Featuring the voices of: Miranda Richardson, Martin Vidnovic, Ian Richardson, Alan Hong, Armi Arabe, and Adam Wylie
Director: Richard Rich
Producers: Peter Bakalian, Arthur Rankin Jr., James G. Robinson
Screenplay: Arthur Rankin, Peter Bakalian, and Jacqueline Feather & David Seidler, adapted from the play by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II
Music: Richard Rogers
U.S. Distributor: Warner Brothers
I suppose it might have sounded good when it was being pitched... It doesn't take much to envision a meeting in some antiseptic Warner Brothers board room, with executives huddled around a table trying to figure out how the studio is going to remain a viable contender in the animation game. "I know!" I can imagine someone saying. "Most of today's animated films are just cartoon versions of pseudo-Broadway musicals. For a twist, let's take a real Broadway show and turn it into a cartoon." Thus was born this ill-conceived version of Rogers and Hammerstein's The King and I. Anyone conversant with the original stage production (or the popular 1956 movie version) will be stupefied by the changes. Anyone unfamiliar will simply be stupefied - if they can stay awake. Pacing is crucial to the success of an animated film, and The King and I fails from start to finish.
The basic story, based on Margaret Landon's 1944 novel, Anna and the King of Siam (which, in turn, was based on real-life reminiscences), remains essentially intact. In 1862, Anna Leonowens (voice of Miranda Richardson), an independent-minded English school teacher, arrives in Bangkok to educate King Mongkut's small army of royal children. Anna's initial impression of the king (voice of Martin Vidnovic) is not good. She views him as a barbarian and an egotistical authoritarian. He in turn is infuriated by her unwillingness to bend to his whims. However, as the two gradually get to know one another, a deep love and respect blossoms. That's how it goes - at least in the original. Thematically, it's a rich tale, replete with episodes illustrating the clash of Western and Eastern cultures, of the "old ways" and the "new" ones. (Modern-day Siam, now Thailand, does not look kindly on The King and I.) However, recognizing that such material does not attract or appeal to children, Warner Brothers made the calculated and fatal mistake of "Disney-fying" the film.
Suddenly, the Kralahome (voice of Ian Richardson), the king's Prime Minister, is no longer an advisor, but an evil sorcerer in the Jafar mold, plotting silly and inept schemes to use his magical powers to overthrow the king. He has a fat, idiotic henchman who supposedly provides comic relief. Also added to the mix are a couple of cute animals - a chattering monkey with a penchant for getting into trouble and a playful white elephant. The ending has been radically altered. Not only do things close on a happier note, but there's a big, climactic action/adventure sequence involving a hot air balloon, a daring rescue, and a fireworks show.
While all these changes may perk things up for some children, the majority of the under-10 crowd is likely to find The King and I as dull an experience as I did. It lacks energy, and, if there's anything that kids need in a movie to capture their notoriously short attention spans, it's that quality. Adults aren't likely to be any more pleased by this movie, which has unexpectedly transformed a sublime, intelligent piece of cinema into something dumbed-down and juvenile. Occasionally, the proceedings get a slight pick-up by the incorporation of one of Rogers and Hammerstein's musical numbers. Many of the songs are present, including "Getting to Know You", "Hello Young Lovers", "I Whistle a Happy Tune", "A Puzzlement", and "Shall We Dance". Vocally, however, the film is not blessed with great performances. While the King may have been drawn to look like Yul Brynner, Martin Vidnovic lacks the late actor's commanding voice. Ian Richardson sounds like a typical animated movie bad guy, and Miranda Richardson is uninteresting as Anna. (Like Deborah Kerr in the live-action version, she doesn't sing her own songs - Marni Nixon dubbed them in 1956; Christiane Noll does them here.)
Perhaps the most disappointing element of all is the animation. Bland, awkward, and hardly better than television fare, it's a huge step below the current standard. A scene (the king's prayer) that combines computer-generated images with hand-drawn ones is particularly clunky and unconvincing. Disney, Fox (with Anastasia), and Dreamworks (with The Prince of Egypt) have raised the bar when it comes to conventional animation, and Warner Brothers has failed to keep up. Their previous effort, The Quest for Camelot, displayed the same rushed, careless style.
While the animated musical plays an important part in today's movie culture, the best use of the form is perhaps in shaping wildly imaginative and visually inventive tales, not in rehashing classic films that already exist in a definitive form. What's next - My Fair Lady with Eliza's father as a wizard? Unless someone decides to target an animated adaptation at a more mature audience, I'm not interesting in seeing another Broadway hit make the transition. But at least there's one good thing I can say about this movie: unappealing for children and adults alike, The King and I will likely bring families together in their mutual boredom.
© 1999 James Berardinelli