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Glory (Patreon)

Published:
2026-08-15 12:00:07
Imported:
2026-08
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Content

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Files

Glory | Canadian First Time Watching | Movie Reaction | Movie Review | Movie Commentary

Full length/Unedited: https://www.patreon.com/Cinebinge https://www.instagram.com/cinebingechannel/ Merch: https://www.cinebinge.ca BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/cinebinge.bsky.social Simone & George are reacting to Glory for the first time! Canadians React! Subscribe | Like | Share | Comment Early Access & Full Reaction available on Patreon! #moviereaction #moviereview #glory Instagram: @cinebingechannel

Comments

newhastings

Captain Holt might’ve been his magnum opus but Andre Braugher is unreal holding his own against titans like Washington and Freeman. Passed way too soon 💔

Mike FromOz

Been waiting for this for quite some time. Looking forward to it, even though it's heavy as hell. Fix bayonets, folks, we're about to go.

Elisa H.

Oh I see. Some light entertainment this morning. 🫤

Lloyd Franklin (edited)

Comment edits

2026-09-13 17:00 Have you ever watched a film or television programme on this channel that you found boring, but kept watching just for the sake of the subscribers?
2026-08-15 12:07

Lloyd Franklin

The Cable Guy with Jim Carrey and Matthew Broderick is great.

Life in the cave of Garanoga

Deliverance I love it lol. Patriot is a great answer, so isn't the Adam Sandler answer. I can relate to that one, especially the uncut Gems part. Thank you two for the thought put into answering these random questions we come up with.

Chris G

The opening battle in this movie is the Battle of Antietam. It's still the single bloodiest day in American history. 53,632 Union soldiers faced 30,646 Confederates. The Union army had 2,108 killed, 9,549 wounded, and 753 missing or captured, while the Confederates had 1,546 killed, 7,752 wounded, and 1,018 missing or captured. I had the honor of visiting the National Battlefields at Antietam and Gettysburg last year, and it was really moving to walk the ground that so many men fought and died on. It really gives perspective when you can see it in person.

OddThomas

Godzilla for more Matthew Broderick. Cold Mountain for more civil war. City of Angels for more Andre Braugher (and romance for Simone!). Oblivion for Morgan Freeman.

Jeff K.

Understandable that you would think Warden Norton from Shawshank is shorter than he actually is, given basically all of his scenes in that movie were with Clancy Brown (6-3) and Tim Robbins (6-5).

Jay

Well they gave up on The Expanse and Black Mirror before either was finished, so I seriously doubt it.

ArcadeAndy

Oof, talking over the most powerful scene in the movie will not go over well on youtube.

JBK405

The Civil War is such a big focus for "Re-enactment" in the USA for multiple reasons: 1) It took place entirely within the borders of the USA, and was the last war to do so. Ever since then the USA's conflicts have all been in foreign countries, so to re-enact those battles you would actually need to GO there, as opposed to doing it at home. This is also why the second most heavily re-enacted war is the Revolutionary War, for the same reason. 2) There is unfortunately a massive glorification of the Confederacy, so the war is often glamorized as Honorable Soldier against Honorable Soldier. People who perpetuate this glamorization get to play at being a Good Guy no matter which side they are portraying. 3) It is an extremely well-documented war, moreso than any other similar-scale conflict of the time. Including through things like personal letters (As we see here with Shaw's letters being used as narration for the film). We have information on things like what people ate on specific days, what the weather was like, what sports they played in downtime, etc. So the re-enactors are able to play-act at the entire life and experience of the war. ---------- Most of the time the dates on the screen are just to show the passage of time in this film, but there are a few points where they do align with specific historical events that people knowledgeable of USA history will recognize. Two points specifically that I caught: 1) At the very beginning Shaw's letter tells his mother not to worry because he does not think there will be a battle. The date and location text says that we are at the Battle of Antietam, which was such a slaughterhouse that it is known as the Bloodiest Day in American History. The number of American deaths in a single day still has not been equalled (Not even in World War II or anything else since then). So people who recognized the date knew that we were about to see a bloody battle, and Shaw's optimism was tragically misplaced. 2) When the 54th goes into action for the first time, it is occuring at the same time as the Battle of Gettysburg which is the battle that 'broke the back of the Confederacy'. The newspaperman mentions it to Shaw afterwards, and says that the news of such a monumental victory will overshadow his report of what's going on here. ---------- You said that you hoped the story was historically accurate right when Shaw joins his troops in refusing to accept pay until the pay is equal. The pay boycott did happen, but in real life it was actually Shaw's idea to refuse to accept payment in the first place.

Jaaahn

i dont mean this as prying toto personal things or in anyway as an insult, but im curious if George has ever been tested for autism? just the aversion towards loud noises/people, the ability to hyperfocus on specific details and subjects and periodic mentioning of 'smelling' a scene in a movie.

NOTTHELASTONEMANNN

I'm not an expert but im pretty sure the tactics are because guns back then were super inaccurate at range so a guy sitting in cover taking shots is probably not gonna hit the broad side of a barn while a wall of 100 men together might have at least half land some shots

KevinM

I loved your reaction! As for the question on tactics, the fundamental problem in the American Civil War was that, in many ways, it was caught in the middle of two different technologies. Basically it boils down to the use of the rifled musket. The rifle, along with Minié ball, increased the accuracy of an infantryman's fire from around 100 yards to close to 400 yards. The problem was that the increase in accuracy did not come with an increase in rate of fire. In a show like Band of Brothers, each individual soldier could fire with both speed and accuracy, whereas in the Civil War the soldiers were still firing muzzle-loaded weapons and were limited to around three shots a minute. So in order to get a mass of fire, it was necessary to mass the soldiers. Think of it basically as one World War II infantryman having the same firepower as ten infantrymen in the Civil War. Both sides in the Civil War would figure this out, and began digging breastworks--essentially quick and dirty trenches--to fire behind. But for any attacking force, the idea was essentially to get to your enemy before they could do enough damage to stop you. So in the opening scene when Shaw and the rest of the XII Corps charged across the corn field they would have, in reality, been moving more quickly that was portrayed. Anyway, that's a long winded explanation as to why they still attacked en masse rather than fighting from cover, they needed to bring the weight of their weapons by simply throwing more people in.

blerbaberpaterb

i feel like their experience with Stranger Things S5 was more ruined by the shitty fans of the show than the show itself.

Mike FromOz

They're going into movies unknowningly, and they have to add commentary to ensure their reactions are able to be uploaded. It happens now and then, not their fault. They're pretty much on the ball with most, it just happens from time to time.

Brendan

I took an American History class in college, we went over this movie. A few things at the end when they say the Fort was never taken, it was abandoned shortly afterwards because the burial of the 54th in the mass graves led to the poisoning of the well. More black soldiers during that time came from freed families in the North, very few were escaped slaves. When they showed Frederick Douglas at the beginning of the film they made the actor looked like how Douglas looked later in life at this point in time he would have been significantly younger about mid forties. If you get a chance look at the pictures of Robert Gould Shaw he looks so much like Matthew Broderick

Cc Decc

Yeah, the Matthew Broderick phenomenon was interesting. Arguably the hardest casting to accept in the movie, and yet in some ways perfect as a naive young abolitionist officer from the North. He actually physically resembled Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, and was actually older than Shaw was during the events in this movie (Shaw was 25). And acting career wise, Broderick was actually much older than his iconic characters in the 1980s. He was 21 for Wargames in 1983, playing about 16, and looking younger. He was 24 playing Ferris. And that same baby face capped his career -- he lacked gravitas to play characters his age, and then when he finally did start to show his age, it was like a switch being turned off, and he got the child star treatment even though he wasn't actually a child when he was playing child star roles.

rictus grin

Nah for Jean Reno's American accent ;)

kelvin

I’m aware it’s a reaction, but talking completely through the scene that won Denzel his Oscar (single tear 🥲) without acknowledging the acting going on with just his eyes is crazy work.

kelvin

definitely thought the same.

rictus grin

a great film showcasing this kind of warfare, and the best representation of it is, Waterloo the movie about the famous battle that ended Napoleon for good.

