The Battle of Isandlwana and the subsequent fighting at Rorke's Drift took place 141 years ago today ... and if time permits, I hope to watch ZULU later today.
Although not the most accurate of war films (the list of 'errors' is well-known!), it does have some great lines of dialogue which regular watchers of ZULU (such as myself) tend to quote whenever a suitable situation arises.
Lieutenant Chard: The army doesn’t like more than one disaster in a day.
Lieutenant Bromhead: Looks bad in the newspapers and upsets civilians at their breakfast.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: A prayer's as good as bayonet on a day like this.
Reverend Otto Witt: Have you prayed?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: There'll be a time for it, sir.
Reverend Otto Witt: What will you say?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Pick it up. Bit of the Psalms, I suppose. My father was a lay preacher. A great one for the Psalms, he was. There was one that might have been written for a soldier.
Reverend Otto Witt: Say it, man. Lift your voice to God.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Now, sir?
Reverend Otto Witt: Yes. Let them hear your voice.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: They know my voice.
Reverend Otto Witt: Let them hear it now in praise of the Lord. Call upon him. Call upon him, man, for your salvation.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: As far as I can remember, sir, it goes something like this. "He maketh wars to cease in all the world; he breaketh the bow and snappeth the spear in sunder." D'you know it, sir?
Reverend Otto Witt: "I shall be exalted among the heathen; I shall be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us."
Colour Sergeant Bourne: That's it, sir. Nobody told you to stop working.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: The sentries report Zulus to the southwest. Thousands of them.
Private Cole: Why us? Why does it have to be us?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Because we’re here lad. Nobody else. Just us.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: I will be exalted among the heathen; I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of Hosts is with us.
Corporal William Allen: I hope so. As I live and die, I hope so.
Commissary James Dalton: Careful! Pot that chap somebody! Good fellow, good fellow!
Colour Sergeant Bourne: It’s a miracle..
Lieutenant Chard: If it’s a miracle Colour Sergeant, it’s a short chamber Boxer Henry, point four five calibre miracle.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: And a bayonet sir, with some guts behind.
Although not the most accurate of war films (the list of 'errors' is well-known!), it does have some great lines of dialogue which regular watchers of ZULU (such as myself) tend to quote whenever a suitable situation arises.
Lieutenant Chard: The army doesn’t like more than one disaster in a day.
Lieutenant Bromhead: Looks bad in the newspapers and upsets civilians at their breakfast.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: A prayer's as good as bayonet on a day like this.
Reverend Otto Witt: Have you prayed?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: There'll be a time for it, sir.
Reverend Otto Witt: What will you say?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Pick it up. Bit of the Psalms, I suppose. My father was a lay preacher. A great one for the Psalms, he was. There was one that might have been written for a soldier.
Reverend Otto Witt: Say it, man. Lift your voice to God.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Now, sir?
Reverend Otto Witt: Yes. Let them hear your voice.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: They know my voice.
Reverend Otto Witt: Let them hear it now in praise of the Lord. Call upon him. Call upon him, man, for your salvation.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: As far as I can remember, sir, it goes something like this. "He maketh wars to cease in all the world; he breaketh the bow and snappeth the spear in sunder." D'you know it, sir?
Reverend Otto Witt: "I shall be exalted among the heathen; I shall be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us."
Colour Sergeant Bourne: That's it, sir. Nobody told you to stop working.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: The sentries report Zulus to the southwest. Thousands of them.
Private Cole: Why us? Why does it have to be us?
Colour Sergeant Bourne: Because we’re here lad. Nobody else. Just us.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: I will be exalted among the heathen; I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of Hosts is with us.
Corporal William Allen: I hope so. As I live and die, I hope so.
Commissary James Dalton: Careful! Pot that chap somebody! Good fellow, good fellow!
Colour Sergeant Bourne: It’s a miracle..
Lieutenant Chard: If it’s a miracle Colour Sergeant, it’s a short chamber Boxer Henry, point four five calibre miracle.
Colour Sergeant Bourne: And a bayonet sir, with some guts behind.
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Some good quotes Bob! I wonder what the Zulus were thinking?
ReplyDeleteMaudlin Jack Tar,
DeleteIt would be very interesting to know what they were thinking!
All the best,
Bob
Going to be a Zulu Dawn & Zulu double header this afternoon/evening. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteRick Krebs,
DeleteWatching ZULU DAWN followed by ZULU makes a lot of sense, but I only had time to watch ZULU.
