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Released by: Twilight Time Releasing
Released on: January 21st, 2014.
Director: Cy Endfield
Cast: Stanley Baker, Michael Caine, James Booth, Ulla Jacobsson, Jack Hawkins, Patrick Magee
Year: 1964
Purchase From Screen Archives
The Movie:
An epic war movie in the truest sense, 1964's Zulu, directed by Cy Endfield, is a film based on the actual events that took place in the 1870's centered around Rorke's Drift, a British missionary station and supply depot located in Natal, South Africa. Though the missionaries do what they can to keep things peaceful, the station is located quite close to Zululand where the native Zulu's maintain a large warrior class, one which the mighty British military in the nearby area of Isandlwana finds impossible to defeat.
With the majority of troops decimated British Lieutenants Chard (Stanley Baker) and Bromhead (Michael Caine), who are stationed at Rorke's Drift to help with engineering a bridge, soon realize that the one hundred and forty soldiers under their command are in trouble. With over four thousand Zulu's nearby they realize that it's only a very small matter of time before they find themselves under attack. They set about preparing in the best ways that they are able to but soon find themselves in disagreement as how to best defend themselves. Inevitably, the Zulu forces move in and a massive battle ensues.
Zulu is an interesting film not just because it showcases some remarkable technical achievements in the world of filmmaking but because it shows us an Africa at odds with itself. Here we have a group of British troops who all truly believe that by bringing 'civilization' to Africa they are bettering the country coming into conflict with a native race bound and determined to do whatever it takes to protect its way of life. It's not difficult to draw parallels here to recent military action in the Middle East where American and United Nations coalition forces have run into similar quandaries, which of course makes this particular film some interesting food for thought.
The performances are excellent across the board. Baker is the smart man, the one with the brains who, thanks to his engineering background, has the strength of logic to come up with some strategies that just might work. He plays this role with aplomb, really letting us understand his character's thought process and allowing us to get behind him as what could very well be impending doom looms large on the horizon. On the flip side of this is Caine's equally impressive turn as Bromhead, the typical 'stiff upper lip' sort of Brit that comes from a long line of military traditionalists. In what really was a breakthrough role for the lauded thespian, Caine never once breaks character and he's got the right sort of staunch aura about him to suit the role perfectly. The supporting actors, such as Patrick Magee as a surgeon and James Booth as Private Hook are great, as is the narration from none other than Richard Burton, but Baker and Caine really and truly shine above the rest.
The movie does sometimes play to racial stereotypes and there are times where a bit more background detail on the how and why of it all would have helped fill in some blanks, but Zulu does a fantastic job of building in some interesting and claustrophobic ways to a final battle scene that is simply fantastic. When we first see that line of Zulu's in the distance surrounded only by the vast and endless desert chanting in preparation for the slaughter they assume will be theirs, it's hard not to get a chill. The movie puts us there, we feel their anger and their resentment towards the occupiers that they understandably do see as a threat and we know there's no way it can end well for either party even if the red coats manage to buck the odds. It's a scene that fills up almost a third of the movie and that, even by modern standards, still manages to hold us riveted to the edge of our seat.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Zulu arrives on Blu-ray in an AVC encoded 1080p high definition framed in its original 2.35.1 widescreen aspect ratio. For the most part, this is a very nice looking disc. The transfer is bright and colorful without looking artificially boosted and the image is reasonably clean, showing only minor print damage in the form of some tiny white specks here and there and the occasional small scratch. The black levels are good and there are no obvious compression artifacts to note, though some minor ringing stands out in a couple of spots. No noise reduction problems here to complain about, skin tones look good, nice and natural and never too hot or too pink, while detail and texture are impressive throughout.
Audio options are offered up in English language DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio and English DTS-HD Mono Master Audio tracks with optional English closed captioning. The Mono track feels a little bit more natural here and offers up crystal clear dialogue and nicely balanced score and effects, while the 2.0 mix spreads things out in effective ways, particularly during the battle sequences. Both tracks are clean and offer pretty solid depth for an older picture. This really comes down to personal preference, both options are rock solid.
The main special feature on the disc is an audio commentary with Film Historians Lem Dobbs and Nick Redman that is, in many ways, a love letter to this particular film. Both men have obviously got a huge appreciation for what Endfield and company accomplished with Zulu as they offer up plenty of critical analysis of the film's many merits. Additionally, they spend quite a bit of time detailing the history of the picture and noting the achievements of the cast and crew and on top of that they also offer up some interesting facts and figures about the 'real life' events that inspired the movie in the first place. It's an intelligent and well put together track that offers up a lot of welcome information at a good pace.
Rounding out the extras on the disc are the film's original theatrical trailer, a newer MGM 90th Anniversary trailer, the obligatory isolated score track (a really great extra that Twilight Time doesn't seem to get enough credit for including on their discs), menus and chapter selection. Once again, inside the Blu-ray case is a booklet of liner notes from Julie Kirgo that complement the commentary track by offering up her take on what makes this movie work and which also provide some interesting background information on the picture. Definitely worth a read.
The Final Word:
Twilight Time gives Zulu an impressive release with a very nice transfer, appropriately solid audio and a genuinely fascinating commentary track as its primary extra feature. The movie itself holds up very well, it's incredibly well made, beautifully shot, exciting and probably most importantly of all, it's thought provoking and smart.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
