Blood and Glory

Blood and Glory (Afrikaans: Modder En Bloed) is a feature film that was released to cinema in April 2016 in South Africa. The film, set during the Anglo-Boer War in 1901, is a period drama that follows Willem Morkel, a Boer (Afrikaans farmer) who was captured and sent to a British Prisoner of War camp on St. Helena Island in the Atlantic ocean, where, placed under terrible oppression and hardship lead to an uprising through human spirit and more specifically, the game of rugby.

Contents

• Cast
• Production
• Distribution
• References

Blood and Glory is a fictional account, using the backdrop of Anglo-Boer War with some of the places in the plot resembling historical locations from the war. The film's protagonist, Willem Morkel, is loosely based on Douglas "Sommie" Morkel, who went on to captain the first Springbok rugby side in 1906 against the British & Irish Lions, and they remained undefeated for over 60 years.

The historical authenticity of backdrop events, conditions and attitudes in the plot of the film can be debated, as its depiction of the Boers and the British rely heavily on glorification of the former and vilification of the latter. As the film is primarily marketed at an Afrikaner audience within South Africa, many of whom identify themselves as descendants of the Boers, this historical interpretation of the war will not find fault with most of its viewers who still harbour bitter beliefs about the Anglo-Boer War.

Blood and Glory is a co-production by Dark Matter Studios and Collective Dream Films. The film is written and directed by Sean Else (Spud 2, Platteland, ‘n Man Soos My Pa), and produced by Llewelynn Greeff (Leading Lady) and Henk Pretorius (Leading Lady, Fanie Fourie's Lobola, Wolwedans in die Skemer, Hoofmeisie and the Bakgat Trilogy)