All the best,
Bob
Understood, Bob. The advantages of a retired widower 8-)
DeleteRick Krebs,
DeleteI hope that you enjoyed watching both, back-to-back. I woke up early this morning, and managed to watch ZULU DAWN undisturbed whilst the rest of the house slept.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
DeleteThe death of Monty Python's Terry Jones takes me back to my early teenage years in Liverpool. My parents and me had queued up to see Life of Brian in 1979 at the old Scala cinema in Lime Street (sadly since demolished). We had just got to the front of the queue when the cinema commissionaire (remember them?) put the rope across the door and informed us and the hundred or so people behind that the house was full. We trudged around the corner to the Odeon cinema to see if there was anything else we could see that night; well there was, and we ended up watching Zulu Dawn instead. It didn't have the immediate impact of Zulu, but over the years I've come to appreciate its own qualities as a movie, especially in the scenes of the logistics involved in moving the British army into Zulu territory. The original Zulu film will always stand out as one of my all time favourites, but Zulu Dawn does have its moments. I never did get to see Life of Brian on the big screen though, I had to wait a few more years before I eventually got see it on TV.
Regards,
Andy
Andy Hussey,
DeleteYour story has quite an interesting element of synchronicity to it.
I’ve always thought that if ZULU had not already been made, ZULU DAWN would have enjoyed a far greater reputation than it has. It is more historically accurate (although there are several errors), and tells the story of what happened in a way that is easy to follow. The acting was good, and the sheer number of solid performances by the British actors who took part is a reflection of the depth of talent that was available back then.
I never saw THE LIFE OF BRIAN at the cinema, but I feel that it was the best of the films made by the Monty Python team. Despite the protests made at the time, I never felt that it was blasphemous as it continually made the point that a Brian wasn’t the Messiah.
All the best,
Bob
It is interesting to note that while there have been published oral histories from the descendants of Lakota warriors who fought on the Little Big Horn, similar accounts of the two battles commemorated on this day don't seem to exist - at least not in the US.
ReplyDeleteThat would at least give some insight into what the Zulu were thinking.
CelticCurmudgeon,
DeleteThere probably are published (or recorded) Zulu oral histories of the two battles, but I cannot find any trace of them. I’m sure that they would be very interesting to read.
All the best,
Bob
Was this all from one scene or is it a collection of your favorites?
ReplyDeleteOops, now that I read it directly from the blog I realized you've broken up the quotes with lines. I initially read this entry with the Feedly app which did not include the breaks.
DeleteI did learn about the Boxer-Henry rifle though!
Mr. Pavone,
DeleteThey are just my favourite quotations from the film’s dialogue.
All the best,
Bob
DeleteMr. Pavone,
I also use Feedly, and you’re right, it doesn’t show breaks or lines.
The Boxer cartridge was manufactured at the Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey, for use in the Martini-Henry rifle. They were rolled brass cartridges which had separate bases, and this made them difficult to use in Gatling guns. The extractor tended to pull off the base, leaving the rest of the cartridge case in the breech, thus jamming the gun. The problem was overcome when drawn brass cartridges were introduced.
All the best,
Bob
Johnny Zulu, eyeing the thin red line and occasionally glancing his assegai: 'Yep. This spear could use a good wash.'
ReplyDeleteArchduke Piccolo,
DeleteA very believable ‘quotation’ ... even if it isn’t in ZULU or ZULU DAWN.
All the best,
Bob
Bob,
ReplyDeleteWould it be bad form to take this opportunity to ask when your Colonial Portable Wargame Rules will be published:)
Best wishes
Anthony
Anthony Morton,
DeleteIt’s an entirely appropriate thing to ask!
At present, I’ve written two sets of rules for the book that are based on the rules in my PORTABLE NAPOLEONIC WARGAME book, and I have drafted out a couple of chapters. I need to fight two example battles to illustrate the rules, and then add some campaign ideas. I’m hoping to get it finished by Easter ... but meeting that deadline depends on several factors over which I don’t have total control.
All the best,
Bob
I was given the book "Zulu": With Some Guts Behind It, The Making of the Epic Movie by Sheldon Hall by a friend for my recent birthday. Keep dipping into it and there are loads of interesting facts as to how and why it was made. Truly a classic movie.
ReplyDeleteGuy
Guy,
DeleteThat sounds like a great book. A friend of mine worked for a Michael Caine until recently, and he has passed on one or two anecdotes about the making of the film.
All the best,
Bob