War is hell. That premise is assumed in “Fury.” The moral question dealt with in this film is how can one traverse this hell with a sense of virtue and honor. “Fury” follows a WWII tank unit, commanded by Don “Wardaddy” Collier (Brad Pitt) as the allies make the final push into Germany. Battle has hardened the five-man veteran crew. They have seen it all, the worst of human atrocities, and they have been driven somewhat mad because of this. At the beginning of the film, we meet Norman Ellis (Logan Lerman) who is a young Army Typist. His typewriter is replaced with a rifle and now he must learn to kill, and his teachers are killing machines.
One thing made abundantly clear in this film is that American soldiers had an intense, burning hatred for the Nazis. “Fury” does a very good job of showing us why. We see the Nazis forcing children and women to enlist, and the hanging bodies of women and children who resisted. These GI’s had one goal in mind — kill as many Nazis as possible. Norman is at first reluctant to kill, but after witnessing atrocity after atrocity at the hands of Nazi soldiers, he quickly fell in with the rest of the crew.
THE HORROR OF WAR
“Fury” is surely one of the most realistic war films since “Saving Private Ryan.” The horrors of war are shown constantly. No one could mistake this film as a glorification of war. Unexpectedly, “Fury” is filled with biblical content, containing large portions of scripture. “Bible” (Shia LeBeouf) recites scripture throughout the movie and talks openly about his faith. We also see Don reciting scripture from memory to the surprise of the rest of the crew. These decisions were very purposeful and came from director David Ayer, who is a Christian himself. It is no secret now that Shia LeBeouf himself converted to Christianity in the wake of this film.
“Fury” can be a difficult movie to watch. It depicts brutal violence and the ruthless brutality of the utterly inhumane Nazis. But these are the unfortunate reality of war, and because war is an inevitable result of the fallen world, we are left to answer the question of how to respond to it. This tank crew responded by looking evil straight in the eyes and facing it head on in the face of sure death. That kind of bravery is the reason why we must not forget the sacrifices soldiers have made and continue to make today.
