Movie Review for Anna and the King

Summary: The epic tale, set in Thailand in the late 19th century, chronicles to true life adventures of Bristish governess Anna Leonowens, who is hired by the king of Siam to educate his many children. Soon after her arrival in this exotic, unfamiliar land, Anna finds herself engaged in a battle of wits--and in a deepening relationship--with the strong-willed ruler.

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Carlo Cavagna of AboutFilm.com (7/0)
            the sort of film that would have contended for a Best Picture Oscar in the mid-80s and handily wo...

By Philip Martin of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (7/0)
            ... the pacing of the film is slow enough to make the typical Merchant-Ivory production feel like...

By Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun-Times (7/0)
            Foster, I believe, sees right through this material and out the other side, and doesn't believe i...

By David Keyes of Cinemaphile.org (7/0)
            So unbelievably bloated that staring at Don King's hair is likely to have a more plausible payoff...

By Harvey S. Karten of Compuserve (7/0)
            Anna and the King is scenic overkill, a travelogue in place of a witty and absorbing movie.

By Andrew Howe of eFilmCritic.com (7/0)
            Forget what you've heard - this is something special

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Mac Verstandig of Entertainment Insiders (7/0)
            Sprinkled with a delightfully innocent humor.

By Eugene Novikov of Film Blather (7/0)
            It's big, expensive and soulless.

By Ross Anthony of Hollywood Report Card (7/0)
            Pictorially splendid, it's largely large, epic and expansive. It's long, pack a lunch.

By Louis B. Parks of Houston Chronicle (7/0)
            Generally interesting and sometimes emotionally affecting.

By Steve Rhodes of Internet Reviews (7/0)
            Anna and the King needs something to make it compelling, and a few songs certainly wouldn't hurt.

By Randall King of Jam! Movies (7/0)
            This version of Anna and the King plays it entirely too safe.

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By JoBlo of JoBlo's Movie Emporium (7/0)
            Wonderfully shot in all of its majestical glory, exquisite cinematography, lush locations with pl...

By Tony Toscano of KUTV-TV (7/0)
            The film has an epic quality about it that I haven't seen in while.

By Kenneth Turan of Los Angeles Times (7/0)
            The problem with Anna and the King is that it's caught halfway between then and now.

By Jorge Avila Andrade of Moviola (7/0)
            Es la historia de un amor que rompe las barreras del tiempo y el espacio y que nos recuerda que l...

By Michael Dequina of Mr. Brown's Movies (7/0)
            Beautiful pageantry, smart political intrigue, and a convincing rapport between leads.

By Jim Chastain of Norman Transcript (7/0)
            Surprisingly engaging.

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Jon Popick of Planet Sick-Boy (7/0)
            Anna and the King has a lot to offer.

By James Kendrick of Q Network Film Desk (7/0)
            visually beautiful, richly detailed, terribly long, and oddly unaffecting

By James Sanford of rec.arts.movies.reviews (7/0)
            This is precisely the kind of "cast of thousands" extravaganza Hollywood rarely produces anymore ...

By Tor Thorsen of Reel.com (7/0)
            Andy Tennant's period drama may only sport a so-so plot, but it shimmers with rich scenery and co...

By James Berardinelli of ReelViews (7/0)
            Like too many movies, this one cannot bear to end quietly and gracefully.

By Jack Garner of Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (7/0)
            Beyond the potentially intriguing casting, the filmmakers have too obviously stretched the plot t...

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Bob Graham of San Francisco Chronicle (7/0)
            Close, but no cigar.

By Walter V. Addiego of San Francisco Examiner (7/0)
            At heart, this is no more or less than self-consciously old-fashioned entertainment.

By Jim Judy of Screen It! (7/0)
            Entertaining and enjoyable.

By William Arnold of Seattle Post-Intelligencer (7/0)
            But by writing in so many conspiracy and battle scenes, it almost ceases to be a character-driven...

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of Spirituality and Practice (7/0)
            Here is an old-fashioned costume drama with sumptuous sets, stirring music, and beguiling landsca...

By Stephen Holden of New York Times (3/5) Login Required (Login Required)
            A misstep for the gifted Ms. Foster.

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Christopher Smith of Bangor Daily News (Maine) (5/2) No reference
            A grand retelling of an iconic story.

By Wade Major of Boxoffice Magazine (6/1) No reference
            A live-action family film with brains.

By Mark Caro of Chicago Tribune (3/4) No reference
            The new movie offers old-fashioned kinds of pleasures.

By Nick Nunziata of CHUD (3/4) No reference
            Class personified.

By Sandra Ramani of Citysearch (3/4) No reference
            The film never reaches the same heights emotionally that it does visually.

By Steven Rosen of Denver Post (3/4) No reference
            What's missing, however, is the one element that would have made it work -- credible, developing ...

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Jeff Vice of Deseret News, Salt Lake City (6/1) No reference
            A little too superficial and bloated to be completely effective.

By Eric Lurio of Greenwich Village Gazette (3/4) No reference
            This is one spectacle that's worth the nine bucks.

By Robert Koehler of IFilm (3/4) No reference
            In his big bid for Hollywood stardom, Chow lacks what gave him star power to begin with: an inten...

By Glenn Whipp of Los Angeles Daily News (3/4) No reference
            Anna and the King is an old-fashioned valentine for all those people who say they don't make movi...

By Chuck Rudolph of Matinee Magazine (3/4) No reference
            It's great to look at, but the unforgiving precision doesn't allow the images to advance the stor...

By Duane Dudek of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (3/4) No reference
            The result may look more genuine than what has gone before, but it somehow feels less substantial...

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Michael Elliott of Movie Parables (3/4) No reference
            Where the film fails is in the narrative retelling of the story.

By James Rocchi of Netflix (3/4) No reference
            Classic tale gets a beautiful -- and unnecessary -- retelling.

By Diana Abu-Jaber of Oregonian (3/4) No reference
            Chow Yun-Fat has such a perpetually bemused expression, it's as if he were waiting for the tough ...

By Jay Boyar of Orlando Sentinel (3/4) No reference
            Anna and the King starts off better than it ends up.

By Philip Booth of Orlando Weekly (3/4) No reference
            You can spot the plot contours from a mile away.

By Wesley Lovell of Oscar Guy (3/4) No reference
            A deliberate retelling of 'The King and I' without the musical interludes. 'Anna and the King' is...

                         Reviews of Anna and the King
By Joe Baltake of Sacramento Bee (3/4) No reference
            A simple, no-frills story.

By David Elliott of San Diego Union-Tribune (3/4) No reference
            This long nap seems to come from a century before movies, maybe even before entertainment was ima...

By Ken Fox of TV Guide's Movie Guide (3/4) No reference
            A smart and splendidly decorated rethinking of Anna Leonowens's famous chronicle of her years as ...

By Desson Thomson of Washington Post (3/4) No reference
            Nothing special, nothing particularly heartwarming.

By Yazmin Ghonaim of Cinephiles (6/1) Not Reachable
            Anna and the King's most interesting aspect is the portrayal of the ritualistic world of the King...

Movie Distributors

Production Companies
A Band Apart Productions

Movie Studios
Fox 2000