A flawed masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (20 February 2006)

Zulu is my favourite all time film and has been since I watched it first as an entranced 7 year old. I'm assuming it had a UK 'U' certificate despite the violence because my grandfather took me to see it at least 3 times the first week it was on general release in our local flea pit cinema in Wales. I've watched it so many times since my family groan whenever they hear it on the Christmas schedule as it usually is. I must buy the DVD. So fascinated was I by the story that in 1979 on a visit to South Africa I made a huge detour to go to Rorkes Drift. As others have stated the film was not made at the battlesite, the site itself is on a low plateau in a plain and not so obviously surrounded by those fantastic hills as in the film. When I was there RD was a hamlet 10 miles up a dirt track, but with a post office from which I sent my grandfather a postcard. No doubt Zulu was hijacked somewhat by the Welsh and given an overly strong nationalistic core. However it remains a superbly atmospheric, exciting and yet moralistic and respectful story, PC before its time and true in so many core facts. I cannot think of any other 'battle' based film which has remained so basically true to its historical base and non-jingoistic. Even as a child my admiration and respect for the opposing Zulus was entrenched - how many war films where a child is so blatantly rooting for one side could have done that?