The King and I (Deborah Kerr)

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A couple of years ago we were given several DVDs of old, classic films by an elderly friend who was downsizing. Many of them were musicals, and we’ve watched a few. But we’re not huge fans of musicals in general, so one is usually sufficient for several months.

Last night we decided to watch ‘The King and I’, which neither of us had ever seen before, although we had heard of it. The film was made in 1956, and it’s quite an extravaganza of colour, song and dance. Apparently it was based on a Broadway show, which was based on a book, which was roughly based on some true memoirs. 

The entire story takes place in Siam (now known as Thailand) in the 1860s. The first person we meet as a young widowed woman called Anna (Deborah Kerr) who is on a ship, accompanied by her son Louis. They sound artificially upper-class at first, and her huge, hooped skirt looks totally out of place as they talk to the captain, and Louis wonders whether the King of Siam will meet them. 

Anna and Louis break into song as they talk about being afraid, and how whistling can help to boost one’s courage. I’m not sure how this was relevant to the story, but it sets the scene for it being a musical where random song and dance routines punctuate the rest of it. 

They’re met not by the King (Yul Brynner) but by the rather disdainful, disapproving Prime Minister. He and Anna exchange words, and she says she will talk to the King herself, as she has been employed to teach his children. The King introduces Anna to some of his wives and concubines, and reneges on his promise to provide her with a separate house. However she decides to stay when she realises how delightful his children are - or the ones she’s going to teach. There are a lot of others, we learn, though we never meet them. 

The time line isn’t entirely clear, but the children learn English songs as well as language, and Anna tries to encourage them to see the world as it is, rather than believing that Siam is the biggest and most important country in the world. She helps the see beyond what they have experienced, talking about snow and ice. The King wants them to learn modern science and some European culture, but he’s also very much stuck in his own culture where he can have any woman he wants (but she must be faithful to him) and everyone must bow in his presence, ensuring that nobody’s head is ever higher than his.

Anna is a strong-minded and intelligent woman, something that puzzles the King who believes men are superior. They clash several times, but it’s also clear that they develop a begrudging respect for each other. She agrees to follow some of his requirements, but wants to teach her own way. And when he is worried that European countries believe him to be a barbarian, she suggests providing a European-style banquet to prove that they are not.

During the banquet, there’s a dramatic production put on, which - for me - was the best part of the film. Dancers and a narrator tell a very simplified and adapted story loosely based on ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’, the book that was strongly anti-slavery. It’s beautifully done, and I was captivated. The British ambassador’s party also loved it, but the King and Prime Minister are unimpressed. 

The whole film is very well done; the settings and minor characters feel believable, and the oppressive nature of the regime is clear. The songs and dances aren’t over-long, which is a good thing as it’s not a short film - over two hours in all. Some of the acting feels overdone, but it’s in the style that was accepted in the 1950s, and I did get used to it after the first few scenes. 

There’s even some low-key humour here and there, particularly involving the King having picked up (and regularly using) ‘et cetera’ as a phrase.  So nothing prepared me for the last scenes, which are neither encouraging nor amusing. Indeed, it all feels quite disturbing and the ending, I thought, abrupt and unexpected. 

It’s good to see some classics like this, films we’ve heard of but would not normally have chosen to watch. And I got quite caught up in the story for most of it. But it’s not one I’m likely to want to see again, and I don’t know that I would particularly recommend it. 

However, it’s a much-loved film and it won many awards. If you like classic musicals, you might appreciate this a lot more than I did. So don’t necessarily take my word for it. 

Our DVD set has two discs, the second being a lot of ‘extras’, but none of them looked very appealing, so we didn’t watch any of them.

Review copyright 2026 Sue's DVD Reviews