The story of the welsh regiment at rourke's drift is a timeless epic of movie making and story telling
visually stunning great characterisation wonderful true story respectful of both sides
The way it takes the right amount of time to build the tension story and characters, the situation, the drip drip drip effect
I loved the quirkiness of the characters, the drunken Welsh preacher and his daughter, the maverick rogue James booth who rose to the occasion, the homesick welsh farmer feeding the lambs and longing for Bala in wales. the twittish under officer played by Michael Caine who sorts of grows up as it goes along and all held together by the stoic and wonderful Stanley baker.
whilst Caine hams absurdly, bakers performance is fantastic and gets better with every viewing, hes human, hes serious , hes dark and broody. This is a game for the rulers of the British empire who demand this bridge be built. But it sue ain't no game for the Zulu warriors or the welsh regiment most of whom die in the battle
the bets line in movie history as the Zulus finally allow the welsh regiment to survive?
"Its a miracle sergeant."
baker stares into the abyss
"It it is it was loaded with a gun."
People can always find holes in any movie and they will here. Do the fight scenes date? probably a little who cares, being stabbed with a bayonet or shot leads to death and sickness, we get the picture why do we need to spend hours watching the blood drip? would the welsh really sing in battle? ask any soldier whose served with a Welshman or woman you bet they sing all the time. usually an ancient welsh hymn like emen of harlech as in this movie
historically accurate?
yes very accurate. Stanley baker paid to produce this epic tale and nearly went bankrupt as he got no support from the British film industry or the government. as usual? sad
anyone who visits Wales should visit the beautiful brecon. there is the welsh regiment which exists today and trains in the nearby mountains. there is a huge museum there detailing specifically this battle at rourke's drift in s Africa
Pls note also this may have been a welsh regiment but there were also a great number of Scottish and Englishmen in the regiment and this is a British story not just a welsh one.
