Glory

Glory is the best film I have seen about the Civil War thus far, and undoubtedly a new personal favorite of mine. This movie prides itself as an instant classic that captures a much unknown aspect of our very own Civil War, which our history classes often fail to inform us about.

The movie is based on the letters of Colonel Robert G. Shaw (Matthew Broderick), an officer in the Federal Army during the American Civil War. He volunteers to lead the 54th all African-American Regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Faced with much opposition in letting his army actually fight on the battlefield, Colonel Shaw does everything he can to prepare his men for battle and make sure they can proudly show their honor of being part of the army. Their training and fighting eventually leads up to the final assault on Fort Wagner in South Carolina. Their heroic actions take them as the 1st regiment into the Fort, presuming they will face the toughest fighting. This not only brought recognition to African-American soldiers at the time, but it helped turned the tide of the war. The 54th regiment wasn't any ordinary regiment, it was full of men with dignity and the willingness to go to great lengths to fight for what they believed in. And that is just what they did.

This movie is going to be added to my list of movies of profound impact because it is a true story in a time of war. As long as you can get past the 1989 quality of the movie, it is a very enchanting historical account of African-American men who will do anything to fight for their freedom, show their courage, and prove themselves to be just as good of soldiers as the Whites. It reminds us that there is so much for us to learn out there about our history as a human race that is not readily available to us. Although it was during a time of brother fighting against brother, it does show that it is possible for individuals, despite race or background, to rise up and unify together to reach a common goal. We can learn from these displays of unification, and adapt them into our current thinking to ensure we aren't blinded by the boundaries that often divide us.

To make matters even better, Matthew Broderick isn't the only wonderful and immensely fascinating performance seen in the movie. Two other well-known and award-winning actors play prominent roles in this movie, Morgan Freeman and Denzel Washington. In conclusion, I recommend Glory with the utmost anticipation that every movie-watcher and/or history buff will thoroughly enjoy it.