Edward Zwick's Film, Glory
“Glory”, the excellent war film about the first black regime, showed how a group of black men who first found bitterness between each other, rose above it and became one to form a group of black men that marched with pride not animosity. When dealing with a great film that involves African Americans, the roles have to be filled by strong black actors. Edward Zwick falls nothing short of this. The two black roles are filled by Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman. This war film seemed to be just like every other war film. Meaning that mostly all war movies have the singing among troops and playing cards or in this case, craps. This helps the viewer see past the soldier, and see the real person and notice their human as well. This paper will show how Zwick used different characters, racial wars, music, and camera to portray what really goes on during a time of war.
In “Glory” there are very different meanings to all the unique characters. Matthew Broderick, who plays Colonel Shaw, has many different meanings behind his character. The opening scene when he is lying on the battlefield he is feeling like he is in a living hell. When he is awakened the next morning, the first thing he sees is the sun. The sun looks like a narrow path of light, maybe resembling new life. Colonel Shaw, believing he was in a living hell, was awakened by a new heaven. Shaw, believing that he should of also died for his country, takes the responsibility of leading the first black regime and going back to the living hell for where he once was. Denzel Washington plays the next character, Private Trip. Trip is the rebel of the crew and talks like he has been through everything. Throughout the film, Zwick emphasizes Trip’s feet, which are badly scared, bruised, and cut. The bruised feet symbolize the journey that he has gone through since the age of twelve when he first ran away from home. This is very deep because since the age of twelve he has been on his own and there had to be bigger battles to fight than the war he was in getting himself into at the time. The feet also symbolize all the training that the troops are doing and they are not being rewarded with proper attire such as uniforms. The third main character is Sergeant Major John Rawlins played by Morgan Freeman. He at first is part of the regime and then is appointed Sergeant. He is the i...
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...stage and the troops being on the ground, this shows that Shaw has the power over them and that the troops are inferior to him. Throughout the movie Shaw is on and off his horse. When he is on his horse doesn’t talk to the soldiers and when he does the camera angle shows him looking down, again showing more power. When off the horse he talks to the troops and treats them as not only troops but also as human beings the camera now is at conversation level, showing that Shaw and the troops are both there for the same purpose which is war.
“Glory” is an excellent movie not only on the screen but also behind the scenes. A better understanding is developed when the movie is watched from a critical point of view. There is a better understanding of the racial issues and how Zwick portrays the white and black issues by the different positions of the camera. Zwick shows an incredible camera view at the end when they all are one running for the fort and all the racial issues are erased. There is no better movie to review when you have to look behind the scene and get the true meaning, and in “Glory” the war against each other is erased and the unity rises above all negative issues.
Wallace Terry has collected a wide range of stories told by twenty black Vietnam veterans. The stories are varied based on each experience; from the horrific to the heart breaking and to the glorified image of Vietnam depicted by Hollywood. Wallace Terry does not insinuate his opinion into any of the stories so that the audience can feel as if they are having a conversation with the Vietnam Veteran himself. Terry introduces the purpose of the book by stating, “ Among the 20 men who portray their war and postwar experiences in this book. I sought a representative cross section of the black combat force.”(p. XV) Although the stories in this book were not told in any specific order, many themes became prominent throughout the novel such as religion, social, and health.
Robert Gould Shaw was a son of wealthy Boston abolitionists. At 23 he enlisted to fight in the war between the states. The movie opens with Robert reading one of the many letters he writes home. He is captain of 100 Union soldiers, most of whom are older than himself. He speaks of the spirit of his men and how they are enthusiastic about fighting for their country just like the men in the Revolutionary war only this time they were fighting to give blacks freedom and to live in a United country where all can speak and live freely.
During the Civil War, there were people who were extremely prejudiced against the 54th regiment because the soldiers were all different colored skin and the people where used to the idea that different color skinned people worked as slaves. In “Glory,“ Colonel Montgomery, the Sargent that trained and prepared them for war, and the colonel that was in charge of distributing necessities, served as the people who discriminated the African American soldiers. When he was teaching the soldiers how to march, some of them couldn’t tell the difference between left and right. He acted as if all African Americans were uneducated and they were hopeless to teach. Shoes were an essential part of training. Many of the African American soldiers didn‘t even have decent shoes when they enrolled for the war. Naturally, after all the training, their shoes wore down. If the 54th regiment were composed of white soldiers, the department that passed out shoes would already have prepared extra shoes for them. But since the 54th regiment was composed of all African Americans, the regiment was discriminated and there were no extra shoes for them. The other white generals thought the 54th regiment would never go on a battlefield and even if they did, they probably would all die. Therefore there were no extra resources for them. Another fact that there were some racist sentiments was that the African American soldiers only got a $10 pay while the white soldiers got $13.
The first social issue portrayed through the film is racial inequality. The audience witnesses the inequality in the film when justice is not properly served to the police officer who executed Oscar Grant. As shown through the film, the ind...
Using the title of the book to say that the soldiers are killer “angels” is an excellent description. They were people who fought for a cause, which was not always understood by some. In the introduction of the novel, soldiers from Lee’s army are described as most...
I have always believed that all races have their good and bad. Their is never going to be the perfect race. This movie definitely set a powerful message that life is not perfect for any race and that even though people are from different cultures, they are all interconnected somehow. The filmmakers did a great job at showing us that individuals should not be based on first impressions such as skin color or the social status.
