Review – The King and I (1999)

I’m sure I don’t see the point here. Usually when a classic movie (or musical or book or whatever) gets an animated makeover, it’s to make it more palatable for family viewing. But the original, live-action King and I makes wonderful family viewing. The only thing that might make this rework more suitable for children is the happy ending awkwardly grafted on. Sure, a few of the original’s less desirable moments (such as the exasperating “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” sequence) have been cut out. And sure, it’s not fair to expect a cartoon to live up to the likes of Yul Brynner. But even with those credits duly given, this outing has little to recommend it. The animation quality is dreadful. At least one character steps way too far into the realm of offensive, racist stereotype. Assuming (possibly correctly) that children won’t sit still for musical numbers, the animators clog almost all the songs with annoying, distracting antics of one kind or another. So if you want The King and I, rent the real one and skip the animated remake. Wish I’d skipped it