Fury Movie Poster Image

Fury

(i)

 

Extremely violent but very powerful tale of WWII tank crew.
Popular with kidsParents recommend
  • Review Date: October 17, 2014
  • Rated: R
  • Genre: Drama
  • Release Year: 2014
  • Running Time: 134 minutes

What parents need to know

Positive messages

The movie is largely about teamwork and working together -- although friction among the five men always leads to imbalance and fighting. But the movie also leads viewers to ponder the horrors of war and the wartime attitude that it's perfectly OK to kill your enemies, even if they're human beings with families.

Positive role models

The characters are skilled, confident soldiers, and they work together as a team, fighting for their country. But since the movie takes place during the final months of WWII, the killing seems more wasteful and damaging than it does heroic. Even though these men may be heroes, parents may want to think twice before offering them up as role models.

Violence

Shocking, realistic violence. Heavy shooting, and high-powered weapons blow off soldiers' heads and limbs. Blood runs everywhere, in splatters and streams. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of dead bodies shown; piles of bodies are bulldozed out of the way, and tanks run over dead bodies in the mud. A rookie is made to clean up a bloody mess inside the tank, which includes half of a man's face lying in a puddle of blood. Nazis use children in battle; some are killed. A character is killed with a knife. Dead, hanged bodies are shown. A woman is briefly shown slicing up the carcass of a horse.

Sex

An American soldier and a German girl disappear into a bedroom for consensual sex. They kiss, but nothing else is shown. Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) is shown shirtless. Occasional strong verbal sexual innuendo. Pinup pictures (non-nude) are occasionally shown inside the tank and in other places.

Language

Strong language includes several uses of "f--k," plus "son of a bitch," "s--t," "bastard," "a--hole," "t-ts," "motherf----r," "p---y," "whore," and "c--ksucker."

Consumerism
Not applicable
Drinking, drugs, & smoking

Characters smoke cigarettes regularly (accurate for the time period). Characters share a green bottle of what looks to be whisky, taking huge slugs from the bottle. The bodies of several wealthy Germans are shown lying among many open bottles; they're said to have got "drunk as lords" and then killed themselves.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Fury is an extremely violent World War II drama about a tank crew stationed in the middle of Germany during the final months of the war. Heads and legs are shot off, gruesome body parts are shown, and there's lots of splattering, flowing blood and hundreds (or possibly even thousands) of dead bodies. A young American soldier disappears into a bedroom with a German girl; they're shown kissing, and sex is implied, but nothing is shown. The men exchange plenty of strong innuendo, and some non-nude girly pictures are shown. Language is quite salty, with several uses of "f--k," plus "s--t," "a--hole," "son of a bitch," etc. Characters occasionally smoke cigarettes in a background way (accurate for the '40s setting), and in one scene, they share a bottle of what looks like whisky. The movie -- which stars Brad Pitt -- manages to be dramatic and exciting without being preachy, and older teens and parents may come away with their own ideas of what war is really about.

What's the story?

In the final days of World War II, American tank crews are stationed deep within Germany, just barely hanging on until the war ends. Commander "Wardaddy" (Brad Pitt) has a gift for keeping his men alive -- although they recently lost one, and a rookie (who's been trained for office work), Norman (Logan Lerman), is ordered to join them. At first, the rest of the crew (Michael Pena, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal) resents him. But after a series of attacks and battles, small victories and big losses, they eventually bond and learn how to work together and respect one another. They're put to the ultimate test when their tank hits a land mine, and they end up stranded in enemy territory.

Is it any good?

QUALITY

Though he has a few duds on his resume, writer/director David Ayer is best known as the writer of Training Day and the writer/director of End of Watch, two movies that focus on the detail-rich workday of cops on the street. After a pause for a disappointing action flick, Sabotage, he's back in that same vein with the FURY. And rather than using his small, focused story to heavily underline themes about the horrors of war, Ayer simply follows characters and moments, letting viewers draw their own conclusions.

The cinematography and editing here are striking; Ayer color codes the bullets' paths so that incoming and outgoing are easily identified, and the interior workings of the cramped tank are given remarkable clarity without the use of explanatory dialogue. The device of the "rookie" character is a little worn, but then this entire movie harkens back to a simpler age, when war movies were made by tough guys; when they feel pain, it really matters.

Families can talk about...

  • Families can talk about Fury's extreme violence. How realistic is it, and how does that affect you? How does the impact of this kind of violence compare to what you might see in a horror or superhero movie? Why do you think the filmmakers chose to show the violence in this way?

  • Why do we watch war movies? What lessons are there to be learned today about a war that happened many decades ago?

  • How do the characters cope with being in such an extreme, horrific situation? Do they react in negative ways? Positive ways? Would you consider any of them role models?

