- [last lines]
- King Chulalongkorn: It is always surprising how small a part of life is taken up by meaningful moments. Most often they are over before they start, although they cast a light on the future and make the person who originated them unforgettable. Anna had shined such a light on Siam.
- King Mongkut: [to Anna] When a woman who has much to say says nothing, her silence can be deafening.
- King Mongkut: Until now, Madame Leonowens, I did not understand supposition man can be satisfied with only one woman.
- Anna Leonowens: [to King Mongkut] Life is... precious, especially if you're a Christian and only allowed to have one.
- Louis Leonowens: Moonshee, why does the king have so many wives?
- Moonshee, Leonowens' Indian Servant: That is an excellent question. For your mother.
- [first lines]
- King Chulalongkorn: She was the first English woman I had ever met. And it seemed to me she knew more about the world than anyone. But it was a world Siam was afraid would consume them. The monsoon winds had whispered her arrival like a coming storm. Some welcomed the rain, but others feared a raging flood. Still she came, unaware of the suspicion that preceded her. But it wasn't until years later, that I began to appreciate how brave she was, and how alone she must have felt. An English woman. The first I had ever met.
- Anna Leonowens: My mind has taken me down many roads of late. All of which lead absolutely nowhere. What would Buddha say of that?
- King Mongkut: That roads are for journeys, mem, not destinations.
- Prince Chulalongkorn: Son of teacher is forgetting I am son of King.
- Louis Leonowens: Son of teacher couldn't care less.
- Prince Chulalongkorn: You will sit somewhere else!
- Louis Leonowens: I will not!
- Anna Leonowens: Louis, remember what I told you.
- Louis Leonowens: I'm sorry Mother, but he started it.
- Prince Chulalongkorn: In my country, man never tell a woman he is sorry about anything... ever! If you had father, you would know that.
- Louis Leonowens: You don't have a father! You have a map!
- [Louis pushes the prince]
- Anna Leonowens: Louis!
- Prince Chulalongkorn: It is forbidden to touch royalty!
- Louis Leonowens: I didn't touch you! I shoved you! Why don't you get one of your servants to shove me back?
- Anna Leonowens: I would like to know why, if science can unravel something as beautiful as music... why it cannot posit a solution for a schoolteacher and a king.
- King Mongkut: The manner in which people might understand such new possibilities is also process of evolution.
- Anna Leonowens: Everything in Siam has its own time.
- King Mongkut: You are teacher?
- Anna Leonowens: Yes, Your Majesty, I am.
- King Mongkut: You do not look sufficient of age for scientific teaching. How many years have you?
- Anna Leonowens: Enough to know that age and wisdom do not necessarily go hand in hand, Your Majesty.
- The Kralahome, Prime Minister: Your Majesty, I believe there has been enough insult caused by this woman who believes herself to be the equal of a man.
- King Mongkut: Not the equal of a man, Chao Phya. The equal of a King.
- Tuptim: I remember my first rice festival. People come from everywhere to see king. He bless all crops, and it begin to rain. I think he was a God.
- Anna Leonowens: And now?
- Tuptim: He is also a man.
- Interpreter: Sir is married?
- Anna Leonowens: A widow. Can you please explain to me why you call me "Sir"?
- Interpreter: Women do not stand in the presence of His Excellency.
- Anna Leonowens: In my letter confirming my employment, Your Majesty, you claimed you wanted Siam to take its place among the nations of the modern world. You spoke of building something greater than yourself. A country where no man is above the law. Which is why I chose to come here.
- Anna Leonowens: [to Lord Bradley] You raised your glass to him. You commended him for his vision. All the while, you were waiting to take his country from him.
- General Alak: [from trailer]
- [to King Mongkut]
- General Alak: These are dangerous times, Your Majesty. A foreigner's influence will be equally sore.
- King Mongkut: Gazing at the moon?
- Anna Leonowens: Yes, it is beautiful.
- King Mongkut: As the sun rises, she will surrender the night, but she is always with him, even when he cannot see her.
- Anna Leonowens: It must be a great comfort to him.
- King Mongkut: Yes.
- Anna Leonowens: [ascending a staircase, arriving late for dinner, a little out of breath] Forgive me, Your Majesty. l believe the sun set a little earlier today.
- King Mongkut: [amused] Mem. You arrange all this to influence positive future of Siam. And now you steal attention away from it.
- Anna Leonowens: [shyly] Well, that was not my intention, Your Majesty.
- King Mongkut: You! Why did you not go to monastery like king order?
- Anna Leonowens: Because l lost one man to the jungle, Your Majesty. l was not about to let that happen again.
- King Mongkut: Presenting original pupil and heir apparent. Prince Chulalongkorn.
- [to the Prince]
- King Mongkut: This, my son, is your new teacher.
- Anna Leonowens: It is a great honor, Your Highness.
- Anna Leonowens: You have the power to lead your people...
- King Mongkut: Now is not the time to change the way that things are done!
- Anna Leonowens: Well, if not now, then when? How many more people must die so that you might save face?
- The Kralahome, Prime Minister: When presented to His Majesty, you and son will remember to touch forehead to floor.
- Anna Leonowens: Your Excellency, although we have become better acquainted with your customs, we have certainly not forgotten our own.
- The Kralahome, Prime Minister: Then how will you greet him?
- Anna Leonowens: With the utmost respect.
- King Mongkut: [to Anna and Louis] The Royal Family: Twenty three wives, forty two concubines, fifty eight offspring, and ten more on the way. Each one unique. Each one my hope for the future. I understand your surprise. Not as many as the Emperor of China, but he did not spend half of life in monastery. King making up for lost time.
- The Kralahome, Prime Minister: Heir to throne must never be involved in issue of bondservant. It will resolve itself in time.
- Anna Leonowens: Like my house?
- The Kralahome, Prime Minister: You are learning.
- Tuptim: [speaks in English] He wrote to me, to bid me farewell. Believing that I was lost forever on the inside! To commit his life in monastery...
- Third Judge: [interrupts her, in Thai] You will speak in your native tongue!
- Anna Leonowens: [to King Mongkut] Perhaps you should simply say what it is you're trying so hard not to.
- King Mongkut: l have decided to give self anniversary dinner and invite important English nobles and diplomats.
- Anna Leonowens: l don't understand.
- King Mongkut: French lndochina grows stronger and more aggressive. But if l improve our foreign intercourse with your queen's special envoy, French will think three times before trying to undermine Siam.
- Anna Leonowens: That's very clever, Your Majesty.
- King Mongkut: As if to sound English bugles in own defense. You shall take charge of all formalities as Mem is obvious choice to make certain guests feel at home.
- Anna Leonowens: But... the anniversary is when?
- King Mongkut: Three weeks from yesterday.
- Anna Leonowens: Three weeks? That's impossible!
- King Mongkut: Mem... The egg is in the bottle.