Glory is a movie that shows how the characters change during the civil war they all became good and honorable men. This movie teaches us that no matter what color or race a person is or what they have been through they will always have what it takes to endure there hardships and become good men, everyone is capable of doing good.
There is a scene in this movie where the coach takes the team on a long run in the middle of the night. They end up at the break of dawn at a cemetery. The coach tells the young men of the battle that was fought on that ground. He told of the blood shed on those grounds that turned the whole area red. This can help many people that want to make a difference in this world. They had to stand up for their new knowledge to people that they love and trust.
The Birth of a Nation (1915) is one of the most controversial movies ever made in Hollywood, some people even consider it the most controversial movie in the long history of Hollywood. Birth of a Nation focuses on the Stoneman family and their friendship with the Cameron’s, which is put into question due to the Civil War, and both families being on different sides. The whole dysfunction between the families is carried out through important political events such as: Lincoln’s assassination, and the birth of the Ku Klux Kan. D.W. Griffith is the director of the movie, and him being born into a confederate family in the South, the movie portrays the South as noble and righteous men, who are fighting against the evil Yankees from the North, who have black union soldiers among them, whom overtake the town of Piedmont, which leads the KKK to take action and according to the movie become the savior of white During this essay, I will focus on the themes of racial inequality, racism, and the archetypical portrayal of black people in the movie, which are significant, especially during the era when the film was released. Black face in Hollywood was very common, especially during the time the film Birth of a Nation was released.
Over the course of approximately one-hundred years there has been a discernible metamorphosis within the realm of African-American cinema. African-Americans have overcome the heavy weight of oppression in forms such as of politics, citizenship and most importantly equal human rights. One of the most evident forms that were withheld from African-Americans came in the structure of the performing arts; specifically film. The common population did not allow blacks to drink from the same water fountain let alone share the same television waves or stage. But over time the strength of the expectant black actors and actresses overwhelmed the majority force to stop blacks from appearing on film. For the longest time the performing arts were the only way for African-Americans to express the deep pain that the white population placed in front of them. Singing, dancing and acting took many African-Americans to a place that no oppressor could reach; considering the exploitation of their character during the 1930's-1960's acting' was an essential technique to African American survival.
Incarcerated Criminals versus Tattoos; a display form of artistic creativity, tattoos have been associated with criminals that have been incarcerated. In today’s society, convicted males and females who display their tattoos are assumed to be “hard core”. Tattoos are a representation of a person character or characteristic. Tattoos are reputations that criminals withhold that marks there place in society and while they are incarcerated. That is the reason, why many criminals have tattoos? But then again, tattoos don’t always represent toughness or hard core. There is a part of society that has a different representation for displaying art/tattoos that does not mean “hard core”. For the non-convicted criminals of society, it means beauty,
“Glory” is told mainly through the eyes of Shaw, played by Matthew Broderick. At the beginning of the movie, Shaw is fighting in a battle, and manages to survive, despite heavy Union losses. He is horrified with the violence of the war, and returns home to recover from his wounds. Shaw is recruited to lead the newly formed black regiment. Although he has grown up and still retained his abolitionist opinions, he still has doubts about the capability of black troops.
Director Peter Berg based this movie off of Marcus luttrell the survivor of Operation Red Wings. This powerful war film features actor Mark Walberg who portrays the real life situation of Marcus Lutrell. The movie is centered on patriotism and the struggles that the soldiers faced. Peter Berg displays the mental and physical suffering that soldiers go through during battle. The film begins with troops training preforming exercises, drills, and tests that regular individuals could not imagine. The beginning of the film is an important part in setting the tone that is seen throughout the movie. The producer sets the film up in a realistic manner that showcases morality, brotherhood, and honor.
The film, which is set in 1968, is structured in two main parts. The first takes place in a Marine boot camp, while the second shows the situation on the battlefield in Vietnam. The movie is quite atypical. In fact it does not homologate to the convectional conception of the classic war film. This particular aspect is evident once that the stylistic elements, both aesthetic and thematic, are analyzed. First of, it is pretty much impossible to identify a single protagonist, the hero whose
Love however, is the source of much confusion and complication in another of Shakespeare’s comedies, Twelfth Night. Men and women were seen as very different from each other at the time the play was written, they were therefore also treated in very different ways. Because of this Viola conceals her identity and adopts the role of a man, in order to better her safety whilst being alone on the island, and to get a job at Count Orsino’s court. In the play Shakespeare uses the gender confusion he has created from obscuring characters identities to explore the limits of female power and control within courtship, and their dominance within society. Violas frustration surrounding her inability to express her feelings to the Count because she is a woman is an example of the limiting rules of courtship which were upheld at the time. (Aside) ‘yet, a barful strife! Whoe'er I woo, myself would be his wife.’ Here she is already expressing her anxiety and emotion at being a woman, and having to keep her emotions hidden from those around her. She longs to be able to express her love as a man could, and in her disguise as Cesario she finds an opportunity to vent her feelings for the Count, but concealed as his words and towards Olivia. Viola is unaware of how her words may sound to Olivia because she is aware of their gender boundaries however Olivia isn’t and soon falls for Cesario. Because Olivia is a Lady and head of the household, and especially how she lacks a father figure, she has a lot more freedom in courtship. Duisinberre comments on this saying, ‘...Viola and Beatrice are women set free from their fathers, and their voice is that of the adult world.’ This is seen when Olivia immediately takes the dominant role in her and Cesarios relat...