Glory

Film Title: Glory
Year: 1989
MPAA Rating: R
Length: 122 min
Film Genre(s): Action / Drama / History / War
Director(s): Edward Zwick
Producer(s): Pieter Jan Brugge
Writer(s): Robert Gould Shaw (letters). Lincoln Kirstein (book)
Players:
Matthew Broderick as Col. Robert Gould Shaw
Denzel Washington as Pvt. Trip
Cary Elwes as Maj. Cobot Forbes
Morgan Freeman as Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins
Plot: Col. Robert Shaw leads the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer infantry, a regiment of Black solders led by white officers. The film tells the story of the regiment and their role in the Civil War.
Acting: All four of the major players of this film give incredible performances. Matthew Broderick gives a stunning performance as Col. Shaw, a solder who reluctantly at times maintains his role as the regiments commanding officer but never wavers in his devotion to his men. Cary Elwes also gives a top notch performance as Maj. Forbes. Elwes plays well against Broderick's sense of duty and brings humanity and compassion to the leadership. Both men shine as the regiments commanding officers. Morgan Freeman and Denzel Washington give knock out performances. Freeman is amazing in his role as the Sgt. Maj. and Washington really brings some emotion and power to the film. (Washington received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this film)
Cinematography: Cinematographer Freddie Francis won the Academy Award for his work on this film and rightly so. His presentation of the battle scenes are simple yet amazing. Francis uses a lot of close up shots on the title characters, this adds to their performances, he has the uncanny ablility to capture every ounce of their emotion.
Visual: The costumes and set pieces reflect the time period. The special effects and battle scenes are on par with other movies set in this time period.
Audio: This movie also won the Academy Award for Best Sound. The score and sound effects for this film are great.
When I watched it last. During the review
What to watch for: All four of the major characters deliver jaw dropping performances. The scene where Washington is disciplined for dessertion will stir your heart.
What to watch out for: Some of the battle violence is gruesome. Exploding heads are a little shocking. Some language.
IMDB User Rating: 8.1 out of 10.
Roger Ebert Rating: 3½ out of 4 stars
The Cinema Standard Overall Score: 8.7 out of 10. An amazing war film with tons of heart. An incredibly moving film about hope, heriorism and history. If you haven't seen this movie before now punch yourself (Jason punches himself)
--Reviewed by Jason