Essential history of authentic Courage and struggle for dignity & respect (Denzel Washington +Morgan Freeman = Amazing!)

Rating: 10/10 (21 June 2019)

'Glory' is a great, essential (and historically important) Film = it should really be required viewing for anyone interested in having a better more complete understanding of all-facets of the Civil War, and is one of the very few movies to actually give deeper insights into the thoughts & opinions of African American soldiers + and of course highlighting the little known fact that there even existed all-black fighting units (specifically the 54th Volunteer Regiment/Infantry from Massachusetts) within the larger Union-Army, whose participation & boundless-courage might have actually contributed to 'turning-the-tide' ultimately in favor of the Union.
Edward Zwick deserves much credit for expertly directing this (he also did the great movie about Jewish partisans in WWII called "Defiance" and also "The Last Samurai" and "Blood Diamond' and the Bobby Fischer biography "Pawn Sacrifice")
Of course it is the intensely-complex multi-layered charismatic performance by Denzel Washington as 'Trip' who agrees to serve in the Union Army under the command of the young abolitionist-leaning 'Robert Shaw' (played by Matthew Broderick) that is the center-piece of this great film. The ex-slave, now Union-soldier Trip's internal (and external) struggles are portrayed in exceedingly realistic manner, of course he will fight relentlessly to ensure that the Union defeats the segregationist-Confederates - but he is not altogether sure that a Victory will ever ensure a significantly better quality-of-Life (and true equality) for his people and bring genuine 'unity' to the entire Country (since he encounters the trappings of racism on both sides) And Morgan Freeman gives superlative-assist as the older-wiser-humane 'Sergeant Major John Rawlins'
This is an authentically super-gifted Thespian Cast = completely up to the task of telling the harrowing tale of courageous 54th Infantry Black soldiers sacrificing their very Lives fighting alongside the Union Army and taking immense casualties in the process* - with the faint hopes that winning the Civil-War will improve the quality of everyday lives for themselves and their Loved-ones and bring permanent 'unity' to the entire Nation - but as honestly portrayed in this essential-historic film, struggles against blind-racism with valiant acts of courage to regain dignity & respect - proved to be an uphill (and ongoing) battle.
An Essential Movie-Classic (if there ever was one!)
note: the valiant all-Black 54th Volunteer Infantry/regiment suffered nearly 50% casualty-rate, but their courageous acts inspired subsequently much larger participation of black soldiers in the Union Army (possibly turning the tide of the Civil-War in the Union's favor)
note2*: the incredible courage and sacrifice of the 54th Volunteer Infantry of Massachusetts made me think of the equally courageous & exceedingly valiant 100th Battalion (and 442nd) from WII comprised of all Japanese American volunteers (many of whose family-members were imprisoned in internment-camps during WWII), but who nonetheless willingly gave the ultimate sacrifice to the land in which they were born (hoping that their families would be treated as fully respected American-citizens once the War was over = there are definite parallels to both Essential historical-factual stories that shouldn't be forgotten)