  • How much teamwork is shown here? How do the characters work together? When do they not work together, and how does it affect the team?

Movie details

Theatrical release date:October 17, 2014
DVD release date:January 27, 2015
Cast:Brad Pitt, Michael Pena, Logan Lerman
Director:David Ayer
Studios:Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Releasing
Genre:Drama
Topics:History
Run time:134 minutes
MPAA rating:R
MPAA explanation:strong sequences of war violence, some grisly images, and language throughout

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Written byAnonymous October 18, 2014

Fury review

========================================================= Sex/Nudity: About having one's own tank, Grady grabs his own clothed crotch and states that's his. Don and his crew along with other tanks slowly make their way through a line of people walking down the road in the opposite direction. Norman spots a pretty, young woman walking by, with one guy joking that she'd "f*ck" him for a chocolate bar. Don then comments on the irony that they can kill Germans, but can't "f*ck" them. One person then jokingly wonders if Hitler would "f*ck" any of them for a chocolate bar. Don uses the term "t*tty" in a nonsexual context. After a town is captured, the Allied forces celebrate and carouse with some of the local ladies. That includes Grady partially lifting a woman's dress to push on her butt to help her up and into the tank where Gordo is presumably waiting (with the implication being that she has sex with both of them separately -- not seen). We see Don shirtless as he prepares to shave, but Irma, Emma and Norman give pause when they see bad and large burn scars on his bare back. Don comments on Emma being a "good, clean girl" and tells Norman that if he (Norman) doesn't take her into the bedroom, he (Don) will. As the couple goes in there, Don comments to Irma that those two are young and healthy, and we next see the youngsters seated on a bed, with Norman talking to her about her palm lines (although she doesn't understand him). They then kiss, with her pulling him onto her on the bed, and sex (or at least fooling around) is implied. Gordo, Grady and Boyd then enter the place, with Grady telling Norman that the woman from the tank is "wide open" and he can "jump in," with Gordo then saying she looks a little like a "whore." They then figure out Norman had sex (or fooled around) with Emma and Grady asks if Norman "took this pretty young thing for a roll." Norman doesn't answer, with Grady saying that if she "f*cks" Norman, she "f*cks" him too and comments on getting some "p*ssy." The scene is tense as it's uncertain what will happen, but Don informs them that nothing will happen to the girl. One of the crew jokes that Norman is a "f*cking, fighting machine." 6/10. ========================================================= Violence: We see lots of war wreckage on a battlefield (busted tanks, etc). A German officer on horseback then rides through that, with Don suddenly leaping out of nowhere and knocking the rider from his horse. Don then repeatedly stabs the man, including in the head (with bloody results). Don kicks Grady while both are inside the tank. Bombs dropped from a plane land near the tank, resulting in explosions. Don goes to attack a captured German man and has to be pulled away. Don slaps Norman on the head to try to make him perform. Don and his crew along with other tanks slowly make their way through a line of people walking down the road in the opposite direction. They're told to watch for "wolves" hiding among the civilians. Norman spots a soldier in the nearby brush but says nothing, thus allowing the man to fire an anti-tank shot (possibly a bazooka) that blows up one tank. Don shoots that German, while one man comes out from that tank completely on fire and shoots himself in the head (with bloody results). We then see various dead and bloody Germans. Upset that Norman didn't alert anyone to a German lurking nearby who then killed one tank crew, Don grabs and manhandles him. We see machine guns and mortars being fired by Allied troops off into the distance. Don and other tank commanders lead their teams through a field on a rescue mission to get troops out of harm's way. They most avoid running over Allied soldiers who are lying on the ground, and then get into a firefight with German forces across a field and in trenches along the way. The tanks open fire with machine guns and their big cannons, blasting many Germans (we see one partial body fly up in the air). They also blast one about to shoot a tank with a bazooka (or similar) and then run over his body, while many more are shot. A captured German soldier is manhandled, with Don also grabbing and slapping Norman to make him shoot that German dead (to get him acclimated to killing). Norman refuses, so Don grabs him from behind, maneuvers his body and hand, and then causes Norman to shoot the German in the back, killing him. He then kicks Norman when he's down on the ground in despair immediately after that. We see various dead people hanging from nooses and hear they were killed because they wouldn't cooperate with the German soldiers. Don leads his tank into a town and asks a bystander where the Germans are hiding. As the man points, he's suddenly shot in the head (with bloody results). The tank then opens fire on a nearby building with machine guns and shells, followed by a brief gun battle where various GIs are shot, including one whose leg is blown off (graphically). A bazooka is fired at the tank but misses, followed by the tank blasting that person and others. We then see several German soldiers on fire, with others letting them burn, but Norman mows them down with a machine gun. A man states that German forces want to surrender in a captured town, and the Allies are wary as they exit a building, but then see it's kids, women and such who walk out with a few German soldiers and SS officers. One of the latter is then pulled aside and shot dead with a machine gun. Don takes Norman into a building in a captured town where various officials and socialites are dead in their chairs. Don states they got drunk and then shot themselves (some are bloody). After seeing Irma up in the window of a building in a captured town, Don takes Norman up there and kicks in the door. Allied forces shoot guns in the air to celebrate capturing a town, while a grenade blows up a piano outside (for fun). Gordo tells a long story of shooting horses in the past. Bombs hit in a captured town, with Don and his crew taking cover. When they come out, Norman sees that the building he was just in (and where he fooled around with Emma) is now just rubble. He spots Emma, dead and bloody, with Grady then grabbing and yanking him away from there and pushing him back toward their tank, with Norman hitting at him. Don and several other tank commanders lead their tanks through a field, when one is suddenly hit by a shot from a Tiger tank. Don and the remaining ones then have their tanks rush the Tiger tank, but their machine guns don't pierce the metal and their shell shots miss. But one commander's head explodes when he's hit and the Allies are then down to two tanks. The second one is hit, thus leaving Don's crew trying to outmaneuver the Tiger and get behind it, its only weak point. They do and fire upon it, disabling the tank. Don then shoots two Germans who come out, while Norman blasts one who tries coming out of the turret. There's a sudden explosion as Don's tank runs over a landmine, ripping apart one of its treads, thus disabling the tank in a crossroads they're supposed to defend. The last part of the film involves a multi-minute sequence where hundreds of German forces approach Don's disabled tank. He and his crew lie in wait inside the tank and wait until the last moment to open fire and throw grenades out at the Germans, killing