Glory Reflection

Upon first looking at the list of movies that we would be watching this year in class a few stuck out from the rest.  Among two or three others was Glory.  Like many other movies I had heard good things about Glory but was not sure that I would feel the same way.  As it turns out, Glory is my favorite of the movies that we have seen so far.  One of the most important reasons I liked it was that unlike so many other movies, it felt like the story was the key part of the movie.  This movie was made to tell a story about the 54th and while there was some action it did not feel like it was getting in the way of the story but rather the battles served the further advance the story in a way that is uncommon in most movies today.  This movie is also for the most part anyway, pretty historically accurate which is always good.
One thing I was a little worried about was that Matthew Broderick was the story's protagonist.  This is only because I have only ever seen him as Ferris Bueller and it was a little weird for me personally at first because of the difference between the two characters.  I was pleasantly surprised and I feel like he did a good job in the role of Shaw.
I also very much enjoyed watching the relationship between the different members of the 54th change throughout the movie and noting their radically different perceptions on the current war and the 54th itself.

Throughout history there have been many martyrs who died for their country.  This is not so hard to believe as in many if not most cases it is not so much the name of the country that people will fight and die for but rather the idea behind the country.  To many people the United States are a symbol of freedom and justice and it is for those ideals that so many people are willing to fight for. 
There is no doubt that Shaw and the 54th are heroes.  Many members of the 54th gave their lives during the war.  Shaw himself knew that unlike many of his fellow officers in other situations if he was captured it meant certain death and yet he decided to remain with his soldiers.  Furthermore, Shaw volunteered the 54th to lead the charge on the fort at the end of the film even though he knew that he and many of his friends may die. 

The significance of this story lies not in that there was an African American regiment but rather that that regiment which many people including many officers looked down upon actually played a key role in the war.  The 54th proved that they were just as good if not better than the other units and that is why they were so important.