American Cinematographer - December 1999 - 20

compiled by David E. Williams

An Authentic

by Bob Fisher
Anna and the King is the third

film
Margaret Landon's 1944 novel,
which was inspired by the true story of
based

on

Anna Harriette Leonowens. Born in

England in 1834, she moved to Asia at
the age of 15 and subsequently married
Thomas Leonowens. After her husband

died, Leonowens

was

In 1956, the tale was retold in The

Production

King and I, a motion picture based on a
Broadway play of the same title. The film
featured the music of Rodgers &
Hammerstein, as well as Yul Brynner and
Deborah Kerr in the starring roles. Still
banned in Thailand today, the epic
production was framed in the unique
CinemaScope 55 format by Leon
Shamroy, ASC, who received an
Academy Award nomination for his

Arrighi supervised

work.

mirrored

Fairy Tale

employed

as a

The latest

retelling of this classic
story, Anna and the King, was produced
by Fox 2000 Pictures, and features Hong
Kong superstar Chow Yun-Fat as King
Mongkut, and Oscar-winner Jodie Foster
as

Leonowens. Caleb Deschanel, ASC

photographed the picture for director
Andy Tennant, whose credits include
Fools Rush In and Ever After.

Deschanel

has

earned

Oscar

nominations for The

King Mongkut
(Chow Yun-Fat)
and his teacher,
Anna Harriette
Leonowens

wooden floors and

nearly 4,000 square
feet of marble with coconut oil and
banana leaves to make them
luxuriant. The walls

mosaics,

had to shoot

scenes

was

her

about

experiences, called The
English Governess at the Siamese Court,

and the

meanings that aren't expressed in the
dialogue."
The company planned to shoot
Anna and the King in Thailand, where
many of the exteriors of Mongkut's

with

as

many as

elephants and a man-eating crocodile.
cinematographer assembled his
crew mainly from England, South Africa
and Australia, and put together camera
and lighting packages imported from
other countries. "I immersed myself in
[period] photographs and paintings, and

in

In 1870, Leonowens wrote a book

decor

The

wives.

offers, "but you

the

1,200 extras, hundreds of horses, 40

Deschanel says

cameraman

and

more

graced with

nearly $500,000 worth of Thai
plants, 500 gilded Buddhist statues and
other antiques.
The film's settings were extrav¬
agant, and the scale was immense. With
only five weeks to prepare, Deschanel

have to read between the lines and fill

love," the

were

included

and tutor by King Mongkut of

which formed the basis of Landon's novel

found elements that I could

composition

use

in

colors and shapes,"
of his prep work. "It
partially instinct and partially
-

common sense.

I would have loved to

have

lot

had

a

more

time

for

experimentation. Sometimes it felt as if
just trying to survive, but I

we were

original 1946 film, both of which
King of Siam.
Photographed in black-and-white, the
film featured Rex Harrison as King
Mongkut and Irene Dunne as
Leonowens. The film earned two Oscars,
including one for cinematographer Arthur

18th-century palace are still intact. That
concept went awry when the Thai
government rejected three versions of
the script. The production therefore
shifted to Malaysia, where sets were
designed to emulate seven acres of the

opulent palace, including interiors and

imagine how to
picture of this scope until you
are actually doing it," he continues. "You
have to see how the actors respond to

Miller, ASC.

exteriors.

the sets and to each other. No matter

were

18 December 1999

descendant of King Mongkut served as
technical advisor, and taught the set
construction crew how to polish the

Siam (now Thailand) from 1862-'67. The
monarch had 58 children and numerous

governess

(Jodie Foster),
share the dance
floor in Anna
and the King.

construction workers, artists, carpenters
and sculptors from various countries. A

Right Stuff, The
Fly Away Home. His other
credits include The Black Stallion, Being
There, Hope Floats and, most recently,
Message in a Bottle. "Anna and the King
is a wonderful story about unrequited
Natural and

designer Luciana
of some 1,300

a crew

titled Anna and the

suspect that you can often do your best
work in that situation, because your
instincts take over.
"It's difficult to

deal with

a

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Andrew

byPhot s
American Cinematographer - December 1999

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