Title: Fury
Writer and Director: David Ayer
Year: 2014
Cast: Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman, Shia LeBeouf, Michael Pena, Jon Bernthal
This weekend my husband and I sat down to watch a movie together and (of course) he picked a loud, manly, action-war film. I figured- no biggie, I’ll just use the extra time to study. Lo and behold an hour later I had yet to read a single line! This film is so much more than it appears. I am highly impressed with director (and screenplay writer) David Ayer. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy a good war film (Lions for Lambs was phenomenal but not exactly on par action wise). So here I am a few days later and I’m thinking what was so different about this film from any other that came previous? Good story? perhaps.. Good acting? yea sure..
What’s more is the filming, the editing, and the sophisticated use of dialogue, sound effects, and music. It gives us a distinct feeling of being confined to that tank with this group of soldiers. Experiences I think many directors strive to replicate, but few succeed.
Take the following scene for example.
Pure diegetic sound elements. Which is to say, this scene was void of unnecessary artificial sound effects
or music. Even the surrounding soldiers seem to be listening intently, aware of the cruelty but also accepting of it’s necessity. We almost feel the pain Norman (Logan Lerman) feels at being forcibly made to
kill. On the other hand, it presents us with the reality that soldiers who served in World War II had to endure. Kill or be killed.
The next scene is easily my favorite of the film.
The tanker battle is a climatic scene in which the smaller American tank takes on the larger much better reinforced German tanker. Ayer does a great job of emphasizing this contrast. Frantic dialogue, epic sound effects, and ominous music highlights how close the band came to being annihilated. There is no mistaking this is a film epitomizing the will to survive. A union of men responsible for each other’s very lives. What a historic war film should be!
Allow me to take you a bit farther (without spoiling the best bits, of course!)
Here we see Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) making the resolve to take on an entire German SS Battalion. Five American soldiers in an immovable tank against more than 200 enemy troops. Again minimal non-diegetic sound elements, with the exception of an almost unnoticeable very low, long, and drawn out note and the effect is intensifying. Ayer seemed to want to give the characters (and the audience as well) an opportunity to contemplate the gravity of such a decision.
After the decision has been made, the weapons prepared, and before the final monumental battle. A few minutes of thoughtful dialogue seem to seal the men’s fate. Acceptance in the form of a short prayer. This dialogue is, perhaps, much more powerful after journeying with the group throughout their deadly excursions. Below the dialogue we hear a soft musical score. Barely audible and hardly noticeable this is the scene that drives the following events home.
I think watching the last scene of the film out of context might be a little bit of an injustice to anyone who has not already viewed the film. Let me just say… WOW.
I recommend this film to anyone looking for a little more out of movie night.
I truly hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
References:
Movies Coming Soon. Published on Oct 6, 2014. Fury Movie CLIP I Can’t Do It. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfhvjTuIxhA
Movies Coming Soon. Published on Oct 6, 2014. Fury Movie CLIP Tiger Battle. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WPoe-H-nrg
Movies Coming Soon. Published on Oct 7, 2014. Fury Movie CLIP Hold This Crossroad. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4gMbJXOeQk
Movies Coming Soon. Published on Oct 7, 2014. Fury Movie CLIP Bible Verse. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwsOdsxDZh0