Fury, directed by Fritz Lang, is an excellent film that has audiences feeling fury and rage over the actions of the mob and other things in the film. Before looking into the historical context of this film, lets first look at the main character, Joe Wilson. Joe is an interesting character that changes as the film goes on. In the beginning of the film, we see Joe and Katherine together and in love. After a year of them being separated, Joe finally buys a car and drives to go see her. Before he is able to make it to her, he is arrested for a crime that he did not commit. From here a mob forms and burns down the jail house with Joe supposedly still in it. This is were we see Joe change as he, "emerges from his near-death experience as a bitter man consumed by vengeance." In the video down below, you can see Joe and how he has lost his mind. He becomes furious at the townspeople and wants to see them murdered for his lynching. When his brothers confront him about his behavior, he says that only good parts of him, "burned to death with me that night". This is the start of a new Joe, one that has lost all his kindness and is filled with fury and vengeance. The emotion of fury and anger effects the audience as much as the characters inside the film. During the mob scene, were they are attempting to kill Joe, the audience feels a strong anger and fury towards the mob and their actions. The mob has no right to try and kill Joe and it is for this reason that the audience gets mad. Then after we find out that Joe is alive, the audience turns that fury towards the townspeople and agree with Joe. We want to see the mob killed for their actions and we accept the crazy Joe. This does change however. Towards the end of the film the audience loses its fury towards the mob and just wants Joe to stop. This is also shown in the film with Joe's brothers. They agree that they were first with him and his idea, but now it has gone to far and he should stop. This ability to be able to have the audience hate the mob so much is interesting and makes the film fun to watch. In the video down below, we see the fury that the mob has and it is the same fury the audience feels towards them during this scene. "The story was conceived during a shocking time in American history when lynching and mob violence escalated in the early 1930s." Now lets take a look at the historical content behind the film and how it is trying to tell us something. The idea of a mob forming and lynching an innocent man is not a new one during this time. Many people were lynched because they were convinced of something, and they weren't even able to get a fair trial. This lynching in history has a huge impact for the African Americans living in America at the time. With all the hate and racism going on around America, more and more African Americans were being convicted of something they didn't do and they ended up being lynched for it. This film is trying to portray that and show the American people the wrongs they are committing. This allude to this film being about African Americans and the issues they are facing. This is important because the film does a good job at getting a reaction out of the audience and showing them that it is wrong to try and convict someone of a crime without a fair trial. Now lets take a look at the mob and how they are seen as monsters. The mob is formed because of rumors going around that Joe is the criminal and that he stole a lot of money. This makes them mad and they charge and burn down the jail. The biggest take away from the mob isn't the actions, but their faces and expressions. They all seem to be enjoying it and they don't care to hear Joe's side of the story. This can be explained by an earlier scene in the film, where a man is at the barbers and wants a law which doesn't allow people to say what they believe. The barber replies that it is not possible because of the Constitution of the United States. The man is confused and the barber carries on by saying, "I had to read it to become an America. You never had to because you were born here." This scene just shows the audience that the citizens of the town don't know to much about the laws and rights that people have. The film's strongest part is seeing the mob try to stick together and denying ever killing Joe. This leads to a long trial, in which we see the townspeople worried and totally destroyed with regret. This regret and fear is the same feeling Joe felt when he was stuck in the prison. Therefore the film turns the fury from the mob and gives it to Joe, who is now showing them how he felt. It seems that Joe is going to let them die, but just before the men are going to be convicted, Joe appears and saves them from being killed. This scene can be seen in the video above. Overall, Fury is an interesting film that shows what gossip and hate can do to normal townspeople. It also targets the injustice behind lynchings and not giving people the chance to a fair trial. This film shows the audience the truth behind what could happen if they assume to quickly and believe in all the gossip. In the end, this is a great film that will leave you feeling both furious and sad.
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