many of them. Return gunfire heads their way, pinging off the tank, all while they continue to shoot people and vehicles with machine guns and big cannon shots that blow up vehicles and soldiers (during that, we see one German on fire). When they run out of ammo, Don goes outside the tank to retrieve more that's on its side, with some of his team laying down cover fire as he does so. Various Germans are shot dead, while Don scrambles to get the ammo back in the tank. When he's done, he shoots several approaching soldiers, but gets shot in the arm himself. One German then rushes up the tank to attack him, beating at him with a weapon, with Don stabbing that man and then partially pulling him into the tank upside down where he stabs that man in the throat. An anti-tank shot rips through the tank and hits Grady, killing him (with bloody results, including on Gordo's hands when he goes to him). The team goes out of the tank to shoot more Germans with the big machine gun up top, while grenades are also thrown at some. Boyd shoots one and then ends up fighting another. SPOILER ALERT: A grenade is thrown into the tank and one man throws himself over that to save the others. One man is shot in the head and killed (with bloody results). Don continues to shoot many Germans with the big machine gun atop the tank, but a sniper shoots and wounds him, and then shoots him several more times before he pulls himself back inside the tank, bloody. Grenades are thrown into the tank, with Norman getting out down below via an escape hatch, thus avoiding the explosion that kills another person. During the end credits, there are various scenes of WWII battles and related footage. 10/10. ========================================================= We see lots of war wreckage on a battlefield (busted tanks, etc). A German officer on horseback then rides through that, with Don suddenly leaping out of nowhere and knocking the rider from his horse. Don then repeatedly stabs the man, including in the head (with bloody results). We see Grady's urine stream as he relieves himself into a container inside the tank. We see Gordo holding the bloody hand of a dead and bloody crewmember. We later see them removing the body and it appears to be headless, but it was hard to tell for sure. Later, Norman is ordered to clean out the inside of the tank, and as he does so, he sees the front section of part of a man's face (including the eyeball). Norman then exits the tank and vomits. We see a pile of dead bodies being plowed into a trench. We see a person throw out a pan of blood from a medic tent. A man comes out from a tank completely on fire and shoots himself in the head (with bloody results). We then see various dead and bloody Germans. Captain Waggoner has some bloody scrapes on his face. Tanks open fire with machine guns and their big cannons, blasting many Germans (we see one partial body fly up in the air). They also blast one about to shoot a tank with a bazooka (or similar) and then run over his body, while many more are shot. Grady tells Norman that a former team member "sh*t his drawers" upon first experiencing combat (not seen). We see dead people and dead horses, with a woman cutting into one of the latter (presumably for meat to eat). We see various dead people hanging from nooses and hear they were killed because they wouldn't cooperate with the German soldiers. The tank drives over a dead body in the mud. Don leads his tank into a town and asks a bystander where the Germans are hiding. As the man points, he's suddenly shot in the head (with bloody results). The tank then opens fire on a nearby building with machine guns and shells, followed by a brief gun battle where various GIs are shot, including one whose leg is blown off (graphically). A bazooka is fired at the tank but misses, followed by the tank blasting that person and others. We then see several German soldiers on fire, with others letting them burn, but Norman mows them down with a machine gun. Don takes Norman into a building in a captured town where various officials and socialites are dead in their chairs. Don states they got drunk and then shot themselves (some are bloody). We see Don shirtless as he prepares to shave, but Irma, Emma and Norman give pause when they see bad and large burn scars on his bare back. Upset about being put in his place by Don, Grady takes some eggs intended for Emma and licks them. Don then exchanges plates with her and eats those eggs. SPOILER ALERT: Bombs hit in a captured town, with Don and his crew taking cover. When they come out, Norman sees that the building he was just in (and where he fooled around with Emma) is now just rubble. He spots Emma, dead and bloody. One tank commander's head explodes when he's hit by a shell. Some of the team cautiously enter a nearby building to make sure no one is there, but they just find one dead body (while flies are heard buzzing about). The crew drags a dead German soldier's body over to the disabled tank, place it on it, and then light it on fire (as a decoy for approaching German soldiers). One German rushes up the tank to attack Don, beating at him with a weapon, with Don stabbing that man and then partially pulling him into the tank upside down where he stabs that man in the throat. SPOILER ALERT: An anti-tank shot rips through the tank and hits one man, killing him (with bloody results, including on Gordo's hands when he goes to him). SPOILER ALERT: A man is shot in the head and killed (with bloody results). SPOILER ALERT: Don continues to shoot many Germans with the big machine gun atop the tank, but a sniper shoots and wounds him, and then shoots him several more times before he pulls himself back inside the tank, bloody. At the end, an aerial shot pulls out to reveal hundreds of dead bodies around a tank. 9.5/10. ========================================================= Profanity: At least 112 "f" words (6 used sexually, 3 used with the prefix "mother"), 28 "s" words, 4 slang terms for male genitals ("c*cks*cker"), 2 slang terms for female genitals ("p*ssy"), 1 slang term for breasts ("t*tty"), 11 asses (4 used with "hole"), 9 hells, 3 S.O.B.'s (1 said as "sum-bitch"), 2 bitches, 1 damn, and 20 uses of "G-damn," 3 of "Jesus," and 1 use each of "Jesus Christ," "Oh God" and "Oh Jesus." 10/10. ========================================================= Alcohol/Drugs: Gordo finds a bottle and takes a drink from that. We see soldiers and others drinking in a captured town. Don takes Norman into a building in a captured town where various officials and socialites are dead in their chairs. Don states they got drunk and then shot themselves (some are bloody). Grady comes into Irma's home carrying a bottle and forces Norman to drink from it while grabbing his head and holding his mouth shut. Irma had brought out a bottle and has some, while Grady is given some as well, but he pours it onto Norman's head. Later, Gordo apologizes for the way he's been acting, saying he's just drunk. Gordo drinks after a fierce tank battle. Before what's going to be a tough battle, Don pulls out a bottle, mentions something about a hangover, and then takes several swigs before passing it along to the rest of his team. 6/10. ========================================================= Smoking: Don, Grady and Boyd each smoke several times, while Captain Waggoner smokes at least once and various miscellaneous characters also smoke. Don gives Irma some cartons of cigarettes. 5.5/10. ========================================================= Fury is a highly entertaining war movie (war movies can't really be called "entertaining," but I can't think of another word) and is definitely worth the watch. I give it 7.5/10. =========================================================
What other families should know
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
Parent Written byPopcorn25 February 17, 2015

