This movie is an insult This movie is horrible. Don't buy it. I am lucky to have looked at a friend's copy. It insults the memory of the great Shaka Zulu. It must have been painful for Celes to act in this silly movie which makes no historical sense.
A Disappointment I really enjoyed the Shaka Zulu miniseries which featured this same cast. For that reason I was expecting more of the same. I got the same cast but I did not get the same enjoyment. This one was not worth much.
The story is of the furthering encroachment by the English and the Boers into the Zulu kingdom. Shaka is not a king to be trifled with and is in many way "primitive" but that does not keep him from sophisticated thinking as well. He is portrayed as a great leader of his people who can be violent but who is also willing and indeed eager to learn new things. So much they got right.
A great part of this story tells of Shaka being betrayed and captured by slavers. He vows vengeance but tempers that vengeance because of the example of an Englishwoman who shows him kindness. This part of the story is very simplistic and is dramatically flat. So too is most of the rest of the story. The one good acting job in this sequel is that of the title role. He tries to portray the complexity of the character. The rest are one dimensional.
Means well but ends horribly This movie is pretty hard to watch for anyone who likes a good drama or historical movies. Every scene was over the top and tried its best to make you care. Miss Farewell and Cpt. Prentice falling in love is nausiating. Yet, this tacky scene is trumped by the pitiful image of Grace Jones dead, sitting up with eyes open!!!!, because her man, Shaka Zulu, was away too long! The only highlights of the movie are the scenes where Shaka kicks butt and saves the day. The downside to that is the action scenes are so off the wall there's no point in saying it is based on a true story. Ex1-Shaka runs across Africa, on foot!, to kill a rivile king. Ex2-Shaka breaks the slave shackels from his wrists and takes over a slave ship single handed! It's one of those you have to see once to tell people it's nothing like the real miniseries movies. For the record, one of the worst sequels ever made. Should not be allowed to have the name "Shaka Zulu" on the cover!
Disappointed This is not the movie I was expecting. I thought it would be the film I saw on TV several years ago.
It might have been good before Hollywood got a hold of it. It must have been completly exhausting for Henry Cele to carry this movie for an hour and a half. You rarely see such true stage presence. It's too bad it was wasted in this movie. It gave a few shining monments of social criticism on the English colonial system and slave trade, but spent the rest of the time mooning over the weak romantic subplot.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
