Anna and the King of Siam

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Movie
German title Anna and the King of Siam
Original title Anna and the King of Siam
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1946
length 120 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director John Cromwell
script Talbot Jennings , Sally Benson
production Louis D. Lighton for 20th Century Fox
music Bernard Herrmann
camera Arthur C. Miller
occupation

Anna and the King of Siam (OT: Anna and the King of Siam ) is an American fiction film with Irene Dunne and Rex Harrison directed by director John Cromwell from 1946. The screenplay is based on the diaries of Anna Leonowens in the novel by Margaret Landon .

action

The widow Anna Owens and her young son Louis came to Bangkok in 1862 at the invitation of King Mongkut to teach his numerous children. Despite Anna's protests, she is forced to live in the palace. After some initial difficulties, Anna not only taught the monarch's 67 legitimate children, but also his numerous wives. Anna manages to gain the king's trust as she is not afraid of his sometimes despotic demeanor. A constant point of friction, however, remains the king's refusal to allow Anna a house outside the palace walls. The dispute reaches its climax when Anna decides to return to England as she finds it unworthy to have to live next to the royal harem. The king apparently gives in, but instead of the promised appropriate refuge, he only gives Anna a hut directly at the fish market. Angry, Anna decides to teach the king a lesson with the help of Lady Thiang, the official First Wife and mother of the heir to the throne. They sing songs about houses and honor and the duty to keep promises with their students for so long that the annoyed king finally gives in and Anna gets her house.

When the French made a colony of neighboring Cambodia, King Mongkut began to realize that Siam, too, could soon lose its independence. Anna realizes how much the king loves his country and strives to bring Siam into the modern age. Together with the monarch, they are working on a plan to guarantee the state's sovereignty over the long term. The King organized a glamorous gala dinner for the official representatives of the European powers in Siam, chaired by the British consul Sir Edward. The aim is to demonstrate how modern and open-minded Siam is. As a result of its successful appearance, England officially established diplomatic relations with the country in 1865, thereby recognizing its unrestricted sovereignty under international law. A short time later, Anna learns that the king had the young slave Tutpin and her lover burned at the stake when they were both caught on the run to freedom. Anna gives up her post and says goodbye to her students. The day before they leave, their son Louis has a fatal accident in a riding accident. The king ordered state mourning in his honor and raised Anna to the nobility in recognition of her services. At the urgent request of the king, Anna remains in Siam and resumes her work. When King Mongkut dies, his eldest son, a pupil of Anna, takes over the reign and continues his father's reforms.

background

Irene Dunne had been a highly paid star since the mid-1930s, at home in comedies and drama alike. In the past few years she had enjoyed financial success as the heroine of opulent melodramas such as The White Cliffs of Dover and A Guy Named Joe . When 20th Century Fox began work on the film adaptation of Anna Leonowens' diaries in 1945 , Irene Dunne was not the first choice as Anna. Studio boss Darryl F. Zanuck originally wanted William Powell as King and Dorothy McGuire as Anna. Negotiations with David O. Selznick , who had an exclusive contract with McGuire, failed because of his excessive financial demands. Zanuck then tried to win Jean Arthur and Myrna Loy . Olivia de Havilland wanted the role but didn't get it. In the end, Irene Dunne took over the part, although Zanuck personally thought:

"... in my estimation she is too old for that."

Choosing the director wasn't easy either. The studio's first choice was Elia Kazan , then John M. Stahl . For a short time even Ernst Lubitsch was in discussion. After William Powell turned down the role of the king, Charles Boyer should take over the part who had already made very successful films with Irene Dunne in the past. But in the end, the choice fell on Rex Harrison . John Cromwell got on perfectly with Dunne. He had more problems with Rex Harrison, who had only recently come to Hollywood accompanied by his then-wife Lilli Palmer . As Palmer elaborated in her memoir, Thick Lilli, Good Child , Harrison had a firm vision of how he wanted to portray the monarch. So he insisted on adopting the Siamese language and speaking in a slightly higher pitch than usual. Work on the film, which lasted from mid-November 1945 to mid-March 1946, was temporarily interrupted because Irene Dunne's husband suffered a heart attack.

Dunne and Harrison repeated their roles in the popular radio show Lux Radio Theater on January 20, 1947. The show was so successful that Irene Dunne re-appeared together with James Mason as King on May 30, 1949 as Anna. The English stage actress Gertrude Lawrence acquired the rights to the material in 1950 and asked the composers Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II to create a musical version. The play premiered on Broadway on March 29, 1951 under the title The King and I and was a triumphant success for Lawrence and for the then unknown Yul Brynner , who took over the role of King after Rex Harrison turned down. The studio filmed the musical in 1956 with Deborah Kerr and Brynner in the leading roles under the title The King and Me . Brynner won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1956 for his performance . In 1972 a short-lived television series was produced in which Yul Brynner played the role of the king alongside Samantha Eggar . Jodie Foster took on the title role of Anna in the 1999 version Anna and the King , in which Chow Yun-Fat played the king.

Reviews

There was a benevolent review to be read in the New York Times , which, however, distributed its praise rather one-sidedly to the male star:

“As an elegant and proud English widow who is quite shocked by the feudal customs in Siam [...] Miss Dunne gives a very stereotypical portrayal. She wears her head and hat high, shows understanding with appropriate modesty and ultimately suppresses a tender, touching tear. Your lady is on par with some of the roles Greer Garson played. But it's the portrayal of Rex Harrison as king and his ingenious portrayal of the character that make this film so charming. "

The film service calls the film one

"Well thought-out, well-made and well-acted entertainment in the male lead based on an authentic incident."

The portrayal of the Siamese court in the 19th century, the role of Anna Leonowen and her relationship to the king differ considerably from historical events. The film encouraged the noble brothers Seni and Kukrit Pramoj to publish a collection of King Mongkut's letters, translated into English and annotated, under the title The King of Siam Speaks , in order to rectify the portrayal of the king in the film, which is shocking for many Thais.

Awards

The film went to the 1947 Academy Awards with five nominations and won in two categories.

  • Original score for drama / comedy - Bernard Hermann - nomination
  • Supporting Actress - Gale Sondergaard - Nomination
  • Adapted Screenplay - Sally Benson, Talbot Jennings - Nomination

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Certificate of Release for Anna and the King of Siam . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , February 2006 (PDF; test number: 105 277 V / DVD).
  2. ↑ although in my opinion she is too old for it.
  3. ↑ in detail on the entire complex of the occupation here, p. 89, memo by D. Zanuck of March 8, 1945 [1] .
  4. ↑ As the gentle and proud English widow who is considerably shocked and outraged at the feudal customs of Siam […] Miss Dunne makes a regular bandbox heroine. She carries her bonneted head high, demonstrates wit with pretty modesty and eventually drops a tender, touching tear. Her lady is on a level with some that Greer Garson has played. But it is really in the performance of Rex Harrison as the king and in the cunning conception of his character that the charm of the picture lies.