Jaaahn

i feel like Simone was uncomfortable with the scene so she talked through it and was looking away.

Matt88g

Morale of the day war is a bummer

nigel Macbug

the soldiers with the red pantaloon During the American Civil War, more than 50 zouave units existed in the Union Army alone The Chicago Zouaves had uniforms that borrowed heavily from, without strictly copying, French Zouaves from which they drew inspiration.

supwizy

The marching in a straight line was done all the way up to world war 1 when French battalions marched into German's with machine guns. WW1 forced a lot of nations to change their warfare tactics

RJ MacReady

By this era the old Napoleonic tactics were obsolete due to increased lethality of the weapons. However tactics took years to adapt. Not long after this battle the remainder of the war was mostly trench warfare. The Gatling gun saw limited use towards the end of the war the first "machine gun" used in war. A prelude to WWI which would occur only 50 years later. Gettysburg (1993) is also a very good civil war movie. This was the biggest battle of the war and was the turning point.

REDR58

Speaking of "Gettysburg" (1993), S&G should watch it.

Giuseppe DeGaetano

Yes up until the civil war. Rifled muskets with conical bullets (Minié ball) allowed firearms during this time to become extremely accurate for the time. The witworth rifle in particular has comparable accuracy to modern firearms of today, but was extremely expensive and was produced by one small company in Britain that bankrupted itself with the cost. The line tactic fell largely out of favor by the end of the civil war and during the 1880s most major nations were focusing more on small unit tactics.

REDR58

One thing about the use of bayonets you see used in this (and other) US Civil War movies. The use of this weapon in combat was relatively rare and contributed to less than 1% of the wounds treated during the war: * * * * * The most common type of bayonet used by both North and South was known as a “socket bayonet.” This was a triangular-shaped blade about 18 inches in length which attached over the muzzle of the rifle and locked into place with a ring. This turned the rifle into a lance that could be used for fighting in close quarters. Soldiers were trained in the use of the bayonet as part of their regular drill—learning various thrusts, parries, and formations. However, the actual use of the bayonet in combat was very rare. This was mainly due to the more common use of rifled muskets, which increased the range of fire, making a bayonet charge obsolete as the charging soldiers would be under fire before they even reached the enemy line. During the Civil War, most bayonet charges occurred when soldiers ran out of ammunition and were in a desperate situation, such as the famous charge by the 20th Maine Infantry at Gettysburg. Bayonets were sometimes used in hand-to-hand fighting situations, as seen at the Bloody Angle at Spotsylvania or the Breakthrough at Petersburg, but more often in those situations the soldiers would use their rifles as clubs. While facing an advancing line of gleaming steel pointing in your direction could be terrifying, many soldiers did not consider the bayonet a deadly weapon. Confederate General John B. Gordon stated in his memoirs: “The bristling points and the glitter of bayonets were fearful to look upon as they were leveled in front of a charging line, but they were rarely reddened with blood.” And Confederate surgeon Simon Baruch stated that “Bayonet wounds are almost harmless when compared to the ploughed tracks which the terrible minie ball bores through the tissues.” However, despite this opinion and the rarity of bayonet wounds, soldiers that did receive them risked serious infection, due to the penetrating nature of the wound and the tendency of it to form pus, as well as “the chance of injury to blood-vessels, nerves, and viscera, and the possibility of pyaemia, gangrene, and tetanus.”[4] The triangular blade also created a wound that was difficult to suture shut. https://www.civilwarmed.org/bayonet-wounds-in-the-civil-war/

Keith Jones

This movie was released my junior year of highschool. I was in Vicksburg and civil war history was a large part of our history curriculum. The reporter in the movie mentioned that Grant had just taken Vicksburg which was on of the most important strategic victories of the war. Gettysburg was the same day on the other side of the country and was considered a major victory that broke the morale of the Confederate leadership. That's why the reporter knew he had no chance of making the papers with the story of the 54th.

EMB

I like this movie a lot, and while it's not 1:1 accurate it does a better job than movies like The Patriot in terms of accuracy and nuance. It shows a lot of greyness in the characters, and depicts some nasty but historically accurate beliefs and behaviors of the Union at the time. Most people were still white supremacist, even if they were an abolitionist, and many weren't even that. Plus the attacking of civilian targets happens in every war including the Civil War, which General Sherman of the north employed heavily in his march to the sea to destroy the economic base of the south. This was not common at the time, and is an example of early Total War Doctrine. I appreciate them showing some of that. As for how Shaw had to behave around the men is part of military tradition and the chain of command. Officers (Lieutenant, Captain, Colonel, etc.) were not to fraternize with enlisted men (Private, Corporal, Sergeant, etc.) which still exists today, to varying extents. The idea is it would make the enlisted men treat the officers too familiarly, and this would cause them to disrespect orders from the chain of command. I also like that the forest battle and the fort at times gave glimpses into one of the meanings of "fog of war." While it had been used to describe the uncertainty of movements in war, it also has been attributed to the fog of black powder smoke that covered the battlefield on each side when they fire their volleys, making it hard to see clearly shortly after the battle begins. The invention of smokeless powder, what we call gunpowder changed this, but it wouldn't be refined and widely available until much after the Civil War. The forming lines and marching in ranks persisted up into WWI. This was the most effective way for large armies to fight at the time of the Civil War. This is for reasons largely technological, partly economical (newer technology is expensive), and partly the time it takes for military doctrine to evolve (As was the case for WWI, where the technology had advanced to the point that it was no longer effective) The technology, like some others have said here, had improved since the Revolutionary War, as the soldiers were being issued rifled muskets and percussion caps (The little thing they would put below the hammer, which would explode and ignite the main charge in the barrel to send the ball out of the rifle). The rifling of the barrel, along with the Minié ball (which was more conical and more resembles a modern bullet than the smooth round musket balls from before) allowed the rifles to be fired accurately at longer distances. As another person has said, the issue remains the rate of fire. 3 rounds per minute in battle is an eternity, and that's for a skilled rifleman. Only when the cartridge (bullet, powder charge and percussion cap all in one package, like you see today) was developed and widely available, along with repeating rifles (level and bolt action, rotary guns like the Gatling, and later semi-automatic and fully automatic rifles and other guns) did military doctrine start to evolve past the marching in ranks and firing lines. There were some repeating guns, like the revolvers, but they were expensive and thus were only issued to officers, and they still had to manually load each cylinder like a mini musket. Guerilla tactics work fine for harassing an occupier and making it not worth staying around, but it's practically impossible to dislodge an enemy position by force using those tactics. I'm gonna leave it there, sorry again for the novel, I like talking about military technology and doctrine. Great reaction!

