Yankee Zulu (1993)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Simply Perfect

Just perfect...

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

In the 1990s, under various forms of pressure, South Africa ended the apartheid regime and introduced universal suffrage. Since then South Africa has become one of the most criminal countries in the world, with a steadily diminishing economy, academic performance, and culture in general. Murders of Boer farmers have since surpassed 70 000, and the state has engaged in outright robbery, stealing property from Boers.Why does it matter? Because this film presents Boers as not only bad guys, but raving racist lunatics. Is that supposed to be funny?

Although I'm not South African I found this movie very funny.This is based on real facts in South Africa.This is black people come from poor backgrounds and white people come from much richer background.This has got African humour that mostly I don't think Americans and British people will understand it.But overall it was a great movie.Its a classic African comedy movie.Although a lot of people complained about the acting skills, I disagree.I thought they were great because this was like the actors first official movie.The ones before were made from a very low budget.This was Leon Schuster and John Matshikiza at their best.

...especially comparing to other modern (same genre) movies.The jokes may not always be funny, but they are far from being vulgar as in many others (mainstream, Hollywood) comedies which use far more body function jokes. The acting doesn't have many highlights, but if you're prepared that you won't see Jack Lemmon or Cary Grant you won't be disappointed. And, considering when the movie was made, racial relations humor is quite good balanced. Obviously political correctness (thank God) was not necessary to release it.However, the whole construction is much worse balanced. It looks as if at least four writers and four directors made short movies and then just leaned (not even connected) them to release it as one single film. In the beginning we have an almost romantic coming-to-age part made in European (French or Swedish) style. When characters become adults we get a story with well included jokes made as USA authors were doing when average target audience was still older then 12, and for me this is the best part. Third quarter becomes a slapstick comedy, but if the authors came quite close to the best in the first half, they are far far behind trying to look like Mel Brooks or Peter Sellers. And, who knows why, finally we get a cartoon comedy, a copy of 'Home Alone'. Suddenly a male and female clone of Culkin, barely seen before, become main stars of the final quarter and finish movie with all lack of logic and reality (already damaged in slapstick part in neonazi house) that Home-alone-type of movies suffers from. And that's probably when your kids will enjoy more than you. But I don't understand why some comments suggest that this movie might not be appropriate for children. If you let them see 'Home Alone'... (not to mention all those, mostly Japanese cartoons). At least you can watch it with them (maybe explain something if you live in a different culture) without feeling a long tail and long ears growing on you, the feeling so often appearing during many block-buster (teen) comedies.

I personally don't agree to some of the reviews I have read about "Yankee Zulu" or There's A Zulu on my Stoep (as I know it!). Set and made in South Africa, it is clearly targeted at a South African audience. Being South African myself, I really liked the movie, and would encourage anyone to see it, but I do warn that like any culture, we have our own sense of humor, and people might find it to be "dreck", as said by a reviewer here on IMDB, but for some people it is funny and they are surely allowed to have movies to watch too, aren't they? The probable reason why it was released in countries like the USA and Britain is probably so that South Africans there can see it too, I don't know, but I just think it has to be considered that people find different things funny, and personally I find it to be very good, but see it for yourself, see what you think.