Glory (1989)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Edward Zwick

Writers (WGA):

Robert Gould Shaw (letters)
Lincoln Kirstein (book)

Release Date:

15 December 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Tagline:

Their innocence. Their heritage. Their lives. Nothing would be spared in the fight for their freedom.

Plot:

Robert Gould Shaw leads the US Civil War's first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices of both his own Union army and the Confederates.

Plot Keywords:

Army | Prejudice | Colonel | American Civil War | Fighting

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Matthew Broderick	...	Col. Robert Gould Shaw
Denzel Washington	...	Pvt. Trip
Cary Elwes	...	Maj. Cabot Forbes
Morgan Freeman	...	Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins
Jihmi Kennedy	...	Pvt. Jupiter Sharts
Andre Braugher	...	Cpl. Thomas Searles
John Finn	...	Sgt. Maj. Mulcahy
Donovan Leitch	...	Capt. Charles Fessenden Morse
JD Cullum	...	Henry Sturgis Russell (as John David Cullum)
Alan North	...	Gov. John Albion Andrew
Bob Gunton	...	Gen. Charles Garrison Harker
Cliff De Young	...	Col. James M. Montgomery (as Cliff DeYoung)
Christian Baskous	...	Edward L. Pierce
RonReaco Lee	...	Mute drummer boy
Jay O. Sanders	...	Gen. George Crockett Strong

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby SR (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 (2000) (DVD) | Netherlands:16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (cable rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Canada:14A | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16 | USA:PG (edited version) | Norway:18 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

African-American National Historic Site - 14 Beacon Street, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

TriStar Pictures

Trivia:

According to director Edward Zwick, Matthew Broderick and Cary Elwes did not get along during filming.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At one point Shaw tells Sergeant Major Mulcahy "at ease." During the Civil War this command did not exist. The command would have been "rest" or "in place rest."

Quotes:

Rawlins: The town is clean sir. Ain't no rebs here, just some women.
Col. Montgomery: You hear that! Let's clear er out!
[His men begin looting the town]
Colonel Robert G. Shaw: What are you doing?
Col. Montgomery: Liberating this town in the name of the Republic.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Cameron Diaz/Jimmy Eat World (#27.16)" (2002)

A terribly underrated film which deserved better

With one of the best ensemble casts of all time, this ranks as one of the best war films of all time. With a collection of great black actors like no other, everything seemed to work well in this film, from the cinematography to the acting. Edward Zwick created a masterpiece, which, in any other year, would have swept most of the major awards. Sadly, this did not even make the AFI Top 100 so inferior movies could squeeze in. In my opinion, the likes of Born on the Fourth of July and Driving Miss Daisy were vastly inferior to this film during the 1990 Academy Awards. I mean, how the heck were films like Dead Poets Society and My Left Foot nominated for best picture when this one wasn't? (sure they were good films, but c'mon)

Matthew Broderick completely surprised me with his performance, as well as Cary Elwes. And one cannot forget the likes of Denzel Washington, and Morgan Freeman giving great performances as soldiers weary of being the Union's lackeys. While the historical accuracy may not be perfect, as least this was a tribute to those who helped emancipate the slaves during the Civil War.