A brutal thrill ride into WW2

Rating: 8/10 (22 November 2014)

World War Two is an obvious focus for many film makers in recent times, ranging from Inglorious to The Book Thief, directors have always seemed to favour the dramatic tales of soldiers set against the backdrop of a Nazi Germany. Fury also follows this trend, but can this war torn story provide the audience with anything different? Set in 1945 Germany we are introduced to Don 'Wardaddy' Collins (Brad Pitt) who in charge of his five man tank crew which is consistent of Boyd 'Bible' Swan (Shia LaBeouf), Trini 'Gordo' Garcia (Michael Pena) and Grady 'Coon-Ass' Travis (Jon Bernthal). Then along comes newbie Norman (Logan Lerman) who claims that he wasn't even supposed to be drafted. However he is soon plunged into the horrid world behind enemy lines as they take charge of tank 'Fury' travelling mission to mission, each one with a greater threat than the previous. Pitt plays an as an excellent mentor to the young Lerman, with the great teacher-student relationship being explored here. Both of them are able to carry the weight of such great characters, which was refreshing to see. Lerman's character development was well plotted throughout the film, and felt authentic even if a little rushed for the sake of the plot. Even more so LaBeouf, who despite his antics off screen, was very moving at times, with both him and Bernthal developing into characters worthy of our screen time. It was only really Pena who seemed to be the weakest link in the bunch, even if I do feel this was very much due to his poor underwriting as a character. However overall the chemistry between the group was perfect and were truly convincing in their sense of being a team with director David Ayer doing well to balance all the strong personalities here.
Wack-a-mole Brad Pitt edition Ayer also does a brilliant job at creating a movie which is well paced and stunning with it's actions scenes. It's relentless and with so many heart racing moments you'll forget when you're supposed to breathe. A pivotal yet quieter scene inside a German woman's home also holds so much tension, it shows how the film can shine through in even the quietest moments thanks to the cast. The shots of the thick mud and the claustrophobic sheltered setting of inside the tank itself were brilliant, creating the perfect cinematic war atmosphere this movie needed to explore Ayers theme of the brutality of war. It was sentimental and harsh at the same time, never shying away from the horrors that a battlefields hold, but rather lingers on them just long enough to make the audience feel awkward. It's a brilliant combination of director and cinematography. Despite this feeling like the best war film to hit screens in recent times, it's brilliant casting choices and beautifully devastating choices in directing, it doesn't feel as if it's able to move the genre forward it anyway. At times it feels like a huge ode to every other comrade based war movie, and at others it felts as if Ayers is almost trying to show how horrible war can be whilst also showcasing it's ability to transform people and help them grow into people we may even aspire to be. Be it cheesy and a tad predictable at times, overall its obvious how this relentless film will leave many awe struck at it's high octane action scenes and it's realistic attempt at re creating the war time for a modern day audience.