The King and I [DVD] [1956]

In 1955 this lavish production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway hit The King and I, starring Yul Brynner as the King of Siam and Deborah Kerr as the governess sent to look after his children, was the most expensive film ever mounted by 20th Century Fox. The 40 sets in ripe decors by Walter M Scott and Paul S Fox included a ballroom of black marble with jade and silk tapestries and a banqueting scene with a table that gives the impression of stretching to infinity

The King and I is a musical, the fifth by the team of composer Richard Rodgers and dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon. When nineteenth century English schoolteacher Anna Leonowens (Deborah Kerr) is employed by the King of Siam (Yul Brynner) to educate his many children she takes her son Louis (Rex Thompson) along with her. Anna a strong-willed woman soon clashes with the king who is used to having his every wish adhered to without question. However Anna’s refusal to bow to his will wins his respect and eventually his love. Rodgers and Hammerstein numbers include ‘Hello Young Lovers’ and ‘Getting To Know You’.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a Region 2 DVD playable in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Japan only, unless you have an All Region DVD player. Please check before ordering.