Apr 13 2009
Malaysia in the Movies: Anna and the King
a malaysian abroad welcomes you to another episode of Malaysia in the Movies! The first looked at Zoolander, where Malaysia was part of the dreadful plot, while the second featured Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh.
Today we look at Anna and the King.
Released in 1999, Anna and the King features the story of romance between widowed British schoolteacher Anna Leonowens and the King of Siam during the 1860s. Starring Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat, this is a remake of Anna and the King of Siam (1946) and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The King and I sans singing and dancing.
*ahem!* If you’d like to add any of them to your collection….
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How does this relate to Malaysia? Well, the film was supposed to be shot in Thailand, but ultimately permission was denied because just like its predecessors, Anna and the King was deemed to contain historical inaccuracies and was disrespectful of King Mongkut’s (Rama IV) character, and was therefore guilty of lèse majesté (an illegal insult to the king or monarchy).
The production crew managed to get Malaysia to say yes: so the “Siam” you see is actually Penang, Ipoh and the Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Resort (CWSGR) by Batu Gajah. CWSGR was actually the main shooting location, as they had built most of the sets in one area of the resort… out of styrofoam! Yes, those buildings you see in the movie? Chances are, they were all styrofoam. I still regret not taking advantage of an unofficial tour of the decaying? rotting? falling apart sets about a year after they wrapped up production, it must have been quite a sight!
I didn’t find the movie particularly well-made. However, it did provide some local talents with screentime in a big Western production. Deanna Yusoff, a fellow Malaysian/Swiss mutt but unlike me she’s tall and a model, was Lady Thiang, the Head Wife. Local comedians Harith Iskandar and Afdlin Shauki had some bit parts, while radio personality Patrick Teoh was one of the Judges. Sean Ghazi was in it too - he is now an accomplished local musician.
On a sad note: Thailand today seems to be in quite a mess, with clashes between various factions and security forces wreaking havoc all over, yet another chapter in a long-running political crisis. Without a stable government, things are tough. I hope this crisis gets resolved soon, for everyone’s sake!
Hi Lynn, hi people on this blog. I’m in Thailand, in Bkk and what you see on Tv in blown wayyyyy out of proportion. In Bkk now, everything is peaceful, no more protests, and people are actually trying to work up a compromise in this Siam, land of Smiles now.
Security forces in the recent red shirts crash also did their job very well, and not one single person was killed,as say compared to the USA if you tried to attack the President car.
So Thailand will get better, and our people is still the kind and lovely people as usual.
LONG LIVE THE KING!
P.S: Anna and the King is still a pretty sore topic with the Thais, if the goverment don’t banned it, the thais will personally stoned them themselves. As the thais regarded our Kings as sacred, especially King Mongkut whom have done so much modernisation for the thais, and no it does not involve Anna whatsoever.
Best wishes from Thailand