EMB

I'm still sad about The Expanse. I get it, it's not for everyone and it starts off slow and heavy with world building, but I think past that they would've really enjoyed it. But I don't want them to struggle to watch something just for my benefit.

Thall

Intersting enough reason to look up why they fought in tight formations: Despite Hollywood portrayal, explosive ammunition wasn't used in artillery during the time. So at most it was one metal ball. So it isn't nearly as problematic: Either it missed (like most gunpowder weaponry at the time) or it didn't kill everyone around the impact. So the "walking" is overly portrayed as well. Even today soldiers don't sprint everywhere, so when you are far away you'd walk, because getting hit was basically a no-chance, and you wouldn't wanna run and be completely exhausted before you arrived to fight. They still started sprinting once they reached effective range of guns! Second big positive is commands: Being in tight formation made it way easier to relay orders to everyone. There was only shouting and maybe flagging to relay orders. If everyone is spread out it would become chaos quickly. THIRD big positive at the time was cavalry. It was still used widely and the only real way to deal with cavalry for an infantry formation is being tightly packed with pointy bits sticking out, because, believe it or not, horses don't like being stabbed either. Only with explosive artillery becoming more common in the 19th century, and guns being quickly reloadable and far more accurate did the usefulness of tightly packed formations during battle become a liability instead of a boon.

blerbaberpaterb

that Expanse thing was the first instance of toxic fans ruining shit for them. i remember there was a alot of telling them they are wrong to feel a certain way about a certain character, or that they cant or shouldnt say/feel certain things, just non stop telling them to stop enjoying it the way they were enjoying it. so they stopped. stranger things S5 had that creeping back in, but instead of stopping they just stopped talking for a few episodes and we all saw how toxic fans can ruin things for everyone else.

Cc Decc

Kiss the Girls for more Elwes.

EMB

Oh yeah, I remember that now. Sorry, it's been a while. That's such a shame, and now I'm reminded about how annoyed I was at the fans at the time. While I might disagree with one of George's or Simone's takes from time to time I generally try to keep that to myself.

blerbaberpaterb

hell i dont even think you need to keep the disagreements to yourself, its more just be polite about it. which these people were not. theres a difference between "i disagree, i personally think this happened because xyz" than "omg thats so dumb you think that why would you react that way". some of them were also insisting they were 'reacting wrong'. as if theres only one way to interpret something. what these people wanted was someone to echo their own thoughts, looking for affirmation of their own interpretation rather than openly hearing how someone else may percieve something differently. so when the reactors isnt reading their minds and saying exactly what they want to hear, they lose their shit and get angry.

EMB

Yeah, generally if I have a disagreement I either think it's not really worth saying or I look at the comments and see others have already said it so I don't feel like I need to add to it. Being insulting, or saying "You're reacting wrong" I find absurd. I agree they mostly just wanted affirmation and were mad that they didn't get it.

Prince Mora

The Famous Tear: The iconic single tear running down Washington's face was an authentic, spontaneous reaction. Zwick delayed calling cut on the final take, letting the physical and emotional intensity peak.

OddThomas

A great Bob Gunton movie: Dead Silence (James Wan horror)

FoH Film Club

If available highly recommend Gettysburg

elle

For another movie where Broderick is an anachronistic (intentionally) element, check out the criminally underrated Ladyhawke. Worth a watch just to see Michelle Pfeiffer’s preternatural beauty. It’s also a great love story/fable.

JoeE

I think another reason it is popular to reenact is the lack of technology, I.e., no airplanes or tanks, etc., just men on foot with rifles

JoeE

I’m also glad the newspaperman mentions Vicksburg, a very important victory overshadowed because it happened at the same time as gettysburg

JoeE

If I remember, I think Simone was surprised that Rocky was a love story

Michael T. (edited)

Comment edits

2026-10-25 20:00 Interestingly enough US Civil War reenactments isn't only a US thing, apprently they do them in Canada and the UK as well as a few other countries. I understand Americans reenacting the Revolutionary and Civil War but why would people in other countries want to reenact them? That's weird.
2026-08-15 16:58

John Suire

Indeed, technology at the time dictated how the battle was fought. Rifles early in the war were inaccurate and difficult to reload. They also produced a lot of smoke, adding to inaccuracy. Different army groups might have wildly different levels of training, so massed fire could overcome lack of training. Cavalry charges were also still a thing, though beginning to become irrelevant. Additionally, command and control still favored large, visible, and organized armies, with flags, drums, and bugles to convey orders. Uniforms still provided visibility and “friend or foe” ID, although the Confederacy in particular had trouble producing enough for their armies, giving some units a ragtag appearance. The big tactical shift comes with the widespread use of easily reloaded and accurate rifles, the development of “automatic” weapons like the gatling and (later) Maxim guns, more accurate artillery, and eventually mordern machine guns. By the end of the 1800s/early-1900s, especially by the Russo-Japanese war, line fighting begins to be extremely costly and starts falling out of favor. Drab uniforms begin replacing the brighter, more varied uniforms (though the French notably held onto light blue uniforms into World War I).

Forsythe

Here are some of the historical accuracy notes from Wikipedia: The film portrays Shaw as accepting the commission to command the 54th quickly, when in reality he initially rejected the Governor's commission, not wanting to leave his regiment and questioning whether the position would advance his career in the army. The regiment did not struggle with being equipped properly. As a favored project of the Massachusetts governor, the regiment was provided everything it required from the outset. In the movie a soldier is whipped. Whipping was not permitted in the Union army and no such event ever occurred involving the United States Colored Troops. The soldiers are depicted as celebrating Christmas in the snow, however the 54th began recruitment in February 1863, and Shaw died at Fort Wagner in July 1863, meaning there was no possibility of Christmas during that period In the final assault on Fort Wagner, the 54th is shown attacking southward, with the ocean on their left. In reality, they attacked northward with the ocean on their right.

Andrew

So many OOH's

Michael Rawson

I am glad you mentioned it in the trivia because the scene where Denzel Washington gets whipped and that one single tear is the first scene I think of when I think about watching it and the scene I get the most emotional impact from. That single tear and his awesome performance throughout the film won him an Oscar and a Golden Globe and was his breakout role

Michael Rawson

As to the tactics the period from like 1600 all the way to the First World War had the two lines walk close enough to fire and get fired on in return. The guns were very heavy and very inaccurate. The power of cannons and rifles were slowly making what was the gold standard of warfare for hundred of years virtual suicide. By the end of the civil war though the entire last year was trench warfare because that's all that worked. But some European countries kind a shrugged it off because they viewed American troops as inferior. The old way worked again for Europe, well Prussia, in the Franco - Prussian War. Then when WWI started it took like a few months to figure out they would have to slug it out in the mud and trenches.

Brandon

One day, when they're running low on TV shows to react to, they'll start watching Homicide: Life on the Streets and love it. Possibly the best crime drama to come out of 90's television.

Michael Rawson

Swear this is my last comment, lol, don't want to spam too much - if you are interested in the history of this period I strongly recommend Lincoln from 2012 - Daniel Day Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Fields and solid roster of great character actors.

