rated: B+ Nov 13, 2019 Full Review Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault Handsome and well-appointed ... but still one of the most boring films in recent memory. Rated: C- Jul 23, 2007 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Rachel M C'est mon film préféré ( ex aequo avec bravehearth) je peux comprendre que certain le trouve "longuet" mais c'est magnifique. Jodie Foster et Chow Yun-fat sont incroyable et je ne me lasse pas de le voir Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/08/24 Full Review Nathan W This might be a strange place to start, but I don't believe I've ever seen Tom Felton in a movie where he didn't play a goon. He was still kind of a dick, his character being a British kid and all, but it was a refreshing change of pace. He also did a very good job, considering how young he was. One of the truly rare child actors that can hold their own in scenes with adults. Like I said, weird place to start, but it was the first thing that struck me when I started watching. The next thing I noticed was just how incredible everything looked. The country was beautiful, the buildings were amazingly detailed, and the costumes were all meticulously recreated. Content aside, I would have given this three stars solely based on its effectiveness as a period piece. The amount of time, effort, and especially money, that went into this project is staggering! There were so many complicated shots, with so many moving pieces, that I was constantly in awe of what the production team was able to accomplish. The cinematography would have easily bumped it up another half star, as I could not find a single flaw in how it was filmed. Not only beautifully shot, but properly shot, which is becoming quite uncommon these days. Every still shot was mounted and steady, and every dynamic shot was still mounted and the movement was incredibly smooth. (I wish all movies were filmed like this). Jodie Foster was terrific as always. (I don't think I've ever watched one of her films and left disappointed). She gave a such a wonderful and emotional performance, and I absolutely loved her character. So strong-willed and rebellious, that she didn't even take sh*t from the king. Chow Yun-Fat was great too, but all of his deliveries felt off and a little bit slow. I would say that maybe it was a non-native language issue, but it was the same way in their "native" tongue, so I don't really know. All the deliveries, in fact, felt like they were coming out in slow motion. Almost like watching a play, where everything is spoken more deliberately. I'm running out of adjectives again, which is often the case when movies do a lot of things well, but the score was also fantastic. It was bright, it was moving, and easily one of the best I've heard all year. The film was definitely long-winded, but I thought the script was very well written. It was clever, it was amusing, and it had a lot of heart. I will say that many of the scenes went of for longer than they needed to, and the overall pacing was on the slow side. It wasn't the most coherent story either, and often seemed like a series of long interactions pieced together. It was basically really flushed out segments of parts of the story, which makes sense for what is essentially a character drama, but it felt like a lot was missing, if that makes sense. I would have liked to see more of the military side of things too. We got some brief glimpses here and there, and a good chunk at the end, but it would have helped to make things a little more exciting. Also some contrast to all the family stuff that was going on would have made it more balanced. The overall look, and how it was filmed, did most of the heavy lifting in my book, but the story was touching and all the characters were likable enough. I'm not sure why the critics dumped on this so hard, but I found it to be a more than enjoyable experience. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/22/24 Full Review KB B It's pretty good but so long. They could have easily trimmed 30 minutes or more. The cinematography and costumes were very good. Watch if there's nothing else on. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/21/24 Full Review Carlos W I'm biased, I love the story and these actors. I very much enjoyed it entirely. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/10/24 Full Review annette Z another up dated - version of the king and I with Jody foster . I think Ms .Foster hosted a animated version too. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/07/24 Full Review D M I thought it was a wonderful story and enjoyed the cultural insight. I love the impact one can make on another to see & think differently. It can open so many possibilities vs being narrow minded & stuck. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/24 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Anna (Jodie Foster) has been employed to educate the king's (Chow Yun-Fat) 58 children. She knows very little of King Mongkut, apart from the fact that his people revere him as a god. She brings with her an East vs. West prejudice against the king, considering him to be uncivilized. She soon realizes that her views are more than matched by the rulers own preconceptions about the West and particularly this impertinent English woman.
Director
Andy Tennant
Producer
Lawrence Bender, Ed Elbert
Screenwriter
Steve Meerson, Peter Krikes, Anna Leonowens
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
Fox 2000 Pictures
Rating
PG-13 (Intense Violent Sequences)
Genre
History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 17, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 1, 2013
Runtime
2h 27m
Sound Mix
Surround, Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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