The choice to shoot in Malaysia was not by chance. Twentieth Century Fox submitted a number
of proposals to film "Anna and the King" in Thailand, and went back and forth in negotiations about the script.
After exchanging several drafts of the script in both English and Thai, the Thai government concluded that the overall image of the story was still considered "lese majeste" and
offensive to the royals. In particular, the country's film review board decided that the movie
misrepresented certain historical and cultural aspects, and that it would reflect poorly on King Rama IV and King Rama V.
(Such concerns from the Thai were not necessarily new. The 1956 musical, "The King and I," has been banned in Thailand
since its release.) Film board vice president Prasit Damrongchai told the Bangkok Post: "With a script like this,
Thailand has already been defamed without an edit. If the company agrees to change the offensive parts of the script,
we'll consider it." 3
Fox Entertainment executive, M.R. Malin also refused to bend: "Basically, this is a comedy. If everything is
changed, it's going to be documentary and not fun." 4 Mike Moder, another Fox executive,
ultimately decided to cease negotiations: "My message to Thailand is goodbye. I wrote letters and never received replies,
and I came halfway around the world and never met anyone. How much more co-operative can we be? We came for a week
and we got snuffed." 5
A section of Penang's heritage enclave in Armenian Street, home to barber shops and old trades, was transformed into a
thriving marketplace in 19th century Bangkok outside the Palace of King Mongkut. A huge facade of the palace gate was
erected near the Yap Temple, and the production crew placed marketwares such as birdcages, clogs, baskets, wooden crates with Siamese writings,
and vegetables along the street. Building facades that are conspicuously Malaysian were also cleverly camouflaged or concealed with bamboo
blinds and covers, while some walls were plastered with sepia-coloured advertisements from olden Bangkok for
added authenticity. A majestic 30m-long Siamese junk was docked there, while an imposing fort (made of plywood and
plaster) formed an impressive backdrop.
Location manager Robin Hollister recalls that although the eventual airtime for the 11-day shoot in
Penang would only last several minutes, the scene was important to set the mood for the entire film: "This is the opening
scene where Anna Leonowens first arrived at the Bangkok harbour and it must capture her confusion upon entering a
foreign land that is crowded with people and animals." 6
The opening scene involved over 1,300 extras! The extras often worked 14-hour days, assembling at 5:30 in the morning
and toiling through the afternoon heat, often clad in nothing more than loincloths, sandals and sarongs. Excited to be in a
Hollywood production, the cast of extras included the son of a Member of Parliament.
Animal consultant Rona Brown was brought into the shoot to oversee that the 12 elephants, two oxen, six goats and 12
chickens transported from Coronation Camp to Cheah Kongsi were cared for properly, as well to choreograph their movements:
"We [had] a briefing [on two occasions] to decide where the animals would enter the scene." 7
A native of Hong Kong, actor Chow Yun Fat remarks of learning to master both English and
Thai for the movie: "I was lucky that Andy Tennant changed a lot of the dialogue. The original draft had language
the way Rex Harrison speaks, talking in old Oxford English, it was almost like Shakespeare, but Andy modernized it.
Every single articulation he wanted as clear as possible. We had some problems but every sentence worked I think...
Some of the substance of English words, I just don't understand at all because the culture's so strange to me. So once
I memorize a line, I just try to use my imagination, then simply say it. That's so different in Hong Kong when I'm
using my own mother language, I can treat the line in one thousand different ways, with many different reactions.
But when I'm speaking English, it's very hard to understand the substance of the language you're speaking. This is
still a big barrier for me and it is for a lot of foreign actors." 8
During the shoot, Penang's locals clamored to get a look at the Hong Kong superstar, as well as
Hong Kong actor Kenneth Tsang (who played a judge) and Chinese actress Bai Ling (Princess Tuptim, one
of the king's concubines). When Yun Fat showed up at Armenian Street on the first day of filming, fans went wild and
tried to mob him. Yun Fat was reportedly overzealously guarded by his Singaporean wife, Jasmine Tan.
The crowds were far less enthusiastic about Jodie Foster, one of Hollywood's finest
actresses. The local paparazzi asked "Jodie who?" and the majority of extras who sweated it out during
filming with the leading lady thought her name was "Julie" or "Judy." Extra Lim Ah Boh remarks:
"We were more interested to see Chow Yun-Fat and Bai Ling than the Western stars, whoever they are." 9
Another extra, Goh Chit Hooi, gushed like a schoolgirl when talking about her hero Yun Fat: "I
grew up idolising a lot of Chinese film stars and I like Chow Yun Fat because his acting is simply
superb." 10
To keep his royal costumes under wraps as much as possible, Yun Fat often went into a makeup truck between takes.
He also often wore a red robe to hide his royal garb.
Of all the stars, Bai Ling, who shaved her head for her role, was the most approachable to fans and the press.
The 27-year-old actress even went on an adventurous night out with several pressmen to eat bak kut teh,
went hunting for a pirated VCD of her earlier movie, "Red Corner" (co-starring Richard Gere) and visited the
Kek Lok Si Temple in Air Itam. Her warm personality won her many new fans, including a group of British
tourists who met her at a beach hotel in Penang. Tourist Heany Ronald, 59, was charmed by Ling's friendliness
that he told the press: "I find her interesting and very approachable which is very good for
her image." 11
A number of accidents occurred on the set. A few days into filming, Foster fell and bruised her ribs.
A week later she twisted her ankle, delaying filming for a few days. A young boy on the set was almost crushed by an elephant.
Director Andy Tennant broke his hand when a metal clamp fell on it and Ling broke her nose during a boat ride.
A worker plunged off a hotel balcony, splitting his head, and an assistant was nearly strangled to
death by a boa constrictor. After the producers called in a priest to perform a cleansing ritual, two horses fell off a cliff.
A second priest arrived later to perform the same blessing. Unfortunately, while one blessing is a charm, two
are considered bad luck... needless to say, a third horse fell off the cliff shortly thereafter.