Brandon

Just started the reaction, but I had to stop in to see how many people had already commented with an "umm actually..." that they've seen an Edward Zwick movie before (The Last Samurai). I'm surprised to see that I'm the first. It's been a long time since I've seen 'Courage Under Fire', but I remember loving it at the time. It was another collaboration between Zwick and Denzel. It also has Matt Damon pre-Good Will Hunting, when most people still didn't know who he was. I forgot to mention this last week with The Patriot, but World War I was the first documented war where more soldiers died in actual combat rather than sickness (often dysentery) in their camps. So in a way, every pre-WWI movie is historically inaccurate by not focusing on this. 😆

Mike FromOz

Worth it for the opening scene of the Generals marching in step with one another on the stone floor. Fantastic film.

djKENTO

Have George and Simone not done Legends of the Fall? I could have sworn I'd seen them react to that... but now I feel crazy cuz I can't find it.

Matthew Johnson

You guys really have to do Lincoln - an excellent film about the Civil War era with one of the most gorgeous scripts ever written.

Happy Hanukkah

if we're going for a shorter and slightly lighter show, I'm a fan of Men of a Certain Age.

I Want A Hypothalamus For Christmas

George, I think you would find it very edifying and entertaining to watch the famous Ken Burns documentary series on the Civil War. I, and I think many of us, would really enjoy watching it with you guys.

Happy Hanukkah

I would prefer the director's cut of Gettysburg for at least one cut scene, but I promise not to complain* if I don't get it. * Too much.

Brandon

I don't actually want a dysentery focused movie, of course. It's just one of those historical facts I've always found interesting. 😂

Happy Hanukkah

Waterloo (1970). A classic film. The titular battle does not use CGI (duh) but rather over 15,000 soldiers on loan from the Soviet army. ("It has been joked that [director] Sergei Bondarchuk was in command of the seventh-largest army in the world.") And unlike some recent films on this channel, the movie plays it relatively straight rather than pushing a narrative.

Sleepy

For anyone interested in more American Civil War films/tv, see if you can get your hands on North and South. It's a tv miniseries than ran for three season (but best to avoid the third season entierly) and basically tells the story of the Civil War from both sides - an industrialist Northern family and a slave-owning Southern family. Well worth a watch, imo.

Happy Hanukkah

Part of the tragedy and madness of WW1.

John

Lincoln is great

Happy Hanukkah

"The American Civil War had the most American casualties in U.S. history, with an estimated 620,000 to 655,000 deaths. This figure represents approximately 2% of the U.S. population at the time and exceeds the combined death tolls of World War I and World War II. It remains the deadliest conflict in terms of both total deaths and deaths as a percentage of the population. It caused nearly half (or potentially more) of all military fatalities in American history, exceeding the combined death tolls of World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War." Does this answer your question? :-) /joke

Bill B.

Came here to say this, thanks for doing it for me! 😀

Bill B.

Lincoln is an absolute masterpiece!

Bill B.

I absolutely love how the film shows the very different perspectives and backgrounds of the black soldiers, Thomas at one end, Trip at the other, with Rawlins somewhere in the middle…. but by the end, they view each other as family and literally do die for each other.

Bill B.

I am a HS history teacher. In my AP US History class we have a few weeks after the AP Exam and I usually show two films. This past year we watched Glory, and after it sunk in that all the main characters died, one of my students looked back and said “Mr. B! You’re torturing us! They all died!!!” … I was kind of happy for that because it broke the mood, I’ve watched this movie so many times yet I’m always a puddle of tears for like the last half hour! God bless the 54th! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

Bill B.

All excellent points!!! I would also add that because of the ridiculously high death count, and the fact that the armies often did not have time to bury their dead (the local population would often do so), many battlefields basically became cemeteries, places that no one is going to build over. That made it easier to later set off these fields as national parks, with the only building being memorials, and the re-enactors doing this as a way to honor the sacrifices of the dead. I’m not among them but there is a huge swath of Americans whose ancestors fought in this war and for them I imagine it would be a very personal way of honoring one’s ancestors.

Lana Gorgeous

I know you guys were a little confused as to why Colonel Shaw put some distance between himself and Thomas given that they grew up together. I served in the US Army for 9 1/2 years as both an enlisted person and then later as an officer. Their is a very strict chain of command esp between enlisted soldiers and officers and that chain of command is especially significant during Basic Combat Training. An enlisted person would request to speak to the commander through his Drill Sgt, and he'd probably need to speak to his First Sgt before that so that issue can be resolved. It is required for discipline. However a private can formerly ask to speak to the commander if it is a personal serious issue, most commanders have an open door policy and he will be instructed how to report. Oh but you guys didn't notice it but after the training, Thomas was promoted to corporal, an non-commissioned officer. So although Thomas struggled initially, he must have come along very well to have been promoted to E-4.

JayF

I didn't catch you noting it during the reaction so I just wanted to mention that most of the music was performed by the The Boys Choir of Harlem.

Rav Low

Something to mention with the flogging scene: The typical punishment for desertion was DEATH. The flogging, while thematically tragic and undoubtedly traumatic, was the most lenient legally permissible punishment for desertion at that time.

Matt Dellarosa

A little know fact about Matthew Broderick is that he started out with dramatic roles. Of course you have this movie and War Games but he also did Project X in 1987. Its a great movie that I highly recommend. Also let's not forget his role as Simba in The Lion King.

funky weapon

First off, great movie with wonderful performances. absolutely gut-wrenching watching these brave men throw themselves into a meat grinder that was so utterly, stupidly pointless. I get this sense of anger and bewilderment from the idea that high command would rather throw a bunch of boys and men at an impenetrable fort than bombard it with artillery from the sea. and the only reason for it is because warships are more expensive and take longer to make than a soldier. especially a black soldier, if that pay boycott scene is any indication. watching the 54th charge - basically acting as decoys - wasn't glorious to me. it was just senseless. a pointless waste of these men's lives. and all this death because someone thought "hey, maybe we should treat the black humans like humans instead of agricultural hardware" and the other guy said "but I don't wanna." But like I said, great movie. wonderful performances from everyone involved. I just detest that this was the reality for hundreds of thousands of young men. so many of them were cut down because some rich old fucks didn't want to treat people like people.

Brandon

Cinematography by Freddie Francis, by the way. One of the all time greats that ever worked in the field. He also did some directing, but cinematography is the bigger part of his legacy. He worked in the business from the late 30's all the way to the end of the 90's. His last movie as the Director of Photography was David Lynch's 'The Straight Story' in 1999 when he was around 82. In film school, one of my instructors could not praise him enough.

Els

Well, Simone, my sincere advice for you is to refrain from joining the military.

REDR58

It would be a heck of a long reaction but maybe do it one episode a month.

Els

The prohibition against "fraternization" may seem harsh but it is a principle tested in practice for literally thousands of years. One reason is that a commander cannot have, or even seem to have, favorites among his (or her) subordinates. Another is that the line of authority needs to be clear in all situations. There cannot be any confusion about who is in charge.

dys

The Civil War was really an inflection point where tactics changed from more like in the American Revolution or Napoleonic Wars to the precursors of the mechanized warfare of the first World War.

Els

Now if you really want to get into questions of harsh discipline versus human weakness and military success you should watch the excellent PATTON (1970).

