Fury: A Wartime Character Study
Hey folks back again after the lunchtime break for another meeting of the minds, if you will. This time let’s take a look a the movie Fury, starring Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Peña, and Jon Bernthal.
What an incredible journey this movie was. The story centers around 5 soldiers in tank operation during some of the last moments in WWII. what makes this story so appealing is the limited sets. Most of the movie takes place in the belly of a U.S. Tank. These kinds of small settings makes for an interesting exploration into the mind of the characters the story centers around. It pulls on the talent of a great cast and allows you to see wars varying effects on the soldiers who battle on the front-lines. David Ayers plays a lot with the darker and grittier side of humanity. He explores these characters playing on the notion of there being “honor even among thieves” Some of Ayer’s work included Training Day, End of Watch, the original Fast and the Furious, and U-571.
The performances from the actors in this film is definitely a testament to the potential that cinema has to tell relateable stories through the eyes of the characters involved. Brad Pitt proves why he is an Academy Award winning actor in his portrayal of Don Collier the hardened sergeant of this 5 man crew. There are human moments to this character as he takes in more than the normal amount of savagery that this war has afforded. There are points that truly are unbearable even for him. Pitt does a successful job of displaying a character that is capable of leading these men through the trials they face and acting as a guiding force, preventing them from being consumed by the complete savagery of war.
Logan Lerman’s performance as a young rookie soldier Norman Ellison thrown into the war with limited experience was powerful. To watch his character’s psyche thrown around by the darkness of it all to transition to a somewhat battle hardened soldier was extraordinary. Every bit of the movie was a focus on this kid’s journey as an idealistic individual whose world is turned upside down. Lerman is definitely an actor to watch for, he digs deep for his roles and pulls out great storytelling as an actor.
Shia Lebouf, has his own issues off the screen, but as an actor you have to give him nothing but respect his performances have been increasingly more incredible with each role he receives. Lately he’s been doing a bit more on the indie side of camera, and his dramatic chops have been tested and have been found praiseworthy, especially in this film. His character has been toughened by the war, but he still maintains a level of tender humanity that pulls an emotional response from the audience.
Michael Peña and Jon Bernthal are also lesser known dramatic actors. What I like about these two is that in every role I’ve seen them in, they completely give themselves over to the portrayal of those characters. As Trini Garcia (Peña) and Grady Travis (Bernthal), they show themselves as characters that offers Ellison his trail by fire into the group. They, in other words, are the tools used to toughen Ellison up.
This movie as a dramatic film runs for 2 hours, but it’s one of those films that is a must see. This is the start of Oscar movie season!