The King and I

Starring: Deborah Kerr, Yul Brynner, Rita Moreno, Martin Benson, Terry Saunders, Alan Mowbray
Directed by: Walter Lang
Rating: G
Genre: Drama, Musical, Romance
1956

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Anna (Deborah Kerr) accepts a position as a governess for the King of Siam's (Yul Brynner) children.

Review:

Tim: The King and I is a classic 1950s musical, one that was very well-received by critics. It features some strong performances, some decent musical numbers, and an interesting story in a faraway locale. I don't believe I liked the long movie (133 minutes) as much as many people, but this is still a competently made, worthwhile movie.

The film was nominated for an impressive 9 Academy Awards, bringing home 5 wins. The most impressive is Yul Brynner's Best Actor, but the movie also won Best Art Direction-Set Direction (Color), Best Costume Design (Color), Best Sound Recording, and Best Musical Score. It lost for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director, And Best Cinematography (Color). So it won 1 of the big awards and the rest were technical. Still, that's an impressive haul and launches this movie into the realm of must-see.

I'm actually a little torn on Yul Brynner's win for Best Actor. In some ways, it is very deserving. The way this Russian actor transformed himself into a believable King of Siam is impressive. His accent, and his mannerisms are occasionally mesmerizing to watch, especially if you're familiar with his other work. He really did a very good job, including doing his own singing on "A Puzzlement". So, in many ways, I acknowledge the challenging performance and admit he may have deserved the award. However, there's just a nagging sense of his performance being a little too cartoonish and stereotypical (it was the 50s, though). His performance was a little on-the-nose and I could see where modern audiences might scoff a little. Still, trying to put myself into a 50s frame of mind, I admit that he is very impressive.

In the last year, I've become a much bigger Deborah Kerr fan. She really had some range as an actress and I enjoyed her performance here. It's a little stuffy, but I think that was in line with the character. She gives a strong performance and really makes the movie her own. Brynner gets a lot of the spotlight for his attention-grabbing role, but the heart of the movie is Kerr. She's not only our window into this exotic world, but she's the sense of Western morality and civilization that we can most readily identify with. She connects with the audience but also shows us the more fragile, uncertain side of this very strong woman. I do wish Kerr would have done her own singing. I think that was perhaps one reason she didn't win the Academy Award for Best Actress. Still, I'm glad she was nominated.

The rest of the cast is fine, but none seem to matter nearly as much as Kerr and Brynner. Rita Moreno is fine, but her subplot felt like it detracted a bit from the main storyline. A number of the kids are good (but Kerr's character's son felt oddly shortchanged). The film could have used a secondary character who really gave a remarkable performance or at least a subplot that was really interesting and really mattered. That would have balanced the film out more. As is, I was less engaged and interested when anything happened that didn't involve Kerr or Brynner. This movie desperately needed a stronger #3 in the cast.

I thought the musical numbers were fine, but I can't say I really loved much of the music. "Shall We Dance" was a memorable number, but far too many of the songs just didn't connect with me. Some of that might be the decades difference, but I just believe a lot of the tunes weren't good enough. The music isn't timeless and the film suffers as a result. Some of the songs went on for way, way, way too long. I laughed a few times at how long "The Small House of Uncle Thomas" went on. It just felt weird to me to pause this musical for a very lengthy (and only mildly interesting) adaptation of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Asian actors. Yes, the Asian culture's influence on the American story was interesting, but it just took far too long to do. That really interrupted the flow of the main story and killed any momentum that might have been building.

As I watched this movie, I was aware of how uneven it was. There were moments when I'd blink and glance at the clock and realize I had been transfixed for 10-15 minutes straight. There were other moments when the movie seemed to drag and it took all my energy to stay focused on the story. If we had more of the engaging moments, this could have been a great movie, but the evenness of the story and its emotional impact on us took me out of the story far too often.

I didn't really care all that much for the ending. They could have done a better job of explaining (MINOR SPOILER HERE) the king's sudden illness. The scene was played both dramatically and a little bit like a farce, so I wasn't quite sure what I was supposed to feel.

While I certainly didn't love The King and I, I did enjoy the experience. There were brilliant moments sprinkled throughout the film- I just wish they were more consistent. The performances of Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr are certainly worth seeing, so it's very easy for me to recommend this film.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Anna and the King, Singin' in the Rain, Separate Tables