REDR58

Explosive artillery shells did exist during the US Civil War. In fact, a sizable cache of them were discovered in 1972 at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on the grounds of the former Allegheny Arsenal. And of course other examples can be found in museums. "Allegheny Arsenal continued producing four types of cannonballs: Solid iron balls (solid shot), clusters or cans of small iron or lead balls (known as case shot, grapeshot or canister), exploding iron balls filled with lead shrapnel (spherical case shot) and hollow iron exploding balls (shells). These cannonballs were classified as 6-pounders, 12-pounders or 24-pounders, depending on the weight of the solid shot intended for the muzzle-loading bronze and iron cannons used during this period." https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org/blog/from-the-desk-of-andy-masich-cannonballs-unearthed-at-the-allegheny-arsenal/ Selectable-time duration uses were employed in the rounds to explode after a certain amount of time after being fired.

Cc Decc

Courage Under Fire would be a good watch.

Obsidian_Rose

The walking in lines towards each other tactis has to do a lot with the muskets which were very inaccurate on longer distances and took a long time to reload, so the best way to ensure you getting a lot of bang for your bucks is to group them together, effectively creating a shotgun effect where some of the volley will hit from just the number of rifles fired. The tight ranks also makes it harder for less disciplined troops to break and flee as you're effectively being pushed forward by the ranks behind you. All of this serves to make the battle and how units behave more predictable for commanders and makes planning tactics and moves on the battlefield easier. And to the mindset of the time, ensures discipline as initiative from individual soldiers was thought of as undisciplined and endangering the cohesion of the army. It's really only towards the 1900s that this battle tactics stops being used and for example cavalry charges where used up until and even during ww1

Cc Decc

Oh, you mean all the ooh-ooh-ooh? :) Whatever happened to closed caption notes?

dys

Those currently in power in the US really want to erase the uglier side of our history, and I appreciate that this movie is pretty unflinching in that. Apparently we shouldn't learn about things because they'll make us feel bad or shame for what happened in our past, so we should just learn propaganda instead. I'm not claiming propaganda hasn't always been part of US education, but going to public schools in both Massachusetts and Georgia the difference was pretty stark. I wasn't taught full Lost Cause mythology in middle school in Georgia (this was Atlanta, they wouldn't have gotten away with full Confederacy apologism in a majority-Black city) but there was a lot of "well slavery was real bad but the north did some mean economic things that are just as much to blame for the Civil War". While in highschool in Massachusetts we learned I would say a more accurate version, it's in basically every document every Confederate state wrote about why they were rebelling, slavery was absolutely the core issue. I probably have slaveholders in one branch of my distant ancestry but that isn't a source of shame for me because I'm not those people. I still need to know my history without it being whitewashed to understand how it still has consequences that linger today. I do get a vicarious sense of Massachusetts pride from this movie and the real history behind it though, being Massachusetts-born and (mostly) raised. I don't bear responsibility for the good parts of this any more than I do the more shameful parts of US history that happened generations before I was born, and I appreciate that this movie shows the reality of free-state Massachusetts not exactly being a beacon of racial tolerance either, but I still get some warm fuzzies from this story.

REDR58

I don't think very many people in the US "celebrate" the Civil War, reeenactors or not. Perhaps some diehard Lost Causers in the South, some who saw the war as the Second US Revolutionary War. It was a great rendering of the country, literally and metaphorically and in some ways has never really ended. I am not a reenactor but I have attended a number of events and my impression is that some or most of the people who participate in such things do it to honor the memory of the people who fought in it, to experience, in perhaps a small way what life was like back then, training, camp living, and as close as they can get to that kind of warfare without the death.

JBK405

I would DEFINITELY support watching "Lincoln"!

EMB

Holy young Sean Bean! I need to see this show apparently! I'm surprised I hadn't heard of it before. Very cool scene, and while probably not super effective to tap butt of the musket on the ground to bring the ball down the barrel, if it works it works. They weren't expecting sharpshooting, they want volume of fire and it will probably be enough even if the ball isn't all of the way down the barrel. Thank you for that, I'll add it to my list of things to watch, probably sooner than later 😅 Also, yeah lashings/flogging were common punishment for all sorts of things.

dys

Andre Braugher and Lance Reddick passing away in the same year was just too much.

REDR58

Note that Shaw's and his men's shoes and equipment were stripped from the bodies before they were dumped into the mass graves. That's why they were all barefoot. The various US flags seen in the movie (should) have 34 stars (for the then-34 states; 36 by the end of the war) and a number of different patterns, with the star made of stars being one of them. Adding on the thing about the relatively small percentage of wounds caused by bayonets, artillery during the US Civil War caused *only* about 12 percent of casualties compared to 88 percent of casualties coming from small arms: https://www.civilwarmed.org/effects-of-artillery/ (WARNING: Graphic photos of injuries from canon fire at this link)

dys

Gettysburg yes, the followup Gods and Generals please no. Interminably long Lost Cause apologia.

REDR58

This has recently happened in Philadelphia, of all places, where signs and exhibits about George Washington's slaves were sanitized by the Federal Government: "Overnight, under the cover of darkness, the federal government removed panels at the President's House that told a thorough history of Philadelphia," Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said. "It was allowed to do this by the decision of the federal court, but that it did so at night shows it understands this action is shameful, that it violates community trust." https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/federal-government-replaces-slavery-exhibition-at-washingtons-home-in-philadelphia One more thing that needs to be corrected with the next Administration...

AVATAR-X

Simone, since you mentioned wanting more romancy stuff... Romancing the Stone (1984) [Adventure Rom-Com] |*| Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner Legend (1985) [Dark Fantasy Romance] |*| Tom Cruise and Mia Sara Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986) [Adventure Rom-Com] |*| Whoopi Goldberg and [Redacted] Innerspace (1987) [Sci-fi Rom-Com] |*| Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan and Martin Short Undercover Blues (1993)[Adventure Rom-Com] |*| Kathleen Turner and Dennis Quaid I.Q. (1994) [Period Rom-Com] |*| Meg Ryan and Tim Robbins and Albert Einstein Knight and Day (2010) [Action Rom-Com] |*| Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz The Adjustment Bureau (2011) [Sci-fi Rom-Drama] |*| Matt Damon and Emily Blunt About Time (2013) [Sci-fi Rom-Com-Dram] |*| Rachel McAdams and Domhnall Gleeson Mr. Right (2015) [Action Rom-Com] |*| Anna Kendrick and Sam Rockwell

John

This was great. Morgan Freeman and Carey Elwes also star in Kiss the Girls a movie I would recommend. Miracle at St. Anna is a Spike Lee movie around WWII you could consider. I think Crimson Tide, The Pelican Brief and Mo Better Blues are some other great Denzel Washington Movies.

dys

I'm glad this thread has none of the negativity of some threads on this channel with people being mad at George and Simone for their opinions despite being paying patrons for some reason. I love The Expanse but in a lot of ways the TV series never quite lived up to the books for me, and even though I was on board the whole run I can totally see why it wouldn't hit for George. If he disliked the TV series that much he'll probably never read the books but I think he might like them better.

REDR58

There has also been use of the Confederate Battle Flag outside of the US, which on the face of it should be highly offensive... https://theconversation.com/why-is-the-confederate-flag-so-offensive-143256 https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/confederate-flag-fact-you-can-find-it-flying-many-other-countries-165128 I find its use in such places deeply problematic and I'm not particularly interested in the reasons why, lack of context or (mis)understanding about what it means. That's just willful ignorance or laziness, to put it lightly. It gets me deeply pissed off to see it flying here in Pennsylvania, which I see from time to time. I hate it.

