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Right off the bat, I will tell you that Hot Fuzz is the most I have laughed in a movie theater in more than five years. It's that funny. Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg are truly excellent screenwriters.
What they've managed to do is acknowledge the overused clichés in wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am action films like Point Break and Bad Boys II (which are referenced to at many points throughout the movie), while paying an excellent tribute to them at the same time. It's not a spoof, or a satire, but an entry in the genre that isn't afraid to mock itself. They did the same thing with Shaun of the Dead and zombie films, except this movie is more fully rooted in what it's inspired by.
The laughs in Hot Fuzz come so quickly that it demands repeat viewings. Even the jokes that you see coming a mile away will make you laugh, because it's all in the delivery. And the references (some of them very, very obscure) are very clever. After you see the movie, make sure to read the movie's IMDb movie connections page to see the stuff you might've missed. In addition, there's a sweet story to be found in all of this. It's about defending what you love and keeping it from becoming something it really shouldn't be.
My big complaint about the script is that, at the end, it uses my least favorite action movie cliché. I won't tell you exactly what happens in this film, 'cause that's deep spoiler territory. But it has to do with the characters thinking they've won, that it's all over with, and then, all of a sudden, one last bad guy tries his hand at victory, showing up out of nowhere. God, I hate that. Do I ever hate that.
Edgar Wright has also grown as a director in addition to a screenwriter. I don't think that there's even five minutes that go by in this picture that don't include some form of clever quick cut, or whatever technical jargon I should be using for "standard action filmmaking techniques". This stands up with some of the best in the genre, and a lot better than most. And even though it's two hours long, it felt much shorter, making it move along quicker than most action movies or comedies tend to do.
Something that Hot Fuzz takes further than Shaun of the Dead is the violence. There are at least five very, very gruesome, crowd-pleasing scenes. One of them gets my vote already for the best movie kill of 2007, and I think you'll know which one it is when you see it. Urgh. One thing I will say about it - it's why I don't go to church.
The greatest thing about the movie is the acting. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have officially proven themselves very capable actors. With Shaun of the Dead, they were playing characters that were essentially takeoffs of their characters in Spaced, and their characters in that show were essentially takeoffs of themselves. With Hot Fuzz, they play characters that are complete 180s from the ones they've played before, although there are a few similarities here and there.
Pegg's Nicholas Angel is a great cop, but as a human being, he leads a very miserable life. In fact, it's not even until the fifty minute mark that he even cracks a smile. A lot of the movie is invested in his learning to enjoy the simpler things in life, and putting himself before his work. He even comes to have a greater appreciation of his job because of this. Meanwhile, Frost's Danny Butterman is the heart and soul of the movie. He's the kid you played cops-and-robbers with as a kid, but all grown up, sort of. Anyone who's dreamed of firing two guns whilst jumping through the air before will find tons to identify with in Frost's character.
The supporting cast is full of great British comedians and actors. Bill Nighy, Steve Coogan, and Martin Freeman do wonders with their limited amount of screen time. Jim Broadbent plays my favorite role of his in a very long time. Timothy Dalton chews scenery like the best of them, and thankfully, next to the two leads, he's in this movie more than anyone. Paddy Considine and Rafe Spell might be the two funniest people in the movie, and it's all in their facial expressions. Graham Low plays a... well, not a character, but an actual running gag in the movie that might fly over people's heads, but it had me in stitches. The rest of the cast consists of Bill Baily, Paul Freeman, Stuart Wilson, Sampson, Olivia Coleman, Stephen Merchant, and Elvis the swan as The Swan. Oh, and there's two awesome cameos. One some will recognize almost immediately. She's an Oscar-winning actress whose face is covered the entire time she's onscreen. Let's see if you can guess who it is. The other is much harder to spot, and if I didn't know who it was beforehand, I wouldn't have figured it out at all.
Hot Fuzz is not only the funniest movie I've seen in theaters in years, but also one of the best action movies as well. Edgar Wright and pals have proven that they're now capable in a variety of genres, and I can't wait to see what realm they play in next.
