South Africa, 1823. The Zulu Empire, headed by King Shaka, a brilliant but ruthless military strategist, begin to encroach on the British colony of Cape Town. A volunteer cadre of explorers, mercenaries and professional soldiers are sent to Zululand to try to make contact with Shaka and assess the real threat of his army.
Шака Зулу, Shaka Zulú, el último gran guerrero, 沙卡祖鲁：最后的伟大战争, Σάκα Ζουλού, Шака, король зулусов
One of the best mini-series ever made. I have strong nostalgia for it. Indeed, I vividly remember the first time I saw it at the age of 10 or 11 when it first aired on Dutch television in the late 80's and I was allowed to stay up late to catch the episodes and being absolutely in awe of it - this was an epic on a scale I had never seen before.
But it has proved to be one of those rare series that only gets better with each viewing. Over the decades, I've rewatched the series on VHS and on DVD, and this time I've revisited it on the UK Blu-ray release by Revelation Films. The brand new…
The middle of this (the tale of Shaka’s rise to power) is quite good. The rest is not, so an average score overall. I’m looking forward to the remake, there’s lots of room for improvement.
Shaka Zulu is a potent mix of history, myth and the transience of Great Men. I wish there were more African period pieces like this. It's too rare to find a piece of African history permitted the gravitas so frequently lavished on European history. This miniseries is beautiful, full of great performances and has a perfect score.
Opening sequence is pretty groovy
Henry is eternally soaked in sweat for some reason
Bom bom bom bom bom...
"Christ had to die, so that the heavens would pass that power onto me"
Has to be one of the most spine tingling monologues ever put to screen. "Heavens belong to the Zulus", says Shaka. The tyrant king of kings. A warrior to end all wars. Encircled with withcraft and protected by prophecy. The whites have made him immortal. He cannot die. He cannot die.
Henry Cele can not be matched.
Not a mini-series but rather an experience like nothing on earth. Its scale makes the BLACK PANTHER films feel cheap. Its emotional propulsion keeps you on edge for hours. Its music, performances and vision is a triumph of the moving image. Nothing since has come close.
Unfortunately its first episode is horrendous. Please for the love of cinema watch two episodes before you judge it.
3 things my dad introduced to me immediately after my 13th birthday (no i am not jewish):
- 'The Autobiography Of Malcolm X'
- 'Things Fall Apart'
- This intense rise-and-fall interpretation of southern Africa's most renowned king
I dunno what my dad was trying to teach me with these stories. The most striking similarity between them is how each Black leader is brought down, not by their enemy, but their peers. White isn't a colour—it's a disease. Watch out for those infected, even yourself.
But he was probably just trying to show me Black men who were as strong as they were smart. I dunno. He doesn't like to explain himself. Not many men do.
One of the very rare cases where a miniseries that is meant to look and feel epic has the budget to back it up.
Very rare type of movie, very interesting, but historically apologetic and inaccurate.
