Excellent, but.......

Rating: 8/10 (11 May 2004)

I really like this film. It is destined to be one of the greats, I think. Overall, the acting is quite good (save one), the story well-written and the cinematography is well done. My major complaint about the film is one of directorship. There are several scenes where the camera focuses on individuals fighting at close quarters. Very often, a British soldier is seen to "bayonet" a Zulu warrior, only the camera very, very visibly shows that there was no contact between the bayonet and the Zulu. What I'm saying is, if you can't be realistic about something like that, perhaps they should have just cut away at the last instant and shown only a grimace on the face of the warrior as he is being "stabbed". My other major complaint is regarding the acting of Jack Hawkins as Rev. Witt. His acting is pretty bad in this one, which is surprising, since he's usually quite good (witness "The Cruel Sea"). Enough about the acting. The story is a true one - 2,000 Zulu warriors attacked a puny force (slightly over 100) British soldiers from a Welsh regiment. The soldier earned 11 Victoria's Crosses during the battle. At the end of the battle, the Zulus saluted the British soldiers and then left the field. Overall, a pretty good flick. I only wish that Jack Hawkins had been up to par on this one.