What they've managed to do is acknowledge the overused clichés in wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am action films like Point Break and Bad Boys II (which are referenced to at many points throughout the movie), while paying an excellent tribute to them at the same time. It's not a spoof, or a satire, but an entry in the genre that isn't afraid to mock itself. They did the same thing with Shaun of the Dead and zombie films, except this movie is more fully rooted in what it's inspired by.
The laughs in Hot Fuzz come so quickly that it demands repeat viewings. Even the jokes that you see coming a mile away will make you laugh, because it's all in the delivery. And the references (some of them very, very obscure) are very clever. After you see the movie, make sure to read the movie's IMDb movie connections page to see the stuff you might've missed. In addition, there's a sweet story to be found in all of this. It's about defending what you love and keeping it from becoming something it really shouldn't be.
My big complaint about the script is that, at the end, it uses my least favorite action movie cliché. I won't tell you exactly what happens in this film, 'cause that's deep spoiler territory. But it has to do with the characters thinking they've won, that it's all over with, and then, all of a sudden, one last bad guy tries his hand at victory, showing up out of nowhere. God, I hate that. Do I ever hate that.
Edgar Wright has also grown as a director in addition to a screenwriter. I don't think that there's even five minutes that go by in this picture that don't include some form of clever quick cut, or whatever technical jargon I should be using for "standard action filmmaking techniques". This stands up with some of the best in the genre, and a lot better than most. And even though it's two hours long, it felt much shorter, making it move along quicker than most action movies or comedies tend to do.
Something that Hot Fuzz takes further than Shaun of the Dead is the violence. There are at least five very, very gruesome, crowd-pleasing scenes. One of them gets my vote already for the best movie kill of 2007, and I think you'll know which one it is when you see it. Urgh. One thing I will say about it - it's why I don't go to church.
The greatest thing about the movie is the acting. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have officially proven themselves very capable actors. With Shaun of the Dead, they were playing characters that were essentially takeoffs of their characters in Spaced, and their characters in that show were essentially takeoffs of themselves. With Hot Fuzz, they play characters that are complete 180s from the ones they've played before, although there are a few similarities here and there.
Pegg's Nicholas Angel is a great cop, but as a human being, he leads a very miserable life. In fact, it's not even until the fifty minute mark that he even cracks a smile. A lot of the movie is invested in his learning to enjoy the simpler things in life, and putting himself before his work. He even comes to have a greater appreciation of his job because of this. Meanwhile, Frost's Danny Butterman is the heart and soul of the movie. He's the kid you played cops-and-robbers with as a kid, but all grown up, sort of. Anyone who's dreamed of firing two guns whilst jumping through the air before will find tons to identify with in Frost's character.
The supporting cast is full of great British comedians and actors. Bill Nighy, Steve Coogan, and Martin Freeman do wonders with their limited amount of screen time. Jim Broadbent plays my favorite role of his in a very long time. Timothy Dalton chews scenery like the best of them, and thankfully, next to the two leads, he's in this movie more than anyone. Paddy Considine and Rafe Spell might be the two funniest people in the movie, and it's all in their facial expressions. Graham Low plays a... well, not a character, but an actual running gag in the movie that might fly over people's heads, but it had me in stitches. The rest of the cast consists of Bill Baily, Paul Freeman, Stuart Wilson, Sampson, Olivia Coleman, Stephen Merchant, and Elvis the swan as The Swan. Oh, and there's two awesome cameos. One some will recognize almost immediately. She's an Oscar-winning actress whose face is covered the entire time she's onscreen. Let's see if you can guess who it is. The other is much harder to spot, and if I didn't know who it was beforehand, I wouldn't have figured it out at all.
Hot Fuzz is not only the funniest movie I've seen in theaters in years, but also one of the best action movies as well. Edgar Wright and pals have proven that they're now capable in a variety of genres, and I can't wait to see what realm they play in next.
