Zulu

The one serious flaw in the film is that at least half of the dialog is in Xhosa, Afrikaans, or Tswana ( or who-knows-what, South Africa having a dozen or so common languages) with no translations in the subtitles. Some of the dialog switches from English to Afrikaans in the same sentence by the same speaker. It could be said that English is the main language used, but that's just an estimate.

The two actors familiar to American viewers are Forrest Whittaker and Orlando Bloom and they also mix English and Afrikaans in the same sentences with no help in the subtitles. Entire scenes with the criminal gang members and/or the security goons speaking among themselves, conversations and not just a few words, are just unintelligible and I have no idea what is transpiring. The subtitles read "speaking foreign language". That isn't much help for viewers who don't know the language(s) being spoken.

The story suffers from this lack of translation, but the main points of the plot can be guessed, at least some of the time. Actually, it's a foreign language film (to a wide range of people no matter their main language) with no subtitles.

It's a good film, the language problem aside. The conspiracy at the heart of the story remains obscure to me. I blame that on my own lack of ability with languages and my limited imagination.

This is a very good movie. There, I said it. Let me say it again: this is a very good movie.

If I can identify one weak point, then I will point to the script that at times introduces some plot elements that rapidly fill in the blanks to advance the story. However, the script more than makes up for that minor problem by revealing complexity to the Whitaker and Bloom characters in a subtle way that makes us truly care about the two cops they portray.

Whitaker is very good, establishing a character then staying true to what he presents initially. If you like watching the mature Forest Whitaker do his thing then you will enjoy this movie.

However, to me this is Orlando Bloom's movie to carry, and he scores big time. If you are one of those that enjoys Orlando then this is a movie for you. All of that time he has spent adding to his bank account with fluffy roles has also brought him to this point where he can truly pull off a major role with skill.

Zulu is set in modern day South Africa and the portrait of that nation isn't pretty at all. Further, it is pretty easy to see that the social problems the film deals with are not only current but real and accurate. Zulu isn't just a who-done-it, but a powerful indictment of the causes of the subject crime embedded deep in 20th century history.

Like all good cop movies there is some redemption at the end so fear not in the middle, if you find yourself a little depressed. Stick it out and you will feel a little redemption yourself, maybe a little hope.

I see that the budget was $20 million and I think the producers got a great deal of worth for their investment. Problematic I guess is distribution of a cop film set in South Africa with some pretty harsh elements, at least to American audiences. Fortunately, for a few bucks in the near future you can watch it online.

Go see it if it at all sounds like your cup of tea, I promise you that you will enjoy it.

I went to see Zulu the other night in Paris having never heard of it, but intrigued enough by the cast and the brief synopsis I read at the cinema. It was just after the death of Mandela so I liked the idea of seeing something set in South Africa. First of all- the film had me for the whole time, the premise was intriguing and both Whitaker and Bloom provide excellent tension throughout. It was well paced and fairly unpredictable. The plot here is relatively thin- they start in true film noir fashion with the murder of a girl and follows with the tried and true tradition of jaded detective partners working the case. There is not much more to it than that. However, the film is more interested in the political and social world of Cape Town, and does this pretty well whilst maintaining the gripping action. The characters also are well developed, in particular Bloom as the booze soaked apathetic detective who keeps falling deeper and deeper into the seedy underbelly he's investigating (much like a Raymond Chandler character). I have the hon our of being the first to write a review of this, I also noted that there is nothing yet on rotten tomatoes. So as the first cab out of the rank, this is a well played and watchable flick, it is flawed but with the best of intentions... A good way to spend your night!

I lucked up on this piece of good cinema a year ago & I finally bought the DVD Region 2 of course, this film pacing is good the characters are spot on & the subject matter is great, post apartheid South Africa is the Wild West. Forest Whitaker & Orlando Bloom give spot on performances, this is a good Non-Hollywood production worth it's weight in gold.

i don't know what film the idiots who review this movie here watched, i can say in all honesty this is one of the best Drama of 2013 and very good production money well spend. i will give 10 stars if not for over acting in some scenes but this is due to script flaws i think. director is not known to me but he can be proud of the job he has done, style of camera use in action scenes reminded me POINT BREAK but way better, gun fights felt of those in western movies and was very tense. character development was the best thing about this movie you felt for every one most of all Orlando Bloom he has done a great job portraying a failed tortured soul as same as Mel Gibson did in first Lethal Weapon. i am guessing most people did not understand Forest Whitaker, his suffering and the way he acted at the and of the movie i did, this is why i loved the ending character Forest Whitaker played suffered in silence for 40 years then at the end he realised everything he suffered was due to certain evil man and he decided there was only one way to stopped them then he took action to do so with no remorse. i will recommend this movie to any one over 18 due to very disturbing scenes.