A glorious war story

Rating: 8/10 (28 May 2008)

Glory is truly an effective war film. Set in the American Civil War, it recounts the history of an all-black regiment, the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Regiment. Obviously a controversial idea at the time, the regiment defies all expectations to play a pivotal role in the war.
The characters are a strong point of the film. The cast includes Morgan Freeman and Denzel Washington. The biggest (pleasant) surprise was Matthew Broderick, who does a fantastic job as Colonel Robert Shaw, the commander of the regiment. His personality and style suits the character perfectly. Generally, the cast's actions and dispositions feel historically believable.
The plot is fine, although in retrospect it might have been a little too straightforward. Roughly the first half consists of developing and training the regiment. Here we see the racial injustices of the period. The officers have good intentions but are unsure of how to treat the blacks. They slowly gain an understanding of each other. Then they are off to fight together against the Confederates. They see more injustice, but also the opportunity to make a difference. There are only two major battle scenes, but both of them go the distance. The last one is especially well executed, with beautiful special effects and cinematography. The iconic music theme adds a lot to the emotional impact of the film.
Glory is a powerful war film. It allows us to accurately experience a tumultuous period in American history. It also reminds us of the crimes of prejudice. It has a clear goal and doesn't wander out of focus like some other war films do.