Shaka Zulu

Although not a despot known to many, Shaka Zulu controlled an empire at the height of his power comparable to that of Napolean and was as brutal as Vlad the Impaler; this miniseries very successfully shows his rise to power, relationship with British envoys, and eventual fall.

As the mini-series opens, a solemn South African representative listens to the British elite, including Queen Victoria, belittle his people and then begs them to let his people keep their sovereignty. The series then flashbacks to the British embassy going to meet Shaka, running into trouble, and eventually earning his trust after an assassination attempt. The series then flashbacks to his rise to power from a young boy to the most powerful man on the continent of Africa. The flashbacks never get confusing, the story is always well told. The cinematography is brilliant, the acting (especially by Henry Cele in the title role) is very competent, and the characters are very compelling.

The series has a little something for everyone, although I think it would appeal more to history buffs like myself. In addition, there is substantial amounts of nudity, as most of the African women go around topless. While the nudity didn't detract from the narrative or become gratutitious, it is something to think about before letting younger viewers watch.

All in all i heartily recommend this mini-series, whether for a really, really rainy day or an hour at at time after work.

Thinking of South-Africa and the 1980s in one context, three things come to mind: apartheid, boycott and the mini-series "Shaka Zulu". I'd place this among the best mini-series of the 80's and 90's, among shows like "Shogun", "Tai-Pan", "Roots" and "North and South". "Shaka Zulu" has bit from all of them. It's got history; it's got adventure and action, it has compelling characters and story lines that keep you glued to the screen.

Shaka has most often been described as the „Napoleon of Africa", which isn't incorrect, yet, I myself do like to see him as the King Arthur of South Africa. This is mainly due to having read Thomas Mofolos "Chaka Zulu" prior to having seen the TV-series. If you're the reading type, I recommend you to pick it up; it's not only a masterpiece of storytelling, but combines history and mysticism perfectly. Some of the mystic elements have made it into the series (the prophecy of Shaka's rise to power; the forging of Shaka's spear), but generally the story of the TV-show is rooted in reality.

What's to be said about the actors? Well, people like Edward Fox, Robert Powell or Fiona Fullerton are beyond dispute, doing a fine job as would be expected. Same goes by short but poignant guest-appearances by the likes of Sir Christopher Lee, Trevor Howard and Roy Dotrice (superb as a decadent King George IV) but the real kudos must go to the South African cast which, despite being mainly laymen actors, come across as convincingly and authentic as they come.

Former South-African football hero Henry Cele embodies Shaka Zulu like Helmut Berger embodied King Ludwig II of Bavaria, imposing and final. Dudu Mkize virtually steals the scenes she's in, with a mix of grace and dignity that is rare to see on modern TV or Conrad Magwaza as Shakas father Senzagakona and Gugu Nxumalo as Shakas feline-like aunt Mkabayi. Sadly, most of those actors were never seen on screen again; Cele starring in a couple of low-budget action / horror flicks (among them "The Ghost and the Darkness), same goes for Mkizi and for Magwaza (apart in a guest-appearance in a film about Albert Schweizer) and Nxumala, "Shaka Zulu" that remained their only appearance on the silver screen.

In essence, this is a (mini)-series that makes you feel sad once you've reached the final episode: sad that it's over and that there is no more. One wishes it would have gone on, that one could have seen more of the characters, their stories, and more of the rich Zulu culture and its history.

I'd give it 10/10 points if it wasn't for the abrupt, sudden ending, which comes as a bit of a let-down, so 9 from 10 will have to do.

Although I remember seeing some of the original mini-series in the 80s I had never watched the whole story. My interest was re-awakened when I bought the Shaka Zulu box set in the January sales. Having watched the whole series through I realised that this was a great story, very well told and well acted (especially by the African leads - some of the British cast seem hammy in comparison although Edward Fox to his credit is less hammy than normal).

There are good production values and great scenery (the series used many of the original locations from Shaka's life) and hundreds of "real" extras. All in all a refreshing change from the vacuous CGI laden "epics" which flood the cinema now. I think the fact this was a mini-series has led to this production being seriously undervalued. It is a lot better than many films which get given Oscars.

It seems that the best actors were the tribesmen, done on location, and very graphic on the gore. Could tell right away that this wasn't American Television. The Aussie's and New Zelanders, definately make better mini-series than we do.

When Nandi and her unborn child are saved by the ancient witch doctor, he proclaims: "A force has been generated that in time will rock the foundation of the African sub-continent."

Indeed the prophecy shaped the event and Shaka was the ruthless founder of southern Africa's Zulu Empire... In less than a decade, the paramount chieftain of the Zulu clan revolutionized the techniques of tribal warfare and fashioned an efficient and terrifying fighting force that devastated the entire region...

Set against the emergence of British power in Africa during the early 19th Century, the film provides some valuable insights into comparative cultures...

Shaka (Henry Cele) is a man of considerable height, thin, with athletic body and white teeth who can read and write... He is a great warrior, tactically, strategically and physically... He rearms his army with a long-bladed, short-shafted stabbing spear, which forced them to fight at close quarters... He goes for extermination, incorporating the remnants of the clans he smashed into the Zulu, making it increase with numbers and power..

The Mini-Series begins with a letter to the British king (George IV) regarding the Zulus' potential threat to the Cape Colony... In an attempt to intimidate Shaka into an alliance with the British empire, the Secretary of War sends a delegation to inner African to meet with the fearful warrior...

We see:

• The meeting of Nandi, an orphaned princess of the neighboring Langeni clan and Senzangakona, the chief of the then small Zulu tribe... They are instantly attracted to each other... Nandi becomes pregnant, at the same time as Kona's wife, but the marriage did not last... Their marriage violated Zulu custom, and the stigma of this extended to the child...

• The couple separated when Shaka was six, and Nandi takes her son back to the Langeni, where he passed a fatherless boyhood among a people who despised his mother and makes him the butt of endless cruel pranks... He grows up to be bitter and angry, hating his tormentors... The Langeni drove Nandi out, and she finally found shelter with the Dletsheni, a sub-clan of the powerful Mtetwa...

• Shaka rules with an iron hand from the beginning, distributing instant death for the slightest opposition...

• While en route to Shaka's capital, the crew's doctor saves a girl who is in a coma and nearly buried alive by her tribe... Impressed by both the deed and their horses, Shaka agrees to meet with the crew... And so begins the clash of two cultures, two different worlds...

• Shaka, seriously wounded for saving an unknown warrior (King Dingiswayo), is nursed to health by a beautiful Mtwetwa girl...

• Shaka, believing in total annihilation, joins the Mtwetwa army and creates a dangerous weapon for the African warfare...

• Shaka grants Port Natal, with its ivory rights, to the British crew after he is saved by the crew's doctor from an assassination attempt...

• Shaka's mighty army saving the British delegation in a battle against thousands of Ndwandwe warriors... To test the alliance and allegiance of the British delegation, Shaka orders them into battle alone against the Ndwandwe warriors...

• With his mother's death Shaka becomes openly psychotic... Shaka rules by the sheer force of his personality, building, by scores of daily executions, a fear so profound that he could afford to ignore it...

Set against the spectacular panorama of the Zulu tribal homelands, and with graphic violence and frequent nudity, "Shaka Zulu" is a tremendous epic Mini-Series, chronicling the rise and fall of one of the most famous South Africans who has already passed into legend...