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May 09, 2016ThomasJWhiting rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
GREAT 1956 film version of Broadway musical, based on the novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon. That novel in turn was based on memoirs written by Anna Leonowens, who became school teacher to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the early 1860s. Yul Brynner is excellent in his bald head lead role. Just learned from wikipedia Brynner was Russian born Yuliy Borisovich Briner in Vladivostok, July 11, 1920. Deborah Kerr was excellent in her lead Anna Leonowens role - wearing all those giant hooped dresses. Apparently all her singing was overdubbed by Marni Nixon who got only a flat $420 so Marni didn't monetarily share in the film's great success. Several of the Siamese characters were played by non-Asian actors, including the romantic couple played by Carlos Rivas, beautiful Puerto-Rican Rita Morena, English Martin Benson - and others. Guess that was just part of 1956 Hollywood. Film is a classic; glad I have now seen it - et cetera, et cetera, et cetera...