Happy Hanukkah

Fourteen episodes of 100 minutes each, with two sequels a decade later (in the real world). Note that it was produced on a low budget, so you're not going to get the full spectacle of big Napoleonic battles. Far from it. Not a spoiler, since the show is named after him: despite all the fighting, Sean Bean's character keeps surviving! :-)

REDR58

And one last thing, the discussion of Shaw's burial reminded me that his and his men's remains were apparently moved later on by the Federal Government to Beaufort National Cemetery, at Beaufort, South Carolina: https://kevinmlevin.substack.com/p/searching-for-robert-gould-shaws And that was the sculpture of Shaw and his men seen at the end of the movie, the Robert Gould Shaw and the Massachusetts 54th Memorial on Boston Common, in Boston, Massachusetts: https://www.nps.gov/boaf/learn/historyculture/shaw.htm

dys

They've done the same to the Smithsonian and more. I'm from Massachusetts and live in New York, and I'm glad both states are mostly standing up to this kind of revisionist history (mostly... for example some New York hospitals buckled under the pressure to stop treating trans kids), but the federal government is still running a lot of the exact playbook George and Simone recently watched on Andor.

John

I would strongly recommend Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War for those interested in the topic

Happy Hanukkah

You, like others, make the rational case for this way of fighting. In addition, it probably didn't hurt that this was in the spirit of the purported "Western Way of War", going back to the Greeks: tight formations aiming for decisive results.

John

Mr. Right is fun

HipsterImposter

Denzel rec - Fallen (1998), Freeman rec - Gone Baby Gone (2007), Braugher rec - Frequency (2000), Zwick rec - Blood Diamond (2006)

NuggzyBogues1

If you like Andre Braugher you should watch, Frequency. He's great in it

KnittingHaven

Yes, Project X (1987) is a great movie, also has Helen Hunt.

michael denny

Last war to do so leaves out the Indian wars but many forget about them.

dys

Kinda drives home how much the world wars were a definitive line between modern warfare and the past, when in Band of Brothers they do get the "fix bayonets" order once or twice but they are completely useless by that point.

Happy Hanukkah

I am logically and obviously led to recommend The Court Jester (1955). 2:34 For shame, George (and Simone)! Forgetting this classic scene? :-) https://www.youtubetrimmer.com/view/?v=sTl-oy3KEW8&start=1437&end=1458 2:58 Matthew Broderick is going for Boston Brahmin accent, associated with the New England upper class. I just remembered Andre Braugher's performance in Duets (2000). "This bird you cannot chain."

JBK405

I'm...less kind to "Gettysburg". They wanted to avoid Taking Sides in the movie, but it bends itself so hard to avoid including slavery that it curves around into pro-Confederacy status. By not showing any slaves, by having the Confederate soldiers deny that the war was ABOUT slavery, and by not even referencing that the Army of Northern Virginia abducted every person of African descent they encountered while on Northern territory and sent them South in chains, they actually Took A Side and it was NOT the Correct side. It's not the worst Lost Cause film I've ever seen, but it still crosses that line.

Cc Decc

Yes on Kiss the Girls and The Pelican Brief. I mean Crimson tide is a good one, but the writing for Denzel infuriated me in that movie. If I were Hackman I would have put him in the nearest torpedo tube and pressed launch. :p

Cc Decc

One of the difficulties is right now I don't trust EITHER side to respect history. Both sides play massive political games with it to feed a worldview. Here's a little game I like to show students, called the Ancestor Game, which should largely neuter everybody's holier than thou, virtue signalling and everything else. All you do, is go through generations. So there's you. Then we use 25 yeas as a generation for easy math -- that's short today, but actually would have been long once upon a time. In any case, watch this. So: today: You (1) +25yrs Mom+Dad (2) +50yrs Grandparents (4) +75yrs Great grandparents (8) +100 Great Great (16) +125 32 +150 64 +175 128 +200 256 people in your ancestry by the time you reach 200 years ago +225 512 +250 1024 ancestors around the time the U.S. is being created +275 2048 +300 4096 +325 8192 +350 16,384 +375 32,768 +400 65,536 +425 131,172 +450 262,344 +475 524,688 +500 1,049,376 And so on. we each have mor than 1 million ancestors when we get back 500 years. let alone 1000 or whatever. Which to anyone even remotely reasonable is a short and easy way of saying everybody, each and every one of us, has saints and sinners in our blood line. Everybody has slaves in their bloodline. And slaveowners. When somebody says "I am related to so and so" I normally believe them. I might be too. i know of at least one distant duke I'm related to. And its completely irrelevant. None of our ancestors are better. None of us are worse. go back far enough, and we're all a bunch of super distant cousins.

Lindorandir

Good job yall. Check out Kiss the Girls for a good romance ;)

dys

Pretending like both sides are the same, when one side is actively undoing decades of progress in healthcare and trying to erase those uglier parts of history... I don't know what to tell you.

Cc Decc

I don't know how healthcare fits in? But I do know history. And I do know that with history its all about what you emphasize as important. As an example, if someone is telling the story of Martin Luther King at a monument to him, and chooses to dedicate one of the panels to all the women he cheated on his wife with...they're being intentionally dishonest. Its missing the entire point of why he was important in order to damage his reputation. It was a moral failing, but absolutely inconsequential compared to the enormous impact he had on society as a whole. If you're writing a 500 page book, and want to include it, its one thing. But if you are summarizing his life and why it was important, it has little place. This happens a LOT in modern history. To circle back to our movie, one of the nice things about movies from the 80s and early 90s is that most of them weren't being twisted, or it had just started. I sincerely appreciate Glory's honest attempt to show so many sides without losing sight of why the 54th is legendary.

Joe D

This movie portrays Colonel Montgomery in a negative light. In reality he was a staunch abolitionist. His family did not own slaves, he did not shoot one of his own soldiers, and even 10 years prior to the war he was involved with raids in Missouri freeing slaves. As far as burning the town Shaw did write in a letter that Montgomery said the quote about sweeping away secesh. While it might be harsh there is an argument to be made it would have lead a better post war world. It didn’t take to long after the war for the South to push more racist policy to disenfranchise the black community that still have strong impacts to this day.

Matthew s

I think the U.S. Civil War is held in such esteem for several reasons, two of them being: 1. This is arguably the most righteous fight the U.S. Army has ever fought. After the Emancipation Proclamation, it quite literally became an army of liberation. So lots of people consider that worth celebrating. 2. The Confederacy was a huge underdog in the battle given the Union's massive advantage in resources, manpower, and naval power. The war lasted so long because the confederate generals were brilliant tacticians and the outgunned soldiers put up a very strong fight. So some folks in the south consider that to be worth celebrating as well.

dys

Healthcare fits in because you are pretending like both sides are the same when only one side appointed RFK Jr. to be Secretary of Health and Human Services to oversee a massive rollback of so much of what is scientifically not controversial and considered best practice in healthcare by actual scientists because of his own unfounded opinions.

MacGuffinStuff

First time I saw this movie was in my high school US History class, great teacher, had him for World History and we watched Braveheart in two parts just because he liked the movie, don't recall him mentioning how inaccurate it was, just that he was Scottish. But this movie should be shown in US classrooms and I've always said "A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" should be required reading, different editions have different page counts but it's short but brutally honest and important.

