No Guts No Glory

Rating: 9/10 (21 February 2001)

Glory directed by Edward Zwick is the true story of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts, the first black fighting unit recruited by the North during the Civil War. Matthew Broderick plays Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the young white officer who led the black soldiers into battle. Shaw is the son of well to do abolitionists hailed from Boston high society. Glory is the story not only Colonel Shaw, but also of the black soldiers who laid down their lives to free their brothers from slavery. Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, Lihmi Kennedy, and Andre Braughter lead the cast of black volunteers portrayed in the movie based on Shaw's letters to home and two books. The movie introduces us to a handful of recruits and follows them from their enlistment to their climatic assault on Fort Wagner.
Overall, this production is historically accurate. In the film, all of the dates are correct in the scenes they are depicting. In real life, Shaw did fight at Antietam where he suffered a small wound to the neck and was asked by Governor Andrew to lead the 54th Massachusetts, which was to be the Union's first all black enlisted regiment. In the movie when he was asked this, he quickly decides that he does want to lead this group while in reality it took him some time to come to this conclusion. In general, some slaves and many free blacks were enlisted in the 54th. The training at Readville's Camp was fairly accurate in its portayal of the hard conditions the soldiers were put through except for the portrayal of an Irish drill sergeant which there is no record of anywhere. The Confederacy did issue the proclamation stating that any blacks fighting and white commanding officers of blacks would be killed if captured, but all the men were aware of this when they enlisted in the army as it occurred a month earlier than portrayed in the movie. The 54th Massachusetts was short of supplies but not especially shoes as depicted and they did leave to a parade in Boston. Furthermore, all of the movements of the 54th throughout the South were accurate. Shaw's men did in fact quarrel with Colonel Montgomery's troops as shown, but Shaw and Montgomery actually got along fine unlike in the film. The 54th Massachusetts saw action in the Battle of James Island as shown in defending the Confederates attacks. Fort Wagner was portrayed well however, the attack occurred on wrong side, as the actual attack came from the south not the north as depicted in the movie. The charge itself was well portayed except for that the flagbearer survived yet 281 of the 600 men in the 54th Massachusetts did wind up being killed, injured, or wounded in battle. Going against the military etiguitte of the time, Shaw being an officer was buried in a mass grave with his black soldiers. Dealing with the characterizations in the film, most of the black regiment members were composite characters who were not actual people but did repesent the thoughts and actions of the men in the 54th Massachusetts. Frederick Douglas' sons served as the basis for the character of Thomas or the educated free black in the regiment. The portrayal of Shaw was accurate and Shaw's assistant did exist but there is no record that he was a previous friend of Shaw's. Throughout the Civil War, the hospital were overwhelmed and in horrible conditions as was the hospital scene in the movie at Anteitam. Most of the nurses were untrained and did not use aniseptics causing many wounds to become infected nor were there blood transfussions. There were not many anesthesias available and whisky was often used as a substitute in the event of an amputation. As it turns out you were far more likely to die from disease during the Civil War than from a bullet. Throughout the film, the American thirty-five star flag is accurate. Yet the Confederate flag flown over Fort Wagner at the end of the film did not exist in addition to many of the confederate flags shown that were rectangular in shape when they actually were square. The uniforms of both sides were well done in the film as were the boys marching in front of the units. The guns in the film were historically accurate except for the portrayal of serial numbers on rifles, which at the time only existed on pistols. The material culture overall was very well done though. Shoulder to shoulder fighting still was used at the time as shown but the weapons over time had become far more accurate causing many to perish during the Civil War. The idea of having an all black regiment was largely unpopular with whites of the time. Most thought that blacks would make bad soldiers, but the black men of the 54th proved themselves worthy in battle leading to the creation of many more all black units. The etiquitte between enlisted men and officers was depicted with Shaw and Thomas during basic training when Shaw broke off a casual conversation that his friend Thomas was trying to hold with him because it was not proper to do so. There is no evidence of any gospel session with the men the night before a battle but sessions like the one shown in the movie did occur on slave plantations from time to time. Finally, as depicted blacks undoubtedly faced racial slurs in their efforts to participate in the Civil War.
This film is a reflection of the values of the late 1980's and into the early 1990's when it was produced in the simple fact that there was a movie about black soldiers in the Civil War. Blacks until recently were thought to have no part in the battles of the Civil War. Glory opened people's eyes to broader horizons or views. It showed that America and the study of history is now inclusive to all. Where as once blacks were thought to have had no part in the Civil War a movie now depicts one of their shining triumphs in battle. Yet a recognizable message can still be seen when the director, Edward Zwick, chose to show a story about black soldiers through the perspective of a white man. In this, it can be seen that however far Hollywood and America as a society have come in racial equality there are still many strides yet to be made before everyone in this nation is truly equal.
Technically the film is very well done. It includes graphic and stunningly choreographed scenes first at the Battle of Antietam and then in the stunning climactic scene at Fort Wagner. It has been described as the most accurate re-creation of a Civil War battle ever throught its extensive attention to every painstaking detail. The strong visuals in the film greatly add to the plot and help to set the emotion of the time period in helping to make the film more realistic to the viewer.
Like any war film, Glory, has its share of violence and despair, but ultimately it proves to be a truly uplifting experience and an important history lesson. It is a valuable viewing experinece that I would strongly recommend to mature teenagers and adults. Glory serves as a valuable reminder that despite what history book say or rather what they don't say, blacks played a critically important role in the North's victory over the South in the Civil War, forever changing the evolution of America.