Anna is enchanted by the royal children, particularly Princess Fa-Ying (Melissa Campbell). The little girl identifies with the spirit of the playful monkeys who live in the trees of the royal garden. When she suddenly takes ill of cholera, Anna is summoned to her chambers to say goodbye. She gets there just as Fa-ying dies in Mongkut's hands, and the two mourn together. Sometime later, when the King finds that one of the monkeys has "borrowed" his glasses, as his daughter used to do, he is comforted by his belief in reincarnation and the idea that Fa-ying may be reborn as one of her beloved animals. Lady Tuptim (Bai Ling), the King's new favorite concubine, was already engaged to marry another man, Khun Phra Balat (Sean Ghazi), when brought to the court. The King is kind to her, but she is unhappy and at last runs away, disguising herself as a young man and joining the monastery where her former fiancé lives. She is tracked down and brought back to the palace, imprisoned, and initially caned along with her Balat. However, because of Anna's outburst during
Anna is enchanted by the royal children, particularly Princess Fa-Ying (Melissa Campbell). The little girl identifies with the spirit of the playful monkeys who live in the trees of the royal garden. When she suddenly takes ill of cholera, Anna is summoned to her chambers to say goodbye. She gets there just as Fa-ying dies in Mongkut's hands, and the two mourn together. Sometime later, when the King finds that one of the monkeys has "borrowed" his glasses, as his daughter used to do, he is comforted by his belief in reincarnation and the idea that Fa-ying may be reborn as one of her beloved animals. Lady Tuptim (Bai Ling), the King's new favorite concubine, was already engaged to marry another man, Khun Phra Balat (Sean Ghazi), when brought to the court. The King is kind to her, but she is unhappy and at last runs away, disguising herself as a young man and joining the monastery where her former fiancé lives. She is tracked down and brought back to the palace, imprisoned, and initially caned along with her Balat. However, because of Anna's outburst during