Fury

Fury is currently streaming in Australia on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, and in the US on Hulu and Peacock Premium, and it earns its set pieces rather than just delivering them. It knows exactly what kind of film it is from the opening scene, and never loses that thread. An 8/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Brad Pitt's performance is the throughline that holds the set pieces together. Start it on Netflix whenever you need something guaranteed to land.

Whatever else is competing for your attention this week, Fury is worth clearing space for. The set pieces are impressive, but it is the story underneath them that gives Fury its staying power. April, 1945. As the Allies make their final push in the European Theatre, a battle-hardened army sergeant named Wardaddy commands a Sherman tank and her five-man crew on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. Outnumbered and outgunned, and with a rookie soldier thrust into their platoon, Wardaddy and his men face overwhelming odds in their heroic attempts to strike at the heart of Nazi Germany. Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf lead a cast that gives the action real stakes. It hit screens in 2014. The action sequences are expensive-looking without drawing attention to their own budget — they serve the story rather than interrupting it. The consistency throughout is what elevates it — not every moment is the best, but none of them are a reason to stop watching.

Action fans who want craft and story alongside the spectacle will find exactly that in Fury. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. It is a manageable watch, easy to fit into a single evening. Brad Pitt brings a physicality to the role that elevates every set piece. Action that earns its sequences rather than just delivering them.