There are a lot of World War 2-based movies out there... like A LOT! From Saving Private Ryan to The Dam Busters, 1939-1945 is a well documented time period in the world of cinema. With that in mind, why should anyone go and see David Ayer's latest wartime venture, Fury? What does this tale of a small crew skirmishing through Germany in a tank have to offer that hundreds of other wartime films have not? Well, to tell you the truth, not a lot.
From the opening shot of a single German soldier riding a horse across a post-battle scene, very much in the traditional 'look at the horror and be shocked!' style, we get a good sense of how this film is going to treat us visually. From the gritty, colourless shade comes Brad Pitt, swiftly ending the German rider's screen time. With a calm, collected expression he sets the pale white horse free and heads back into his tank. This moment is barely a minute into the film and the tone is already beginning to set into that all too common 'America-good, Germans-bad'. This approach, while obvious (since the main characters are in fact American), has been severely overused in this exact way and does not assist the film in developing its own identity.
The commonplace elements of post-Saving-Private-Ryan films are all here. Ayer has had no reservations in putting his characters into the expected roles; the bible-quoting, morally sound soldier is here, along with the token Mexican and the reckless bully, all headed out by the duo of Brad Pitt's Tom-Hanks-style experienced, battle hardened leader that the crew respect and obey, and Logan Lerman's terrified, non-violent rookie. I use the actor's names because unfortunately the crew members are very forgettable; while their characters are acceptable and bring enough of a believability to the roles for us to follow them through, the characters' names and emotional layers get lost in the shuffle. Sorry guys, Saving Private Ryan remains the perfect example of combining war brutality with character development.
Ayer also seems to enjoy employing fairly obvious foreshadowing, with Pitt's character telling Lerman early on 'not to get attached to people' then shock horror, Lerman does the opposite and consequently... *drum roll*... those people die. Pitt's intense charisma while spewing proverbs about survival often carries the film through, but it is nothing we haven't seen from other wartime films or for that matter, from Pitt.
The film's battle sequences are not exactly boundary pushing in terms of brutality or originality, but one sequence can only be described as stunning, with three American Sherman tanks running into a single German Tiger. This sequence amps up the tension with a precision and beauty like few others while demonstrating the true steel terror of the Tiger's superior weaponry and defences against the Shermans. Lives are lost, lessons are learned and thrills are given by the bucketload. This scene showcases what the rest of this film should have been, which is super-tense tank warfare. The other skirmishes throughout the film are visceral and visually disturbing but are nothing you have not seen before if you are a frequent WW2 film viewer.
Another great aspect of this film is the soundtrack. Steven price's music really does its job, capturing the essence of what this film is aiming for; gentle and soulful but hard edged and unsympathetic to the brutality of war. The music itself does not offer up anything revolutionary but it demonstrates how a WW2 film soundtrack is supposed to sound and it is a major plus for this film.
The acting is also a positive; Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman and Shia Labeouf all deliver the goods in convincing portrayals for each of their characters, despite obvious similarities with other war epics done previously. Even through a forgettable script and predictable storyline, these actors carry the film with just enough humanity for you to be somewhat emotionally invested.
Overall this film is an enjoyable feature with enough character to guide the predictable story and a great soundtrack. At no point will it try to wow you with originality or offer up a fresh take on the trials of war, but with just enough thrills to keep you watching, Fury is no joke.
From the opening shot of a single German soldier riding a horse across a post-battle scene, very much in the traditional 'look at the horror and be shocked!' style, we get a good sense of how this film is going to treat us visually. From the gritty, colourless shade comes Brad Pitt, swiftly ending the German rider's screen time. With a calm, collected expression he sets the pale white horse free and heads back into his tank. This moment is barely a minute into the film and the tone is already beginning to set into that all too common 'America-good, Germans-bad'. This approach, while obvious (since the main characters are in fact American), has been severely overused in this exact way and does not assist the film in developing its own identity.
The commonplace elements of post-Saving-Private-Ryan films are all here. Ayer has had no reservations in putting his characters into the expected roles; the bible-quoting, morally sound soldier is here, along with the token Mexican and the reckless bully, all headed out by the duo of Brad Pitt's Tom-Hanks-style experienced, battle hardened leader that the crew respect and obey, and Logan Lerman's terrified, non-violent rookie. I use the actor's names because unfortunately the crew members are very forgettable; while their characters are acceptable and bring enough of a believability to the roles for us to follow them through, the characters' names and emotional layers get lost in the shuffle. Sorry guys, Saving Private Ryan remains the perfect example of combining war brutality with character development.
Ayer also seems to enjoy employing fairly obvious foreshadowing, with Pitt's character telling Lerman early on 'not to get attached to people' then shock horror, Lerman does the opposite and consequently... *drum roll*... those people die. Pitt's intense charisma while spewing proverbs about survival often carries the film through, but it is nothing we haven't seen from other wartime films or for that matter, from Pitt.
The film's battle sequences are not exactly boundary pushing in terms of brutality or originality, but one sequence can only be described as stunning, with three American Sherman tanks running into a single German Tiger. This sequence amps up the tension with a precision and beauty like few others while demonstrating the true steel terror of the Tiger's superior weaponry and defences against the Shermans. Lives are lost, lessons are learned and thrills are given by the bucketload. This scene showcases what the rest of this film should have been, which is super-tense tank warfare. The other skirmishes throughout the film are visceral and visually disturbing but are nothing you have not seen before if you are a frequent WW2 film viewer.
Another great aspect of this film is the soundtrack. Steven price's music really does its job, capturing the essence of what this film is aiming for; gentle and soulful but hard edged and unsympathetic to the brutality of war. The music itself does not offer up anything revolutionary but it demonstrates how a WW2 film soundtrack is supposed to sound and it is a major plus for this film.
The acting is also a positive; Brad Pitt, Logan Lerman and Shia Labeouf all deliver the goods in convincing portrayals for each of their characters, despite obvious similarities with other war epics done previously. Even through a forgettable script and predictable storyline, these actors carry the film with just enough humanity for you to be somewhat emotionally invested.
Overall this film is an enjoyable feature with enough character to guide the predictable story and a great soundtrack. At no point will it try to wow you with originality or offer up a fresh take on the trials of war, but with just enough thrills to keep you watching, Fury is no joke.