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Movies / Upcoming / Anna and the King
Anna and the King

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Anna and the King (1999)

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Reviews Counted:96

Fresh:49

Rotten:47

Average Rating:5.9/10

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

Runtime: 2 hrs 27 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $0

Synopsis: English schoolteacher Anna Leonowens has done something that women of the Victorian age simply never do: The young widow has traveled thousands of miles with her son to a land that is largely... English schoolteacher Anna Leonowens has done something that women of the Victorian age simply never do: The young widow has traveled thousands of miles with her son to a land that is largely unknown to the Western world. She arrives in Siam with adventure in her eyes and a Siamese primer in her hand. Whatever awaits her in this strange new world, there is no turning back.

Anna has been employed to educate the king’s fifty-eight 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 ruler’s own preconceptions about the West and particularly this impertinent English woman.

But over time, Anna and the King share a growing connection. Anna discovers that Mongkut is a true man of vision who is leading Siam to take its place among the nations of the modern world. And the King recognizes that Anna has shined a light not only on him and his family, but on Siam itself. -- © 1999 20th Century Fox [More]

Starring: Jodie Foster, Chow Yun-Fat, Bai Ling, Tom Felton

Starring: Jodie Foster, Chow Yun-Fat, Bai Ling, Tom Felton, Randall Duk Kim, Keith Chin, Syed Alwi

Director: Andy Tennant

Director: Andy Tennant
Screenwriter: Steve Meerson, Peter Krikes
Producer: Lawrence Bender, Ed Elbert
Composer: George Fenton

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Anna and the King

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; Australian critics are listed first)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/01/00
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Chow Yun-Fat has such a perpetually bemused expression, it's as if he were waiting for the tough guys to show up and start the actual movie.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
01/01/00
Diana Abu-Jaber
Diana Abu-Jaber
Oregonian

At heart, this is no more or less than self-consciously old-fashioned entertainment.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Walter V. Addiego
Walter V. Addiego
San Francisco Examiner

Pictorially splendid, it's largely large, epic and expansive. It's long, pack a lunch.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Report Card | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ross Anthony
Ross Anthony
Hollywood Report Card

But by writing in so many conspiracy and battle scenes, it almost ceases to be a character-driven romantic comedy.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
01/01/00
William Arnold
William Arnold
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Es la historia de un amor que rompe las barreras del tiempo y el espacio y que nos recuerda que lo más importante que puede tener una persona son sus emociones

Full Review Source: Moviola | comment Comment
03/14/01
Jorge Avila Andrade
Jorge Avila Andrade
Moviola

A simple, no-frills story.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
01/01/00
Joe Baltake
Joe Baltake
Sacramento Bee

Like too many movies, this one cannot bear to end quietly and gracefully.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

You can spot the plot contours from a mile away.

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
01/01/00
Philip Booth
Philip Booth
Orlando Weekly

Anna and the King starts off better than it ends up.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jay Boyar
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel

Here is an old-fashioned costume drama with sumptuous sets, stirring music, and beguiling landscapes.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
03/04/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

The new movie offers old-fashioned kinds of pleasures.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark Caro
Mark Caro
Chicago Tribune

Anna and the King is nothing but old-fashioned but it's old-fashioned in a glorious way.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Jay Carr
Jay Carr
Boston Globe

the sort of film that would have contended for a Best Picture Oscar in the mid-80s and handily won in the early 60s

Full Review Source: AboutFilm.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Carlo Cavagna
Carlo Cavagna
AboutFilm.com

A great family movie!

comment Comment
01/01/00
Daysun Chang
Daysun Chang
TNT's Rough Cut

Surprisingly engaging.

Full Review Source: Norman Transcript | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jim Chastain
Jim Chastain
Norman Transcript

Beautiful pageantry, smart political intrigue, and a convincing rapport between leads.

Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

The result may look more genuine than what has gone before, but it somehow feels less substantial.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
01/01/00
Duane Dudek
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Foster, I believe, sees right through this material and out the other side, and doesn't believe in a bit of it.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The third major screen version of the story, has much to recommend it.

Full Review Source: Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY) | comment Comment
07/02/04
Judith Egerton
Judith Egerton
Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
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