First off I have to say that I don’t know how many more films the team of Edgar Wright (writer & director), Simon Pegg (writer & actor), and Nick Frost (actor) have in them, but I hope they keep working together. Their first movie project was Shaun of the Dead, a send-up of zombie movies, ala George Romero. Their latest is Hot Fuzz, a send-up of the cop/buddy/action movies like the Lethal Weapon and Bad Boys movies. What makes their movies unique is their ability to make fun of the movies they’re referencing while at the same time creating a film that can stand on its own within the genre that they’re making fun of. Now that takes talent. And actually in this regard, I think Shaun of the Dead was more successful in this way than Hot Fuzz. Not to take away from Hot Fuzz. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable film.
Hot Fuzz is the story of the driven, hard-boiled Sergeant Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg), who is so successful as a cop that he is sent to the hinterlands of rural/small town bliss (where he’ll have nothing to do), so he won’t continue to make the rest of the cops in London look bad. There in the bucolic village of Sandford, Angel discovers to care for someone other than his job, finds friends, learns what is important in life, and, coincidentally, discovers a nefarious murder scheme. As it turns out, things aren’t always what they appear to. . . whatever. That cliché is part of the genre’s conventions. Anyway, Nick Frost plays his new partner Danny Butterman in Sandford, a guy who appreciates a few pints of beer and has a wall of action movies in his home. Angel teaches Butterman how to be a cop. Butterman teaches Angel how to have fun. Together they solve the mystery and put things right in the village of Sandford.
The supporting actors in the film are excellent additions. Timothy Dalton, Jim Broadbent, and Edward Woodward are all first-rate as residents of Sandford, especially Dalton’s delightfully sinister performance as a grocery store magnate. There are also a number of excellent cameos in the movie: Martin Freeman, Bill Nighy (this guy is in everything), and even an uncredited appearance by Cate Blanchett as Angel’s hazard-suited, masked girlfriend.
For fans of action movies, Hot Fuzz pokes fun at most of the conventions of this genre while maintaining a level of suspense and action that is quite high and frequently better than the films it is emulating. Some of the killings are quite graphic and some are hilarious at the same time, and some of the action stunts are startlingly effective and surprising. Angel delivering a kick to an old woman’s head, for instance. Unbelievable. Hot Fuzz is frequently laugh-out-loud funny. The writing and direction is spot-on. The performances are just right. The chemistry between Pegg and Frost is perfect—they fit together like old chums on a lark. All in all, Hot Fuzz is a homerun, and that makes two for two for this team. Here’s hoping for a long and successful string of hits for these guys.
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