Intense

Fury really stuck in my mind. It is a disturbing story of the horrors of battle. There is a lot of fighting, people been shot and blown up, constant use of the f word. There is something to the argument that if kids are to play war games on xbox, etc. they should know what a real battle looks like, but I felt this was too much for a young teen. I'm not sure if the reality of it can or should be absorbed. The soldiers are far from role models, but they have been through a lot.
Adult Written byEeezee November 1, 2014

Overprotection will not help kids to grow up healthily

Although every parent wants to protect the children and make them stay away from violent or bloody contents. However, I come from the city, which is best known as the victim of World War II. Since 8-year-old, I have been taught how the real war was, and the lessons, of course, would include many inappropriate pictures and filings. However, instead of enjoying it or hating it, I feel simply sad. Because after all these disturbing and bloody filings and contents, I feel lucky that I was born in a peaceful era, and I really appreciate who had sacrificed themselves to protect my homeland. By exposing the kids to such a narrative-ish war movie, they will learn to set their perspectives to war early, and they will not become violent or haters. I, personally, feel it is because of the early education towards wars, I have understood we should not repeat the history, and more importantly, to reserve the peace as long as possible. War is never anyone's fault, it is the result of opposing values that are set in different nations. We should all respect each other, and teach the kids that the war is over, and our job is not to blame anyone, but to promote peace.
What other families should know
Great role models
Too much swearing

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