Fury (film)

Fury (Fury) is a 1936 American film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Sylvia Sidney and Spencer Tracy. It is the first film that the director made in Hollywood.

Plot

Joe Wilson (Spencer Tracy) plans to get married and start his own business with his brothers. Passing through a small town and due to a series of coincidences, he is considered a suspect in the kidnapping of a girl, a crime he has not committed. Wilson is jailed on a preventive basis. Through the mouth of one of the commissioner's assistants, a series of rumors begins: in a bar, he talks about what happened, exaggerating a bit. The people from the bar, outraged by the nature of the crime, convene in the square in front of the police station. As the concentration of people increases, the shouting increases proportionally to the throwing of stones. Finally, after a failed attempt to enter, the people have become a mass that begins to scream and go crazy, throwing fire out of control and setting the delegation on fire. Through the bars of the window, the unfortunate Wilson is seen fighting against the flames, in a cell in which he is locked up, but although he manages to escape, he is presumed dead since the fire demolishes the place, preventing the rescue of the body.

In a second block of the film, the trial of the 22 people who can be identified as material authors of the attack begins, thanks to the images of a cinematographic newsreel, which demonstrate their active presence in the tumult, denying the alibis that they had provided perjured witnesses. Among the accused there are various types and characters: men and women, young and old, contrite and hypocritical. At the same time, Joe plots revenge with his brothers: to remain as dead, even for his girlfriend, everything so that those who tried to kill him suffer as much as possible.

During the process, the guilt of the defendants in particular, as well as the mass in general, is discussed. Coming to closing arguments, Joe's girlfriend is delighted to discover that her boyfriend is alive, though she follows with regret as she realizes the revenge plans are blinding him.

Finally, as the group of arsonists are being sentenced, Joe shows up to save them from their sentence. On the one hand, because his girlfriend's speech caused him unbearable remorse, and, on the other, as a means of recovering his identity and his fiancée.

Cast

• Sylvia Sidney - Katherine Grant
• Spencer Tracy - Joe Wilson
• Walter Abel - District Attorney Adams
• Bruce Cabot - Kirby 'Bubbles' Dawson
• Edward Ellis - Sheriff Thaddus Hummel
• Walter Brennan - 'Bugs' Meyers
• Frank Albertson - Charlie Wilson
• George Walcott - Tom Wilson
• Arthur Stone - Richard Durkin

Candidacies

The film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.