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Parents' Guide to

Glory

By Charles Cassady Jr., Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Excellent Civil War movie has graphic violence, profanity.

Movie R 1989 122 minutes
Glory Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 14+

Based on 12 parent reviews

rileyreels
rileyreels Parent of 15-year-old
April 9, 2022
age 14+

Best War Movie Ever

This is probably my favorite war movie because it has heart. War itself is a horrible, ugly thing- but the reasons we fight: freedom, equality, hope are worth it sometimes. This isn’t a documentary, so it’s not an accurate portrayal of everything that happened. It’s a MOVIE and it inspires and entertains - and is based on factual events. Those reviews complaining it’s too violent- it’s a WAR movie- did you expect something else? And it doesn’t “promote” racism- it’s shows the times as they were. This is WHY we fought the war. I can think of no more inspiring movie than Glory.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
1 person found this helpful.
Tony F.
Tony F. Parent of 11-year-old
April 1, 2023
age 17+

Good but very violent and graphic

It was a good movie and I enjoyed it. It is very scary, graphic and, violent too scary for young children it’s frightening overall it was enjoyable for me but pretty scary.

This title has:

Too much violence
See all 12 parent reviews

What's the Story?

GLORY tells the epic story of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, the first unit of African-American troops that fought in the American Civil War. Progressive-minded Col. Robert Gould Shaw (Matthew Broderick) is their leader. Shaw's college friend Thomas Searles (Andre Braugher), a free-born African-American, eagerly joins the regiment, but most of the soldiers are proud but illiterate ex-slaves, some consumed with hatred toward the South. Troublemaker Trip (Denzel Washington) and the other blacks are kept in line, barely, by John Rawlins (Morgan Freeman), who understands the need for obedience if they all are to be soldiers worthy of the name. Shaw imports a trash-talking sergeant to whip the recruits into shape. Feeling they're being treated as inferior, ill-equipped and destined for only boring, non-combat missions, Shaw demands the 54th be allowed to prove themselves in battle. Finally, in an assault on a well-defended Confederate fortress, the African-American regiment gets its moment of "glory," but at a horrific cost. Their ultimate sacrifice earned the honor that opened the doors for free African-American men to serve.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (12 ):
Kids say (35 ):

This powerful and complex movie is best for mature teens and up; it may be too intense for younger kids, even those who are Civil War buffs. Rigorous, even pitiless codes of military behavior is something worth talking about with kids, especially in military families.

The movie is important, because, during a time when white Americans generally accepted the idea that African-Americans were an inferior race and incapable of serving with pride and dignity in the military, Robert Gould Shaw believed otherwise. He fought tirelessly against a corrupt bureaucracy and reluctant military establishment to prove that his all-African-American regiment would display valor and courage in the heat of battle. In the midst of intense racial prejudice from many in the North as well as the South -- and a lifetime of suffering the bitterness, anger, and frustration such prejudice engendered -- the African-American soldiers who composed the 54th Massachusetts Regiment overcame the false assumptions of many, resulting in President Lincoln ordering the recruitment of many more all-African-American regiments, which he believed helped turn the tide in the Civil War.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the history of racism in this country. How have things changed and how have they stayed the same since the Civil War?

  • What were some of the ways in which racism and bigotry were shown in the movie?

  • What parts of the movie seem to be an accurate reflection of what actually transpired, and what parts seem to be heightened or exaggerated for the purposes of a Hollywood movie?

  • Families can research the reasons why the U.S. split into Union and Confederacy and clashed in battle, some of which are not covered in this film.

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