- Film Review
- Reviewed By Tony Sloman
-
5 out of 5
This superb re-creation of the 1879 battle of Rorke's Drift is a personal triumph for producer/director Cy Endfield and Welsh producer/star Stanley Baker. Baker heads a remarkable cast that includes Michael Caine in a star-making performance playing against type as a toffee-nosed lieutenant. Technically the movie is a revelation, with stunning Technirama photography (by Stephen Dade), brilliant picture editing (John Jympson), glorious music (John Barry) and a wonderfully evocative soundtrack - who could ever forget the approaching sound of the 4,000 Zulu warriors before we see them? Richard Burton's narration is genuinely moving, and watch for Chief Buthelezi as his own ancestor, Cetewayo, chief of the Zulus.
Plot Summary
Historical war drama starring Stanley Baker, Michael Caine and Jack Hawkins. In 1879, Cetewayo, ruler of the great Zulu kingdom, inflicts a heavy defeat upon the British army at Isandhlwana and marches towards the small garrison of Rorke's Drift, where two officers desperately rally their meagre forces.
Cast and crew
Cast
- Lieutenant John Chard, RE
- Stanley Baker
- Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead
- Michael Caine
- Reverend Otto Witt
- Jack Hawkins
- Margareta Witt
- Ulla Jacobsson
- Private Henry Hook
- James Booth
- Colour-Sergeant Bourne
- Nigel Green
- Private Owen
- Ivor Emmanuel
- Sergeant Maxfield
- Paul Daneman
- Corporal Allen
- Glynn Edwards
- Private Thomas
- Neil McCarthy
- Private Hitch
- David Kernan
- Narrator
- Richard Burton
- Private Cole
- Gary Bond
- Surgeon Major James Reynolds
- Patrick Magee
- Private William Jones (593)
- Richard Davies (2)
- Corporal Frederic Schiess
- Dickie Owen
- Sergeant Windridge
- Joe Powell
- Cetewayo
- Chief Buthelezi
Crew
- Director
- Cy Endfield
- Share this episode
-