Alternative Film Guide

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Director: Edgar Wright. Screenplay: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg. Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost

If you are seeking an uproarious and explosive action comedy, Hot Fuzz is your pick of the week. Directed by Edgar Wright, and written by Wright and Simon Pegg, who brought us the hilarious 2004 zombie shocker Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz lifts the buddy-movie genre to a new level while paying homage to popular action flicks such as Bad Boys II and Point Break.

It should be noted, however, that Hot Fuzz is no mere parody. Rather than effortlessly spoofing existing material, the filmmakers add their own riotous twists to reenactments of well-known scenes from a number of blockbusters.

As far as the story goes, we are first introduced to Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg), London’s finest cop. Despite his arrest rate of 400%, Angel is reassigned to the post of sergeant in Sandford, supposedly the safest village in Britain.

There hasn’t been a murder in Sandford in more than twenty years, but Angel soon grows suspicious of the fact that the village’s crime rate is much too low while its accident rate is much too high. When the corpses start piling up, Angel and his lazy colleague Danny Butterman (Nick Frost) are in for some wacky gunfights and spectacular high-speed pursuits.

A comedy with a running time of two hours can be a turn-off, but Hot Fuzz manages to maintain its the fast pace from beginning to end. While the first half relies mostly on some first-class comic interplay between the main characters, the second hour is filled with nonstop action.

In fact, the film’s overblown action is packed with ear-splitting shoot-outs and impressive stunts. Much of what takes place on-screen is just plain brainless warfare, but the filmmakers’ unrelenting humor makes even the most bizarre rampage a pleasure to watch.

Pegg and Frost, who previously teamed up against ferocious zombies in Shaun of the Dead, are particularly funny. Most of their gags are hilarious, others fall flat, but Hot Fuzz offers so many you’d really have to pay close attention to catch them all.

In the role of the obsessive police sergeant, Pegg is especially convincing. Supporting roles include eccentric performances by Nick Frost and Paddy Considine, and a surprisingly zany contribution from Timothy Dalton.

A clever and entertaining adventure, Hot Fuzz serves as a perfect diversion for those looking for both firepower and laughter.

© Franck Tabouring

Franck Tabouring is a freelance film writer. Born in Luxembourg, Tabouring is currently studying at the University of Tennessee’s School of Journalism and Electronic Media in Knoxville. More of Tabouring’s reviews can be found at the Tennessee Journalist.

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