Saw it the other night and while the action sequences seem well done I am asking those with experience and knowledge in this stuff.....well.....for lack of a more elegant question: In this movie, what is accurate and what is bull****?

SPOILER ALERT:

Specifically, the last and climactic battle where it is a single (disabled!) tank versus what looks like several companies of Germans....and in the end they ultimately are overcome but not without the area around the tank looking like the Alamo. Just not buying that.

Anyway, just looking for reality checks from the pros on this and whatever else in the movie that they might comment on. Thanks for any help.

They straight up said it was a SS battalion.

As for being realistic, they took license. If their vehicles had been disabled they would have simply bypassed the disabled tank after they were unsuccessful with their anti-tank weapons. Once the tank was out of cannon rounds they were vulnerable from all directions but forward because the only guns that would be employable on those sectors would have left the operator exposed.

Something that made me laugh was once the battle commenced they still had rounds outside of the tank. In the prep anybody with half a brain would have gotten every round except the .50 rounds into the tank. I would have also started out engaging the vehicles and dismounts from as far out as possible with the M2. Then when you are out of .50 rounds or you are now inside of the effective range of their weaponry then you move into your turret and use the cannon and bow gun.

What is the effective range of the M2?

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What is the effective range of the M2?

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IIRC it is over 1000 meters.

Point target on single shot is 1500 meters. Area target is 1850.

If I recall correctly, 2LT Audie Murphy repulsed an company sized attack using the M-2 mounted on a disabled Sherman tank. I believe that was the action that got him the Medal of Honor.

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If I recall correctly, 2LT Audie Murphy repulsed an company sized attack using the M-2 mounted on a disabled Sherman tank. I believe that was the action that got him the Medal of Honor.

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But it was the calling in of the artillery fire that broke up the attack, not the M2. He did kill a lot of Germans with it, but it would have had no effect on the tanks. And it was a tank destroyer, not a Sherman as shown in the movie.

Here:

http://amhistory.si.edu/militaryhistory/collection/object.asp?ID=421

Another Question: In "Fury" there is a scene where they are engaged in a fire fight and they are shown adjusting something on the shell itself before firing it. It looked like a couple of turns with a screwdriver. Above the brass casing and sort of at the base of the projectile.

What was it they may have been doing?

Probably the fuze setting would be my guess. I'm not familiar with WW2 ordinance but modern fuzes especially artillery uses several fuze setters to properly set between times, delay, or point detonating.

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Probably the fuze setting would be my guess. I'm not familiar with WW2 ordinance but modern fuzes especially artillery uses several fuze setters to properly set between times, delay, or point detonating.

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Thanks. This seems to mesh with what was going on at the time in the movie.

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They straight up said it was a SS battalion.

I would have also started out engaging the vehicles and dismounts from as far out as possible with the M2. Then when you are out of .50 rounds or you are now inside of the effective range of their weaponry then you move into your turret and use the cannon and bow gun.

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Could have engaged with M2 range when they came into view over the hill. Also could have engaged them with HE tank rounds at the same time.

Better yet, and what the Americans were very good at doing in WWII, engage the Germans at crest of the hill and blast the crap out of them with Arty spotted by tank crew.

In 1945 70% of the tanks lost in Germany was to panzerfaust. They had plenty of them and they knew how to use them. That I call BS on an entire SS Panzergrendier Bataillon having only two them. Once they got within 100 m of the tank, it should have been dead.

If I remember the scene correctly his radio was not operational. Agree he could have engaged with the M2 at a mile (1600m) to slow them up, definitely take out the trucks. Then I would have used the main gun which had about the same effective range as the M2. Then I would have bugged out with the 2 .30 Cal MGs and ran back up the road as fast as my (_,_) would go.

Did not make sense for him to be at that crossroads alone. Without at least an IN platoon in some half-tracks. With radio comms so that they could use FA, which the 2AD had. Figure the DIVARTY range fan for the 155mm Bn was at least 20 miles, should have been within that.

It needed one more scene after the assistant driver was rescued, something that tied it all together on the battle result and what happened to him afterwards. My only criticism of the flick.

But the last ditch stand was the story. I took away 2 things from the movie, which I considered excellent. 1) Good to see a Christian not be portrayed as a cartoonish character, and; 2) The details/equipment were outstanding. I thought this movie approached the Saving Private Ryan model. I will definitely get the DVD when it goes on sale, will be looking for the Director's cut.