The Royal Treatment

Thailand's current monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, is a direct descendant of Mongkut, and no one knows what he thinks of the flap over "Anna." But King Bhumibol once described Yul Brynner's portrayal of Mongkut as a "sympathetic character." His queen, Sirikit, said she had a "wonderful evening" after seeing Brynner perform the role on Broadway in 1985. "She thinks the show is fun," said the queen's spokeswoman at the time. "She and the king are open-minded." Supinda, whose great-grandfather was one of King Mongkut's sons, says she and other members of the royal family urged the film board to give Fox a second chance. Supinda says the family also assured the board they would advise the filmmakers on historical accuracy--and accept public responsibility if the final cut stirred up controversy. But it was no-go. One film-board member told NEWSWEEK that he feared the eruption of "a political crisis" if they had given the green light to film in Thailand. King Mongkut is a potent symbol of independence, particularly at a time when a financially battered Asia is worrying about "colonization" by Western investors and bankers.

But more than one Thai critic has pointed out the great irony of this flap: King Mongkut was the first Thai monarch to begin opening up Thailand to the West. As a young man he became a monk and Buddhist scholar, and also learned Latin and English, Christian doctrine, Western science and culture from missionaries. When he became king in 1851, Mongkut ordered people in the palace to wear shirts as Westerners did. He also began to bring the king's godlike role down to earth, breaking protocol by shaking hands with a favorite missionary--at a time when no one was allowed to touch the king. Mongkut pre-empted Britain's gunboat diplomacy by embracing open trade before the boats arrived and personally welcoming the British trade emissary. His boldness ensured that, unlike its neighbors, Thailand would never be colonized. And, of course, Mongkut invited a British governess to teach in his court. Publicly, the film board's main complaint against the final script was that it portrays Anna as "far more superior than the King in every way."

Leonowens's account of Mongkut has always been controversial, and it's still unclear just how much of it shows up in "Anna." The final script is still under wraps. But Leonowens was known to have embellished at least parts of the books she wrote after returning to England in 1867. She casts the king as a mercurial figure, alternately kind and cruel. She tells of harsh royal punishments, including sailors who got 30 lashes for playing cards, and a royal concubine burned at the stake for keeping a secret lover. Thai historians say there is no record of the incident, nor any like it, except perhaps for the $6 fine Mongkut once imposed on a man who ran away with a faithless royal concubine. "Anna's role is pretty dubious historically. She's very prejudiced and so is the king," says Foster flatly. "But they learn from each other."

Reinventing Leonowens as a difficult but likable character was a challenge. So was bringing emotional life to her relationship with the king, while also capturing the stiff restraint of 19th-century manners. "It's a bitter romance," says Foster. "It's true to the period, but also messy, and interesting, and emotional." On the set, as Tennant painstakingly shoots the king's march down the corridor, Foster, in blue bonnet, heavy bolero jacket and sweltering hoop skirt, stands primly in the blazing sun, hands clasped. It's hard to imagine her falling in love with the bejeweled monarch, followed by a retinue of concubines and dozens of children. "Both characters are victims," says Foster, a Yale graduate who is reportedly earning $15 million for starring in the film. "They are unconventional people living in conventional times."