Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Zulu, the movie.




Zulu is a 1964 historical war film depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift between the British Army and the Zulus in January 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War where 150 British soldiers, many of whom were sick and wounded as patients at that field hospital, successfully held off an army of 4,000 Zulu warriors. Starring  Michael Caine, with the attacking warriors played by the Zulu home defense forces, wave after wave of Zulu attackers are repelled.  After 24 continuous hours of battle, the Zulu withdraw temporarily.
In the final assault, just as it seems the Zulus will finally overwhelm the tired defenders, the British soldiers fall back to a tiny redoubt constructed out of mealie bags. With a reserve of soldiers hidden within the redoubt, they form into three firing ranks, and seamlessly pour volley after volley into the stunned wave of attacking natives, who are completely annihilated. The defenders are still recovering when the Zulus reform.  Resigned to their defeat, the British are astonished when the Zulus instead sing a song to honour the bravery of the defenders before peacefully withdrawing.The actual battle led to the awarding of 11 Victoria Crosses, the most ever awarded in a single British action.  All time great flic.

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