Film Review: Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz Review by Winnie McCarthy
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Plot Summary
Hot Fuzz stars Simon Pegg as Nicholas Angel, a highly effective police officer in London who is sent away to the small rural village of Sandford because his excellent arrest rate is making the rest of the police officers look bad. Angel is partnered with PC Danny Butterman, played by Nick Frost, the son of the village Inspector. Obsessed with American police movies, like Bad Boys 2, PC Butterman is excited to work with Angel who has been involved in exciting police work.
After being sent on a series of silly assignments, like the one shown in this YouTube video clip below, things start to get exciting in the village. What appears to be an angelic village without any major crime turns out to be something more sinister as a series of deaths appear to be more than just accidents.
Review
In preparation for heading to the movies to see Hot Fuzz, I watched the DVD of Shaun of the Dead because the writer, lead actors, and many of the bit actors are the same. I had enjoyed the latter film immensely and it led to me exclaiming with glee whenever one of the actors from Shaun of the Dead appeared on screen in Hot Fuzz. The wonderful comedic relationship between Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in Shaun returns again in Hot Fuzz. Their ability to play off of one another is excellent and their characters’ diversity (one is uptight, one is very laid back) creates a great balance of humor. Their real-life friendship obviously plays a large part in the great chemistry between the pair.
The movie imitates many of the American police action films, in a way which mocks them and celebrates them at the same time. Certainly people who enjoy films like Bad Boys 2 or Point Break recognize the absurdity and outlandishness of those films (don’t they?), and this film highlights the silly aspects and uses them for comedic benefit. Even people who are as obsessed with cop movies, like the character in the movie, should enjoy this film. Certainly those people who are tired of the formulaic cop/buddy film will love this parody.
The beauty of Hot Fuzz, which is lacking in many of the comedic films made in America, is that the humor is smart and clever, rather than relying solely on pratfalls or gross-out humor. The comedy is quick and effective and, provided you have a general knowledge of British slang, will keep you laughing throughout the film.
Hot Fuzz, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Bad Boys, UK, British, YouTube, Shaun Of The Dead, Point Break, America
May 21st, 2007 at 1:54 pm
[...] Film Critic May 21st, 2007 by Winnie McCarthy With my friend DaveP over at Pop Buzz UK out of town on holiday, I filled in for him on his blog with a guest post about the British film Hot Fuzz. If you want to read something I wrote that doesn’t relate to The View, check it out here. [...]
October 12th, 2007 at 5:15 pm
[...] actor Simon Pegg (from Shaun Of The Dead, and Hot Fuzz) will play Scotty. It’s rumoured that Chris Pine will be playing the younger Kirk, with [...]