MacGuffinStuff

So few movies make me feel truly patriotic nowadays, but Glory, Saving Private Ryan, and in a completely different way, Born on the Fourth of July. Some people say it's unpatriotic, I disagree, it's just honest. The film does take some artistic liberties for the sake of time etc. but being that my parents generation is full of Vietnam veterans, it's true in the ways the matter, details aside.

Guy-on-Couch

i was thinking the same thing...when i saw this in the schedule this is the first scene I thought of and couldn't wait to see them react to it..lol did they even see it?

Matthew Maxon

When Robert jumped at the window. It was PTSD but they might have called it " Shell Shock". People in the military must follow the Chain of Command. You might address like "Good Morning" or something but that's just politeness & curoursy. Not fraternization.

Simone's Coconut Squire

George mentioned the interesting star layout on some of the flags. Little known flag fact: the rules for the flag ONLY dictated how many stars were to be present. It wasn’t until 1912 that the flag rules officially designated the specific arrangement of the stars, so prior to that, there were TONS of variations on the American flag that all qualified as “official”.

Simone's Coconut Squire

I understand the firearms limitation reason is a bit of a myth, and that the primary driver was communication. Before radios, you basically had to always keep your soldiers within earshot.

FranciscoGios

Cinebinge the reason they used this types of formations in battle was because the musket ball or the rifle itself wasn't a perfect war design. The sphere ball like Simone called it in the Patriot, looses its target trajectory in about 50 to 100 yards. After 100+ yards your target is safe lol. So basically George and Simone the soldier next to you or behind you is more likely to be hit than you. Using a straight formation of men and fire volleys of spheres and Canon fire that you can't control to your enemy is the dumbest tactic of all Warfare. The Union (The North) & The Confederacy (The South) both had Navies. For River Warfares both sides transformed their civilian steamboats into armored timberclads and ironclad gun boats. By defeating major battles, capturing key Forts and key Rivers (mostly this Forts were closed to the AtlanticOcean), and cutting the South from getting supplies from their allies AND last but the most important was to defeat The South's major Army was how the North won the U.S Civil War.

Juley

The bodies were reinterred at the Beaufort National Cemetery during the making of Glory and many of the actors attended the service. There were no cameras, no media hype, no press releases. The actors weren’t there for show. Veterans of every American war since the Civil War are buried in the Beaufort National Cemetery - including my parents.

KevinM

You're absolutely right, command and control in the Civil War depended greatly on close-order formations, so it was definitely an important factor. I know Griffin among other extremely respectable historians are strong proponents of that idea, I do tend to gently disagree with them that it was the primary reason. My reasoning is primarily that if the variable of communication, particularly on the offensive, is removed it would still be necessary to mass the infantry in order to get the volume of fire or the weight of numbers in hand-to-hand combat to dislodge a defending force. Even when the terrain was dense enough to allow these large formations to attack from cover in places like Culp's Hill at Gettysburg or along the Brock Road at Wilderness, the result was still largely in favor of the defender. Though I absolutely agree with you that communication was an incredibly important factor in their choice of formation.

Screamed at by cat

The reason for both fighting in formation and not fighting at night is the same. It's otherwise virtually impossible for the commander to maintain a picture of what is happening and communicate orders.

xeve

There are also times a officer may have to give an order where death is a very likely outcome for a "greater good"

xeve

The Vampire Hunter?

xeve

Biloxi Blues wasn't much before this. He plays a private in ww2 bootcamp. Christopher Walkin is in it as well. Worth a watch if you haven't seen it.

Obsidian_Rose

You're absolutely right about that, the tight formations pushing soldiers forward has a lot to do with how commanders (nobles) historically viewed poorly trained peasant levies in Europe, and the traditions was carried forward until technology made it impossible

Michael Rawson

Great explanation - the only flaw is that by the time the civil war ended it was essentially trench warfare around Richmond and Petersburg, VA. Almost all the wars between the civil war and WWI were very quick so marching in lines still worked - however, I think if the armies of Europe had more respect for Americas military and were paying closer attention at the time instead of their own revolving series of wars at the time the doctrines could have evolved way sooner then it did.

Michael Rawson

Thank you! I love Crimson Tide, its probably my favorite submarine movie - but everytime its on I feel like I am the only one watching who thinks Hackman, at least technically, was right the whole time. All the rules and procedures were well known and delaying a possible vital strike because of a shitty radio is nuts

Michael Rawson

that be wicked if they did it - and it be breaking new ground as I don't think they have ever done a documentary. Netflix also has some great docs that be good for reactions - Lost Pirate Kingdom (not sure about that title), Rome, there is one of the unification of Japan. What makes them great is they are acted out with segments of historians or military experts giving a narration or putting the acted out portions into context

REDR58

Here are a bunch of them, with pictures: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_flags_of_the_United_States I've been flying my "Battle of Bennington" flag (with the "76" in the canton) this summer for the 250th and also my "Betsy Ross" 13-star in circular formation. The latter flag is often seen flown in historical parts of Philadelphia.

REDR58

Many people equate "patriotism" with agreeing with everything the country does, which is not how I feel about it at all. I'm patriotic, I love my country but acknowledge that it has many, many problems.

REDR58

Or, his work in the "Homicide: Life on the Street" TV series based on the book "Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets" by David Simon who later created and wrote for "The Wire"

REDR58

That's very interesting!

REDR58

Are reenactors who portray the Army of Northern Virginia honoring traitors? I guarantee some people feel that way. I no longer attend such events because I felt that there wasn't enough context provided for what the Confederacy represented and I have zero tolerance for any glorification about any aspect of the Confederacy.

Matt Blanchette

The men who fought against the Union were not Americans. Quite purposefully so.

Shibby

Relax, it's just a movie

sb

Im glad I saw this film at age 12. It brought an engraved understanding of the time and explained my own lineage of Black soldiers that fought for America... from my Great Great Great uncle down to my grandfather and father who all served collectively in every branch of the military.

Chris G

Lincoln and Grant would both disagree with that statement, but this isn't the place to argue politics.

Ryan Alexander

Now that you've seen Glory, the 2nd best movie about the American Civil War, you should really check out Gettysburg the only Civil War film that tops it.

Kevin M. Pitts

Robert Gould Shaw will return in Avengers: Doomsday.

gfixler

I would have thought Simone would say Rocky for the movie that had an unexpectedly good love story. I remember them both being surprised how cute the love story in that was, especially for a beat 'em up boxer story with Stallone.

davetheimp

Thanks for a great reaction. Really enjoyed re-watching the film with you guys!

Angela D. Mitchell

I got to see some of the Glory battle scenes filmed in person! I was a student filmmaker assisting in a documentary on Civil War reenactors at the Battle of Olustee in Florida, and the Glory second unit was there to film battle footage. They also had a fog machine, which was so loud you could hear it for miles. And so crazy to see the big Panaflex cameras and cranes and there we were with our little van and our 16-mm! The participants took it VERY seriously and were always in character, dressed perfectly, including many men representing the Massachusetts 54th. Those who "died" in battle lay there for hours. Most don't even keep inauthentic change or items in their pockets -- everything is as historically accurate as possible. They had a full encampment near the battlefield they actually slept at while they were there and that was incredible -- and utterly like walking back in time. George, I'm not into reenacting myself, but after observing and talking to the reenactors, I would say that many at least aren't trying to glorify the Civil War so much as go back in time and imagine themselves a part of such a huge historic event in America -- our one Civil War (so far). There were men of all colors, people of all genders, all passionately into the pure history of it. Simone, I agree that Matthew Broderick's accent work could have been stronger, although it didn't bother me that much. George, Matthew actually won a Tony Award for a period piece, Broadway's "Brighton Beach Memoirs," which either Siskel or Ebert (I can't remember) said was one of the best stage performances they'd ever seen. But the movie for me really belongs to Denzel, Morgan, and Andre (still too soon! sob). Speaking of Broadway, if you want a Bob Gunton palate cleanser, George, go watch him on YouTube in his performance in the original cast of "Evita" with Patti LuPone. There's a great clip of him singing and dancing with Patti from the Tonys that year, and Bob does a great job (although of course Patti is on a whole other level). And dammit, this movie always wrecks me. If anyone needs a laugh, AT&T used this music for a commercial campaign way back 15 or so years ago, and my mother would always immediately start crying, yelling, "Dammit, it's that Glory music again!" She loved the soundtrack but was also destroyed by hearing it.

Angela D. Mitchell

Ladyhawke is so good, and so gorgeous! And so underrated. I love everything about it, including the soundtrack, which I know makes me one of the few, the proud. (I wonder if George and Simone will hate it immediately, or give it a chance. For me, the soundtrack is beautiful and works fine -- it's no more historically anachronistic to a 12th-century movie than a symphonic score would be, and it has some beautiful moments. It also makes it feel more like a tale being told from afar for me. )

Angela D. Mitchell

Exactly. And as horrible as it was for it to echo the punishment for Denzel as a former enslaved person, flogging was a common military punishment for most medium to serious infractions going back centuries to the British military and Navy.

Angela D. Mitchell

It's great, and Daniel Day Lewis is fantastic, along with a wonderful and talented cast. It was nice to see that it was worth the frustration and irritation DDL evidently put the crew through during filming, though -- he was evidently something of a pill so he could stay in his authentic "Lincoln" headspace. (I love DDL, but sheesh. These Method guys really need to get over themselves. Imagine an actress pulling this crap -- as Kirsten Dunst pointed out recently, it would never happen.)

Angela D. Mitchell

I still think Courage Under Fire was so underrated. Everyone involved was superb, and it's absolutely Meg Ryan's best onscreen work. Zwick has done some beautiful work for both TV and film -- this, CUF, Last Samurai, Blood Diamond, Defiance, and producing Shakespeare in Love, Traffic, etc., plus wonderful TV shows "Thirtysomething," "My So-Called Life," and "Once and Again."

Angela D. Mitchell

George would love the Burns Civil War documentary. Then he'll need to see the Community tribute episode ("Pillows and Blankets") after that for the full effect!

JumpTroopC5

Throwing out the recommendation for the movie Gettysburg. Thanks for the reaction video as always

Guy-on-Couch

BAYONETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

REDR58

Looking back at this movie, which I've seen a half dozen times or so, it seemed to me that Broderick dropped the accent a bit when his character was in a less formal situation (speaking with Trip alone by the water, for example), but when he's addressing his men or issuing orders, the more upper crust/patrician accent comes through more strongly. I thought he was great in the role.

Holdenk

I feel like y'all might like Gettysburg. Good American Civil War film. A bit long, but good.

Brandon

I'm one of those crazy people that think Shakespeare in Love actually deserved to win the Oscar that year over Saving Private Ryan. I'll die on that hill. 😆

Karl Wiggins

This is literally what the war was fought over, but since the U.S. prevailed, it's generally accepted by historians that the Civil War is the bloodiest American war counting the casualties on both sides, with World War II as a relatively close second.

Zedarion

you guys need to watch Gettysburg and Gods and Generals. now i have always watched Gods and Generals first and Gettysburg after since thats the order things take place, but many people say watch it in revers order since Gettysburg is the better movie and came out first and the was more person driven direct and faster paced, while Gods and Generals is more slow drawn out movie and can make some get bored with the movie i mean its 3h 39min (Exttended version 4h 40min) but its stilla good movie.

Simone's Coconut Squire

Interesting thing about Edward Zwick, the writer: He did this (Story of the first black regiment, told through the eyes of the white commanding officer) The Last Samurai (Story of the end of the shogunate, told through the eyes of a white guy) and The Great Wall (the story of a monster invasion of China, told through the eyes of a white guy). Notice a pattern?

D Gyre

Now THIS is a patriotic war movie.

Simone's Coconut Squire

Oh absolutely valid. I think the myth is that people think that like the revolutionary war, the guns were so inaccurate and short ranged they could only hit anything in massed volley.

MacGuffinStuff

BILOXI BLUES. Speaking of Matt Hew Broderick... He really is charming in everything. But Biloxi Blues is such a great little movie, technically a WW2 movie but not that kind of movie. Neil Simon play, autobiographical, adapted by director Mike Nichols. You'd appreciate it I think. It's funny, satirical, and deep, and honest about the experience of just being (drafted) in the military.

Angela D. Mitchell

I'd love to see a Romancing the Stone reaction -- it's so much fun. But I laughed imagining a reaction to Jumpin' Jack Flash, which is a guilty pleasure of mine. Simone would love it, but George's analytical nature would go crazy trying to ignore the giant plot holes around the technology and why Jack can't find other help.

Angela D. Mitchell

Yeah, that's a great point, and a very plausible reason for why he doesn't always have the accent. And given the period, it's also believable that his accent would not be a strong one but something that would emerge now and then -- I grew up in the Deep South and have mostly lost my accent, but it will definitely pop up hilariously and inconsistently at times!

REDR58

My mother who is from a small town about 100 miles north of Philadelphia (both places have distinctly different accents) and who lived there about 25 years before marrying my father and moving to the Philadelphia area will *immediately* drop into her hometown accent as soon as she's back up there visiting.

Donna Castellano

First off - Andre Braugher (Thomas). Check out Homicide: Life on the Street. It's my all time favorite TV series and Braugher's Frank Pembleton is one of my favorite TV characters EVER. He's incredible in that show. Also, this was his first film and he credited Denzel with helping him learn how to act on screen as opposed to the stage. As to the reenactment community, I've always looked at it as living history. You can see how these people actually lived - on both sides - and the attention to detail in the battle reenactments is just another facet of learning. Seeing it, even if it's not "real" makes it more real. There are contingents of reenactors for just about every older war. The only ones I've never seen are Korea to present day.

Donna Castellano

I'm glad someone else mentioned Homicide. That's my favorite TV series and Pembleton is easily my favorite character. Season 3 will always be my favorite. The Steve Buscemi two parter is some amazing TV.

Donna Castellano

Civil War era, I believe it was called "soldier's heart". Reference to the physical reactions a lot of people have when experiencing PTSD. "Shell shock" didn't come into use until WWI. In WWII, it was "combat fatigue". Or "cowardice", if you asked Patton.

Donna Castellano

I always found that odd about Montgomery in this movie. The one guy described him as "a real Jayhawker from Kansas" but then Montgomery makes the remark about having owned slaved in Kentucky. Living in Kansas all my life, I know the stories how crazy the Jayhawkers were. I definitely believe he'd have said the quote about "sesesh needing to be swept away, like the Jews of old".

Lee Downey

Star Trek also has a whole episode on this concept.

Lee Downey

The movie kinda makes it seem like that is the end of the 54th, but they continued to fight throughout the war and had additional battles in the south all the way down to Florida.